What does it take to build a successful entertainment franchise in our modern media ecosystem? And who are today’s franchises actually for? In this episode, Jasmina is joined by Matt Blong, EVP, Head of NRG’s Syndicated Entertainment Programs, and Collin Leirvik, EVP, Head of Gaming and Sports. Together, they explore how the most powerful entertainment franchises are shifting away from broad, four-quadrant appeal and toward deeply-engaged fandoms, from hardcore gamers to anime superfans. And they dig into what the future of entertainment strategy will look like in a world where passion, not reach, is the true key to success.

Want to explore some of the work mentioned in this conversation? You can dive into our Leveling Up research and our Anime, Ascendant research via the links.

Research Reframed pulls back the curtain on what's next in the world of research, insights, and data science. In this episode, host Jasmina Saleh is joined by Fergus Navaratnam-Blair, Vice President for Trends and Futures, and Alan Miyazaki from NRG’s data science team. Together, they explore how generative AI is opening up new possibilities for research and insights professionals. As a case study, they discuss a research initiative conducted in partnership with the nonprofit Young Storytellers that used large language models to analyze more than 7,000 children’s stories, revealing how young people’s hopes, fears, and emotional needs have evolved over the past 20 years.

Want to go deeper? You can explore the full research behind this work here.