[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

“Someday or One Day” (Taiwan) Opened Jan. 25 Drama Directed by Hwang Cheonin Struggling to get over her boyfriend after he dies in a plane accident, Huang Yu-Xuan receives a mysterious tape one day that allows her to travel back in time. She dreams of meeting her boyfriend again and questions whether she will be able to change his destiny, in this film continuation of the same-titled 2019 TV series. “The Point Men” (South Korea) Opened Jan. 18 Drama Directed by Yim So

FilmFeb. 10, 2023

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Gangjin Celadon Festival The 51st edition of Gangjin Celadon Festival is scheduled to start Feb. 23, running through March 1 at the areas around Goryeo Celadon Museum in Gangjin, South Jeolla Province. Celebrating the excellence of Korean celadon from Goryeo period, the event offers various hands-on activities, including spinning wheel, coil-style celadon making and more. The fees for hands-on activities vary from 1,000 won to 5,000 won. A special parade, busking by local artists, a lantern-maki

TravelFeb. 10, 2023

LTI Korea to set new rules for translation award after AI translation sparks controversy

A translator who is not fluent in Korean winning the webtoon category at the 2022 Korea Translation Award has sparked controversy about the use of artificial intelligence in translation. A local newspaper reported Wednesday that Yukiko Matsusue, a Japanese translator who won Rookie of the Year at the annual award organized by the Korean Literature Translation Institute in December, had used Naver’s AI-translating system Papago while translating Gu A-jin’s occult thriller “Mirae

BooksFeb. 9, 2023

Cellist Yang Sung-won to head Music in Pyeongchang

Music in Pyeongchang, an annual music festival held in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, has appointed cellist Yang Sung-won as its fourth artistic director, festival organizer Gangwon Art and Culture Foundation announced Thursday. Yang will lead the 20th edition of the music festival, which will take place from July 26 to Aug. 5. Yang, a cello soloist and chamber musician who performs worldwide, has worked with renowned musicians, such as pianists Christoph Eschenbach and Pascal Devoyon, and comp

PerformanceFeb. 9, 2023

Yoo Ah-in’s new films likely to be postponed

The film industry is closely following news of actor Yoo Ah-in being investigated by police for habitual illegal use of propofol. Release dates for Yoo’s new films slated for later this year are also highly likely to be delayed. According to Yoo’s agency UAA, police earlier this week investigated the 36-year-old actor. Yoo is currently prohibited from leaving the country. Industry insiders said the production staff and distribution companies are closely reviewing a plan to delay th

FilmFeb. 9, 2023

Will Kim Ok-vin become new rom-com crush with ‘Love to Hate You’?

“Love to Hate You,” the first romantic comedy series of actor Kim Ok-vin’s 18-year career, strays from the typical Korean drama tropes. The series doesn’t feature childhood sweethearts; a poor girl with an overly positive personality; nor an average girl meeting a rich guy with the ensuing family opposition. But the actors and director of “Love to Hate You” are certain that it has more than everything to make viewers wish they were in love. Kim felt that she

TelevisionFeb. 9, 2023

TV actors Kim Yoo-jung, Jung So-min make theater debut with ‘Shakespeare in Love’

Kim Yoo-jung, Jung So-min and Chae Soo-bin play Viola De Lesseps in the Korean production of "Shakespeare in Love" by Kim Dong-yeon at Shownote, adapted from the 1998 film of the same title. The play premiered at the CJ Towol Theater in the Seoul Arts Center on Jan. 28. Speaking at a press conference Tuesday, the three actors said it was a dream come true to play the compelling character of a theater-lover who later becomes William Shakespeare's muse. Kim shared her first impressi

PerformanceFeb. 8, 2023

Web novels follow webtoons' successful footsteps

After becoming a new major source for alternate forms of multimedia content, web novels -- written works available primarily online -- are poised to continue following the successful footsteps of webtoons, setting new sales records and yielding successful drama adaptations. Naver Series, South Korean tech giant Naver’s web-based book platform, said that the accumulated sales of its action fantasy novel “Return of the Blossoming Blade” hit a record-high of 40 billion won ($31.8

BooksFeb. 8, 2023

Genderless goes mainstream in luxury fashion sector

Singer-songwriter Harry Styles on Sunday wowed the audience of the 2023 Grammy Awards red carpet event when he appeared with his gender-fluid, rainbow harlequin-pattern jumpsuit adorned with Swarovski crystals. Gender fluid, genderless, agender, unisex -- these words have all been sweeping the fashion sector. South Korean fashion icons and TV stars, although not as daring as Styles, are gradually embracing this latest fashion concept as well, widely impacting the local retail scene. Actor Lee Ju

Arts & DesignFeb. 8, 2023

Bong Joon-ho’s 4K remastered ‘The Host’ to hit France next month

Globally renowned filmmaker Bong Joon-ho’s 2006 thriller “The Host” will reopen in a 4K remastered version in France on March 8. Prior to the release of the new version, director Bong will attend a masterclass event and meet with audiences on Feb. 26 and 27 in France, according to industry sources. The event will take place at Le Grand Rex theater in Paris on Feb. 26 and at Institut Lumiere in Lyon on Feb. 27. Director Bong will meet with the audience in Paris on Feb. 26 with T

