SPH Media launches horror-comedy microdrama Connected drawn from ghost stories, urban legends
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Actor and content creator Fauzi Azzhar stars as an investigator tracking paranormal events in Connected.
ST PHOTO: JASEL POH
- SPH Media launched Connected, a 24-episode horror-comedy microdrama, with Singtel. It is made for mobile viewing and starts on Oct 10.
- The series uses ghost stories from Stomp readers and Singapore urban legends. It stars Lim Yan Xin and Fauzi Azzhar as investigators of paranormal events.
- The production mixes live action, animation and AI tools. SPH Media says technology supports human creators, while Singtel links the show to digital connectivity.
AI generated
SINGAPORE – SPH Media has launched its first short-form mobile video series, a 24-episode Singapore horror-comedy titled Connected, in partnership with telecommunications company Singtel.
The series, developed by SPH Content Lab, marks SPH Media’s maiden foray into microdramas – a digital entertainment format that consists of brief video episodes created specifically for viewing on mobile devices.
Starring local singer Lim Yan Xin and content creator Fauzi Azzhar, the episodes follow two investigators tracking paranormal events and strange occurrences at locations across Singapore. The stories are drawn directly from ghost stories submitted by readers of SPH Media’s citizen journalism portal Stomp, as well as urban legends shared by Singaporeans.
The episodes will be publicly released over three drops starting from Oct 10. Viewers can watch the show on social media channels including Stomp’s YouTube and Facebook pages, HardwareZone’s TikTok account and Singtel’s YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.
Highlighting Singapore’s tradition of ghost stories, SPH Media’s head of content and solutioning division Phin Wong says in a statement: “Singapore has always had a great tradition of spooky storytelling. Connected takes that very familiar part of our culture and plays with what it can become in a contemporary short-form series – mixing horror and comedy, local stories and ‘hantu’ folklore, and a visual world that moves between the familiar and the fantastical.”
A preview of Connected at the SPH Media auditorium on Oct 8.
ST PHOTO: JASEL POH
Singaporeans love horror, adds Fauzi, who is known for his online comedy content, at the Oct 8 launch event. “You’ve got a lot of it on TikTok and Instagram. People love drama as well, and of course, comedy. There are so many things going on in this world, and I think we need a bit of laughter. It’s a good combination.”
Connected is directed by SPH Media’s associate director of video Jason Riley, who is also the show’s creative director.
The production brought together live-action filming, original creature sketches by SPH Media’s senior animator Harriet Buckland and a hybrid visual effects workflow. Making the videos involves a technical process that combines camera footage, computer animation and artificial intelligence tools together with production partners Editlounge and Gengis AI.
Wong emphasises that digital tools supported human artists instead of replacing them.
He says: “For us, the interesting part was figuring out how to bring that world to life. Our writers, artists, actors and film-makers led the creative process, with new technology expanding what was possible visually; helping us realise parts of the story that would otherwise be difficult to put on screen.
“Connected is ultimately about what happens when you give creative people new tools and the freedom to play, while keeping the story, and the people making it, at the centre.”
Connected’s premiere at the SPH Media auditorium on Oct 8 featured a panel discussion on the show moderated by actress and Fly Entertainment founder and chief executive officer Irene Ang (left).
ST PHOTO: JASEL POH
The project is sponsored by Singtel, which worked with SPH Media to highlight themes of digital connectivity through local storytelling.
Singtel’s head of brand, engagement and loyalty Lynette Poh says: “It might be fiction as entertainment, but threaded through Connected is Singtel’s very real role in keeping people connected to friends, family and community.
“The horror-comedy genre also gave Connected plenty of room for new ways to tell familiar Singapore stories, and turn everyday settings into something stranger and visually unexpected. Technology became part of how the creative team brought that world to screen.”