MUMBAI: Discovery Asia will produce a series of biographies of prominent Taiwanese personalities in association with Taiwans Government Information Office (GIO). The initiative is called Portraits: Taiwan.

The series wiil be aired from 25 December 2005 across Asia.

It features the life journeys of six prominent Taiwanese personalities from various fields and include Hwai-Min Lin (the arts), King Liu (from business and economics), Wun-Yu Che (agriculture), Henry Lee (science and technology), Master Cheng Yen (public welfare and environmental protection) and Huei-Mei Chang (entertainment and pop culture). The personalities were selected by the public in a poll that ran earlier this year.

Discovery Asia executive director and MD Tom Keaveny says, "Portraits: Taiwan is a series that embodies the Taiwanese spirit and the very best of Taiwan by uniquely documenting Taiwans success through its people. The lives of the six personalities offer inspiring stories that we feel will not only appeal to local audiences here but also to international viewers across the region in over 111 million homes Discovery Channel currently broadcasts to. The initiative also further enforces our commitment to invest in local talent and increasing the number of hours of local production in markets we operate in.

Taiwan GIO minister Pasuya Wen-Chi Yao, says, This initiative with Discovery is significant for us, it is the first time that an international broadcaster is presenting a biography series highlighting successful Taiwanese. Through their personal stories, we hope viewers around the world will gain a better understanding of our country and become more interested in Taiwan. In addition, this project also provides our local companies here with the ability to showcase their outstanding work and high quality of production on a world stage."