Tokyo and Toronto may be a 12-hour flight apart, and there might be a myriad of cultural differences between Japanese and Canadian societies, but there are still opportunities for Canadian producers to tap into this massive market. For example, in November, Japan’s Telepack announced it would adapt the Temple Street-produced series Orphan Black for Japanese audiences. Orphan Black: 7 Genes was the top-rated series in the Tokai region of Japan when it debuted in December 2017. And late last year, Japan/Canada/Netherlands copro Tokyo Trial was nominated for an International Emmy in the miniseries/TV movie category.

Japan is home to roughly 127 million people, 115 million internet users and 50 million TV households. Here, Sayumi Horie, head of global content development at Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, talks about what resonates with local audiences, including the enduring popularity of manga and morning dramas.

What formats and genres are popular with local audiences?
Sayumi Horie: One trend that continues is hit dramas are often based on manga comics. The big hit in 2016 was Nigeru Ha Hajidaga Yakuni Tatsu [known as “The Full-Time Wife Escapist” in English]. All channels are competing with each other to get the rights to dramatize the most popular mangas and remake them with good writers and star casts. NHK is also currently developing a few dramas based on mangas for the upcoming seasons.

Our top-rated drama airs Monday to Saturday from 8 to 8:15 a.m. Recently, we aired Hiyokko (pictured, “Bloom,” 156 x 15 minutes) from April 2017 to September 2017. The story followed the heroine Mineko, a 17-year-old girl, born in a farming family in the post-war era, who comes into her own in the big city.

It is our (and our viewers’) strange tradition to follow one heroine’s life for six months, through a 15-minute morning drama. The ratings are always very high [roughly 16 million people tune in on average].

Why are these dramas hits with viewers?
SH: The stories are relevant to all generations in some way, and are warm and family-friendly. Audiences like stories that aren’t difficult or dark and the main character should be loved by everybody. But the most significant reason why people follow this drama for a long time is that we air the most popular studio-based live morning show at 8:15 a.m., right after the series. The morning show’s popular presenters speak about the heroine’s story in the opening of the episode, sometimes with tears or laughter, to bridge the viewers emotionally with this drama. This is what SVODs can never do, and only TV stations can accomplish with traditional programming.

What are the major differences between North American and Japanese dramas?
SH: The speed of editing. Yours are much faster. Plus, Japanese viewers prefer clear main characters, while North American dramas often feature ensembles. This is Us is an excellent drama with several main characters and we hoped to make it work on our channel, but did not get the success we expected. It’s hard to say why. In comparison with U.S. and Canadian society, Japan is not that diversified in cultural backgrounds, so there may be less necessity to include various characters. That might be changing, of course, and people may want more diversity and ensemble stories in the future.

What’s NHK’s most popular international acquisition?
SH: NHK has acquired many hit international dramas, including Beverly Hills 90210, Ally McBeal, Downton Abbey, the Korean drama Winter Sonata. The other terrestrial commercial channels focus more on locally made dramas.

Have any Canadian series broken through?
SH: In Japan, we have an emotional connection with Anne of Green Gables for some reason. One of the morning drama series, 2014’s Hanako and Anne, was about Hanako Muraoka, the famous translator of Anne of Green Gables. We also aired [Toronto-based Sullivan Entertainment’s] Road to Avonlea in the 1990s, which was popular. While we’re not looking for more Anne content currently, [but] in the future we might be interested.

This interview has been edited for clarity. A condensed version of this article originally appeared in the Spring 2018 issue of Playback.