NHK Enterprises (NEP), the international distribution arm of Japan’s public service media, is showcasing a comprehensive slate of programming at MIPCOM 2025. The offering spans factual reporting, history, science, and drama, highlighting the company’s commitment to high-quality storytelling and utilization of 4K and 8K technology.
The distribution slate features two distinct historical titles. Hiroshima Ground Zero: Eyewitness Accounts of 78 A-Bomb Survivors (1 x 50 min.) uses first-time access to 110 hours of interviews recorded in the 1970s and 80s. The program employs current technology and computer graphics to scientifically visualize the experiences of the 78 people who miraculously survived within 500 meters of the hypocenter, an area with a calculated mortality rate of 98.4%. Also available is The Ghost Writer’s Wife (125 x 15 min.), an NHK Morning Series drama based on the life of Koizumi Setsu, wife of author Lafcadio Hearn. Set during the Meiji era, the story follows Toki, who must find work after her samurai clan father’s business fails, leading her to accept a job as a live-in maid for the new English teacher, a foreigner, as they bond over a shared love of ghost stories.
In science and technology, NEP is offering Quantum Entanglement: Einstein’s Final Mystery (1 x 50 min.), which aims to provide a visual explanation of the complex subatomic phenomenon that Albert Einstein called «spooky action at a distance». The program explores how this field, which earned pioneers the Nobel Prize in 2022, could lead to new forms of cryptographic communication and computing.
The slate also includes high-concept drama and cultural documentary. The ambitious sci-fi/fantasy series Queen of Mars (3 x 89 min. / 6 x 49 min.) is set in the year 2125 on a Mars colony governed by the authoritarian ISDA. Starring Suda Masaki and Suri Lin, the plot involves a visually impaired woman, Lili E1102, whose secret pact with an Earthling scientist is complicated by her own disaster and the sudden appearance of an inexplicable supernatural entity. Adding to the drama slate is Hirayasumi (20 x 15 min.), a slice-of-life adaptation of a popular manga. The story follows 29-year-old Ikuta Hiroto, who inherits a one-story house and takes in his 18-year-old cousin, attracting other troubled souls who need a break from life. Finally, the factual program Innovators of Japan Anime (1 x 59 min.) offers rare access to animation filmmaker Oshiyama Kiyotaka and includes interviews with creators from MAPPA to explore the current state and future concerns of the anime industry.
