Entertainment

Korean veteran content discusses their industry’s incredible global growth – The Hollywood Reporter


With Korean films and TV series continuing to find mass success in the American mainstream – Squid game, Parasites and Extracurricular just to name a few – veterans of the Seoul entertainment world gathered at the Busan International Film Festival on Sunday to discuss how their industry has achieved such milestones, as well as strategies for further development in the future.

Organized by Busan’s Asian Cinema and Content Market, industry experts debated the ongoing global trajectory of Korean entertainment at a panel session titled “Definition and The destination of K-Story”. The talk was moderated by Jaewon Choi, CEO of Anthology Studio, with participants including Keo Lee, content director of Netflix Korea, screenwriter Chung Seo-kyung, and Hyejung Hwang, director of content content at TVing, CJ Group’s growing streaming service.

“The Korean content has been carefully prepared [for this moment],” said Lee of Netflix. “I don’t believe that Korean content is globalized solely by Netflix. Before Netflix, Korean content was available globally. Korean music and movies have attracted worldwide attention. But the enhanced accessibility through Netflix has helped us globalize even more.”

Writer Chung, who co-wrote the script for Park Chan-wook’s latest film Decided to leave and hit TV series little women, said that the strength of Korean dramas and movies lies in their ability to deal with complex real-life social problems at home.

“I really like recent Korean movies and dramas like Parasites and Netflix original series Extracurricular, ” Chung said. “I am deeply moved by the way these works vividly address the problems and confusions that Korean society is experiencing today. But to bring these issues to life, you need high production quality, investor confidence, and a warm reception from the audience. I feel that all these trends have been accompanied by many recent Korean dramas and movies.”

Television is likely to be one of the areas driving further growth in the Korean entertainment industry. The service launched in 2010, but the company began production on the original series in 2021 — and since then, sales have grown 300%, according to Hwang.

Hwang said, “In terms of content, Koreans are used to Hollywood’s storytelling style, but the sense of realism is strong in Korean films and dramas, especially in depicting family relationships. family and society. “I think millennials and Gen-Z viewers around the globe empathize with that sentiment. Parasites and Squid game On the surface they are thrilling stories, but in reality they are stories of family and love, and I think their message of relationships and resilience connects with the younger generation.”

The panelists agreed that the Korean audience’s refined taste in cinema has also helped improve the quality of content production in the country.

“I feel like the Korean audience is very well trained,” Chung said. “They analyze, discuss and capture a story from many different angles. I am often challenged by my own interactions with the audience. They have a deep love for content. ”

Lee from Netflix Korea explained that global platforms often face great expectations and burdens when targeting their content to Korean viewers.

“Hwang Dong-hyuk, director of squid game, also said that Korean audiences have high standards,” he said. “For me, it is more important to see what the Korean audience thinks of a work than the audience in a distant country. In the end, what is Korean is what is global. ”

From a marketer’s perspective, audiences have become more selective and cautious in choosing their content, the panelists explained.

Hwang said, “Maybe because theater ticket prices have increased, but people don’t seem to come and see a movie like they used to when a movie is released. “Previously, the reaction on the film’s release day became a news story. Now, let’s wait and see if it’s really worth watching. They play an active role in choosing what content they want to watch. Marketers can easily fail in this environment. You can’t just put it out there. It requires a high level of marketing strategy depending on the platform.”

The competition between platforms also naturally enhances the quality of the content.

“It’s very important to respect the audience,” Lee said. “They seem to immediately notice it if they feel that the creators are belittling them or lowering their standards. No matter how well you package it, people seem to know if the creator did it with the intention of making it easy to please them. People’s preferences change rapidly, and that rate of change is twice as fast in Korea today.”

Audience response speed has also changed the way creators reach viewers.

Chung said: “I feel closer to the audience than before. “Even while I was writing, I felt like I was talking to someone close to me rather than speaking on stage. But that closeness and level of honesty also becomes an issue. There is a scene in Little woman when a co-worker said to one of the female leads, “Did you grow up poor? Your tolerance level seems high.” And some people were offended by the line. But I want to speak to my audience the way I would talk to a friend.”

For some people, the transition between traditional and new platforms raises mixed emotions.

“It was a confusing time for traditional producers,” said Lee, the session moderator who has produced popular Korean films like Lawyer and Age of Shadows. “It raises questions like, what platform should I go to? Who should I meet to recommend a new work? ”

But competition between diverse platforms continues to drive many manufacturers to pursue the highest quality work.

“I try not to ignore that tension,” says Lee. “I wish people’s relationship with Korean content will continue to be filled with anticipation instead of nostalgia.”

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