Making its debut at Singapore Comic Convention (SGCC) 2025 is GENFORCER - a group of Red Dot Island-centric public safety superheroes embodied in the popular tokusatsu form. For those who are not familiar with tokusatsu, the Japanese word literally means special effects, and well-known tokusatsu entertainment include beloved franchises like Ultraman and Kamen Rider.
GENFORCER is the brainchild of local homegrown media production agency Playbox Studios, whose projects have included video segments for the National Day Parade show, and Singapore Film Society's (+65) Film Project. Red Dot Diva had the privilege to sit down with Playbox Studio's founder and CEO Basil Yeo to chat about GENFORCER, the spark that inspired its creation, and the new heroes' relevance in today's world.
Red Dot Diva: I was surprised to find out that Playbox Studios is launching a range of tokusatsu characters called GENFORCER at SGCC 2024. Please tell us the origin story of GENFORCER, and what inspired you to start on this project?
Basil: Genforcer is a trio of first responders - a police officer, paramedic and firefighter - who don advanced armour to combat high-tech crimes and disasters beyond conventional emergency response. As you can guess, they are inspired by tokusatsu and real-life first responders.
We have always loved tokusatsu, and working on an indie tokusatsu was some of the best moments in our lives where we felt creatively fulfilled. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we witnessed incredible commitment and dedication from our real-life first responders, and that was also the time when I completed Winspector, Solbrain and Exceedraft, three early 90's "Rescue Police" series from the now-defunct Metal Hero franchise. Thanks to Syafiq, I also watched Tokyo MER, a TBS drama that's on Disney+. And that's how we decided that our next project would be about first responders.
Red Dot Diva: Who is the designer of the GENFORCER suits? Any special points to note about the suit designs?
Basil: The concept artist who designed the Genforcer suits, or what we call the 'Unity Armour' is Danial Syafiq, or Dansya (pronounced as densha). (By the way, he is also not the same Syafiq mentioned earlier!). He came up with the initial draft for the current suits about over a year ago, after Syafiq and myself decided to ask him to give it a go, because we weren't too satisfied with what we had up till that point in time. And he did a fantastic job!
Red Dot Diva: They certainly look very, very eye-catching!
Basil: The suits are designed with local elements in mind - Husky's helmet design is based on the Singapore Police Force's Next Generation Fast Response Car, Collie's design combines elements from the Singapore Civil Defence Force's Fire Medical Vehicle and the current generation ambulance, while Beagle's colour scheme is based on the Singapore Civil Defence Force's new bunker gear. Collie also carries around an AI medical bot known as Handy.
The unique aspect of the suits is that they are built atop a base suit, which is expandable and modifiable, thus opening up opportunities for overseas iterations of Genforcer.
Red Dot Diva:When can we expect more to be revealed about GENFORCER on social media? (Impatient, lah!)
Basil: We're revealing the characters one by one in the lead up to SGCC. After that, we will also be posting one "G-Log" a week (we will try!). For at least six months now, we have been filming almost everything that we've been doing for project development and behind the scenes for the teasers and photoshoots, so there's a lot of archival footage that we're now pulling out to edit into vlogs.
One thing that we're going to try and do as much as we can (and within the realm of legal possibility) is build this IP in public, so anyone who is interested can see what goes on behind building an IP from scratch!
Red Dot Diva: What were the most challenging parts in bringing GENFORCER into reality?
Basil: It was most certainly trying to figure out the purpose of this project. Why does it even matter to anyone out there apart from our own selfish reasons of wanting to make something that we can call our own. The lack of purpose was so bad that I actually put off working on the project for a while to focus on building the company instead, Then one day, the main objective occurred to me, and I started to challenge the team to figure it out on their own. Well they did. Mostly, haha.
The reason why Genforcer matters is because of public and personal safety, and the need to constantly stay vigilant against potential threats that have become part and parcel of today's landscape. Positive, public safety education will play a big part in helping us be mentally and physically prepared should anything happen. It's quite similar to the Total Defence mantra, but this is something that comes from the ground up, and not top-down (from Government).
The next challenge was about finances. This project is currently financed entirely from revenue, sans loans and investment. Apart from financing Genforcer, we have overheads like rent and salaries to pay every month. So, this leads us to having to shift our priorities once in a while, which may affect the pace of development or production. But in this aspect, I think we've done really well in 2024.
Another challenge I can think of is managing our peak periods when it comes to our video production business. This year, during May to August, we produced a total of 40 videos across 3 projects. It was also the same period that we were developing our plans for SGCC and later on. Also at the same time, we hired two interns to help out with the shoots, which means we also had to spend time training them and ensuring that their progress was on track. In the end, the team pulled through. Which brings me to my last challenge - Building the right team.
Having the right team can make or break your project, and I am extremely fortunate to have this team. We have an amazing chemistry (they call it 'single brain cell') and there is a wonderful energy that permeates throughout our office everyday. I hope our audiences will be able to see that same passion and energy throughout everything that we do for Genforcer.
Red Dot Diva: That's very inspiring. I hope up and coming creators or business owners will find what you shared useful, and keep these tips in mind when they decide to embark on their own journey.
Red Dot Diva: Successful creator IPs are usually presented in various forms. So, are there plans for GENFORCER to be in a comic, or a Youtube shorts, etc?
Basil: Currently, our main priority is to build up our YouTube channel and social media with different types of content, including our "G-Logs". Most importantly, short form educational PSAs that address our mission of making the world a safer place. We also want to do a comic book in 2025, and we have already actually spoken to an artist, but we won't say who they are until things are signed.
This might also come as a surprise to many, but we will not be committing to doing a TV show at this time. Not a pilot, not even a trailer. The main objective is short form content on YouTube. However, if the right opportunity comes along...
Red Dot Diva: Hahaha. Like why not, right? But I do agree that in this day and age, web and social media content is the way to go for starters. You can see how many Korean webtoons and Japanese manga have gotten the live action treatment and been adapted as a TV series or animation show. It may take years to get there, but it still got there all the same!
Red Dot Diva: It is not easy to run a small business, especially in the creative industry. Do you have any practical tips to share with small business owners out there?
Basil: Set small, measurable targets that you can achieve along the way as you seek to fulfil your main objective. It is important to celebrate the small wins but don't over-celebrate. Also, to build it in public. Because people don't back businesses, they back people.
Red Dot Diva: What can we expect from the GENFORCERbooth at SGCC 2024?
Basil: We'll be having appearances from each of the Genforcer characters (and maybe one together), showcasing some conceptual work and prototype displays, as well as launching our merchandise line. Hopefully the reception is good enough that we could continue doing all of this!
Don't miss the opportunity to meet the kick-ass GENFORCER, and chat with the creators at SGCC 2024, Booth L1-AA180-181.
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Catch a peek of the 3GENFORCER callsigns - Husky, Collie and Beagle!
Say hello to HUSKY, who is all set to make the world a safer place!
Red Dot Diva thinks there is never too many female superheroes, so she is glad there is COLLIE to help save the day!
BEAGLE is ready to come to the rescue!
Find out more about GENFORCER on their social media:
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/genforcer
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/genforcer/
Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/@genforcertv
The GENFORCER official website is also set for a launch date in a week's time. Remember to check out the site's link here: https://genforcer.tv/
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