FilmFeb. 8, 2023

Gwangju Biennale announces artists, commissioned works to be unveiled in April

The 14th Gwangju Biennale, scheduled to begin April 17 under the theme of "Soft and weak like water," will be joined by 79 artists from across the world. More than 40 works were commissioned for Asia's oldest contemporary art biennale. The 94-day biennale will take place at the Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Hall in Gwangju, the main exhibition space of the biennale, as well as at venues throughout the city including Gwangju National Museum, Horanggasy Artpolygon, Mugaksa and Artsp

Arts & DesignFeb. 8, 2023

Vinyl craze continues

On a recent Tuesday afternoon, a retro cafe in Insa-dong, central Seoul, saw people chilling out on sofas, listening to music from the 1970s and '80s. Each table was equipped with a vinyl record player and a headset for visitors to indulge themselves in music from the likes of British rock band Queen to Korean legend Lee Moon-sae. “It seems like young people nowadays like LPs more than older people do,” said the only middle-aged man in the place, who introduced himself as a 53-year-

CultureFeb. 8, 2023

Foreign pansori singers share their sounds, stories on stage

Commemorating the 20th anniversary of pansori being registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, four pansori singers -- three foreign singers and their teacher Min Hye-sung -- performed at Seoul Namsan Gugakdang on Saturday. Min, a certified trainer of pansori, National Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 5, has been holding a month-long pansori workshop each year at Korean Cultural Centers across Europe since 2007. On the stage with Min on Saturday were her students Anna Yates-Lu from Ger

PerformanceFeb. 7, 2023

Korean diaspora literature revisited

With the success of the Apple TV+ original series “Pachinko” and the novel of the same title by Korean American author Min Jin Lee, literature of Korean diaspora has come under the spotlight. The genre has been around since the 1940s, its early writers mostly ethnic Koreans living in Japan and the US. There were around 300 Korean diaspora writers who hail from around the world in 2020, according to a study published in the Journal of Korean Library and Information Science Society las

BooksFeb. 7, 2023

‘Physical: 100’ creator Jang Ho-gi looks to find top ‘global’ physique

Jang Ho-gi, the man behind global streamer Netflix’s latest reality competition “Physical: 100,” said he wants to scour the world to find a contestant in top physical shape. “Though our show sought to find the fittest among 100 contestants of different gender, race and age, deciding the proportion of foreign-born contestants was difficult. Defining a foreign-born contestant itself was complicated as well,” Jang said in a press conference held at Community House Ma

TelevisionFeb. 7, 2023

Song Joong-ki to play North Korean defector in Netflix film ‘My Name is Loh Kiwan’

Actor Song Joong-ki will appear as North Korean defector Loh Ki-wan in a new Netflix film titled “My Name is Loh Kiwan,” the global streaming service said in unveiling the cast for the film Tuesday. The film will depict Loh’s struggles in Belgium as a new settler and his encounter with Mari (Choi Sung-eun) who has grown despondent about life and love. Song will play a North Korean defector for the first time in his 15-year career. He has shown great versatility in his filmograp

FilmFeb. 7, 2023

[Herald Interview] Lee Dong-hwi adds realism to unlikely scenario

Since his debut in 2013, actor Lee Dong-hwi has played indispensable roles in TV dramas and films, including 2015 TVN series “Reply 1988” and 2019 comedy film “Extreme Job." From his short cameo appearance in director Hirokazu Koreeda’s “Broker” to Disney+ hit series “Big Bet,” Lee has impressed audiences with his witty but down-to-earth acting. In director Hyung Seul-woo’s feature film debut, “Someone You Loved,” Lee plays J

FilmFeb. 7, 2023

Avant-garde artist Lee Seung-taek gets spotlight in New York at 90

Canal Projects, a nonprofit contemporary art institution in New York, has opened the show “Seung-Taek Lee: Things Unstable" to celebrate the pioneering South Korean avant-garde artist. Lee has been a representative figure in Korean avant-garde art since the 1960s, contributing to the introduction of conceptual art to the local art scene decades ago. The Canal Projects show presents 17 works by Lee, focusing on the artist’s signature concepts of “non-material,” &ldquo

Arts & DesignFeb. 7, 2023

Buseoksa to appeal court ruling on Bodhisattva statue stolen from Japan

The Daejeon High Court ruled Wednesday against a Korean Buddhist temple's ownership claim to a 14th-century Bodhisattva statue that it argues was plundered by Japanese pirates in the late Goryeo-era. The ruling accelerated Japan's request to Korea for its urgent return, although the Korean court added that issues concerning the return and protection of cultural assets should be decided in accordance with UNESCO conventions and relevant international law. The 50.5-centimeter high gilt-b

CultureFeb. 6, 2023

CGV to screen 17 Oscar-nominated films

South Korean multiplex cinema chain CJ CGV said Monday that a total of 17 films nominated for the 95th Academy Awards will be screened at its cinemas across the country starting Saturday and until March 21. The list of films includes works yet to be released in Korea, such as “Tar,” “The Whale,” “The Quiet Girl,” “The Banshees of Inisherin,” “EO” and “Close.” “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” directed by Danie

FilmFeb. 6, 2023