South Korean entertainment group CJ ENM has launched First Light StoryHouse, a Los Angeles‑based label that will underwrite and co‑produce film and scripted‑TV projects driven by Asian and Asian‑American creators, with the aim of moving them into the Hollywood marketplace from the earliest development stage.
The venture sits within the company’s new Asian Content Initiative and draws strategic direction from vice chair Miky Lee, Academy president Janet Yang and East West Bank chairman Dominic Ng, who conceived the plan after months of private discussions about gaps in U.S. representation. Day‑to‑day operations will be handled by Jerry Kyoungboum Ko, head of CJ ENM’s global film division.
First Light will invest during the script stage, provide writers’ rooms, attach producing partners and then secure studio or streaming distribution once projects are market‑ready. Backers say the label expects to green‑light a first batch of up to six titles within a year and intends to cover genres ranging from family drama to speculative fiction while remaining anchored in lived Asian experience. Lee called the move “a bridge between cultures” during a briefing that coincided with CJ ENM’s K‑Culture Night at the Academy Museum in Hollywood, an event highlighting the conglomerate’s expanding footprint in the U.S. creative economy.
The company’s recent international track record includes support for Palme d’Or winner Parasite and Oscar‑nominated Past Lives, as well as English‑language projects such as Yorgos Lanthimos’s upcoming remake of Save the Green Planet!.
Analysts note that establishing a dedicated label in California allows CJ ENM to plug directly into talent pipelines while giving writers access to the conglomerate’s financing, theatrical circuits and streaming joint ventures in Asia. Advocacy groups that track on‑screen equity welcomed the announcement but urged leadership to keep decision‑making power in the hands of creators rather than corporate marketers.
