From fronting current affairs programmes such as Friday Background in the 1980s to overseeing the network programming and promotions for Channel 5 before taking on the role of Director of International Productions at MediaCorp, Kenneth Liang has been dedicated to helping shape the local tv industry.

Despite spending 12 years in front of the camera, it is tv production that he is more passionate about. “It is an act of creativity that marshals more of your thought processes, creativity, collaboration and ideas. That makes the whole process more exciting,” he expresses. “I enjoyed doing the interviews and engaging different people but it’s never been something that spurred me on,” says the affable personality.

Taking a break from tv, he spent two years at the Economic Development Board setting up an academy of creativity which covered everything from visual to performing arts. “tv work is very intense, after some time you need to breathe a little,” he explains. He returned to tv again before moving on to the Singapore Tourism Board for five years where he helped to bring the street hawkers back to Chinatown by introducing a proper sanitation and waste disposal system for street stalls in areas like Smith Street.

With some funding help from MediaCorp he started Dream Forest Productions in 2000 and produced A War Diary. But it wasn’t long before MediaCorp beckoned again. “I’m a restless spirit. When you work as an independent, there’s a limit to what you can do. I realised I could get a lot more done quickly in the industry if I went back.” It took around four months to lure him back but he was happy to return. “I decided I would probably be more effective inside rather than outside.” While his contract with MediaCorp ends next year, he states he will continue to work in the industry.

To critics of local tv productions, he says, “We have to admit it has been a patchy record  with hits and misses. But try not to concentrate on the misses. You can be more encouraging and say that this is the sort of drama you want to see and build and support MediaCorp together. Telling people what you don’t like may not always help.”

Liang is proud of programmes like Masters of the Sea which was iconic and put into place certain skills to do other programmes such as Growing Up. “We had a lot of criticism of the The Ra Ra Show then we had Under One Roof and Phua Chu Kang. The next phase will be a broader canvas and trying to introduce new and exciting programmes,” he says. Appealing to a larger audience, highlights will include Pan-Asian dramas and programmes like feel-good comedy show Just for Laughs which will be launched this month.

Excited by the explosion of creativity in Singapore, he says, “We are grappling with the implications of new media. I think there will be a quantum leap in terms of creativity. There is unpredictability. And Singapore is very aggressive in this area right now.” With Asia becoming a greater force, he notes that Singapore needs to produce content that meets universal standards.

Work aside, his life revolves around his family and gardening – both evident from the verdant surroundings of his home and the clusters of family pictures and children’s toys apparent throughout. “My family is the cornerstone of my life – my loving parents and grandchildren. Love and passion drive me – love for my family and friends.”

Easily contented, he reveals a cheeky side: “I’m a happy person but I also speak my mind and sometimes offend people. I’m honest and have an irrepressible spirit. And I like to be naughty.” On how he’s evolving as a person, he says, “As I get older, I want to identify with my spiritual self more – spirituality is becoming more important to me.”