[Around the Hotels] Promotions and packages

Mayfield Seoul offers ‘Private Party’ package Mayfield Hotel in Seoul is offering an in-room dining package called “Private Party,” for guests to enjoy gatherings in a private space instead of dining out to celebrate the end of the year. The package provides two bottles of wine – one red and one sparkling -- along with a 100,000 won dining voucher that can be used at the hotel’s restaurant, which offers a choice of steak and smoked salmon dishes. Cheese pla

FoodDec. 24, 2021

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Spider-Man: No Way Home (US) Opened Dec. 15 Action Directed by Jon Watts 　 With Spider-Man‘s identity now revealed, Peter (Tom Holland) asks Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) for help. But Doctor Strange’s spell goes wrong and dangerous foes from other worlds start to appear, forcing Peter to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man. 　 Encanto (US) Opened Nov. 24 Animation Directed by Jared Bush, Byron Howard In the deep mountains of Colombia, there is a special place call

FilmDec. 24, 2021

Looking ahead to Korea’s 2022 classical music season

Though the resurgence of coronavirus infections and the spread of the omicron variant have been threatening the industry, next year‘s lineup of classical music performances is already being announced, packed with concerts previously delayed due to the pandemic as well as big names returning to Korea after several years. The concert schedule announced by classical music production company Vincero comprises 15 performances between March 17 and Dec. 8. While most of the concerts are schedu

PerformanceDec. 23, 2021

[Well-curated] Immersive art, nine-tailed fox musical and red teddy bear for Christmas weekend

Arte Museum Gangneung, the largest immersive media art museum in Gangwon Province, opened on Thursday with the theme “Eternal Nature,” presenting 10 media art displays that feature impactful visuals, sensuous sounds and fragrances offering an immersive art experience. The 4,600-square-meter museum is located in Gangneung and is the third immersive museum founded by d’strict, following Art Museum Jeju, which opened in September 2020, and Arte Museum Yeosu, which opened in Augu

CultureDec. 23, 2021

Violinist Park Sueye’s ‘Journey Through a Century’ chosen as Gramophone’s Recordings of the Year

South Korean violinist Park Sueye’s album “Journey Through a Century” has been picked as one of UK magazine Gramophone‘s Recordings of the Year 2021, the artist’s agency MOC Production said on Thursday. The magazine announced the list of honorees through its annual Gramophone Digital Special published earlier this month, featuring all of this year’s Editor’s Choice albums, Recordings of the Month and the winners of the recording categories of the Gramop

PerformanceDec. 23, 2021

‘Roots of temple food are in the state of mind’

On an early December afternoon, Kim Ji-young, head chef at Balwoo Gongyang, a restaurant dedicated to temple cuisine operated by the Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism, was demonstrating how to make root vegetable geotjeori, or a light salad of root vegetables. Unrushed and with a generous smile, the chef hummed a tune as she demonstrated the cooking process, step by step. With 1,700 years of history, some keywords come to mind upon hearing “temple food,” such as vegetarian or slow

FoodDec. 23, 2021

Erick Oh’s ‘Namoo’ makes 94th Oscar shortlist

South Korean director Erick Oh’s short animation “Namoo,” which means tree in Korean, on Wednesday made it onto the 94th Oscar shortlist after being nominated in the animated short film category. The Academy Awards will announce the final list of nominees on Feb. 9 and the awards ceremony will take place on March 27, 2022. Oh’s new animation follows the journey of a man’s life -- from beginning to end -- next to a tree that collects all of his memories. Oh creat

FilmDec. 22, 2021

Korean literature becoming popular overseas

Reflecting the growing popularity of Korean literature, 180 literary works were translated into 29 different languages with assistance from the Literature Translation Institute of Korea this year. This is the largest number of works translated in a year since LTI Korea was established in 1996. LTI Korea said the increased demand for Korean literature in overseas markets is also shown in the number of requests for translation support that it received this year. A total of 156 overseas publis

BooksDec. 22, 2021

Netflix series ‘The Silent Sea’ starring Bae Doo-na pioneers Korean sci-fi drama

For most of the cast and staff of Netflix’s “The Silent Sea,” they jumped at the chance to join the production of the sci-fi thriller series, quickly overcoming any hesitancy.  “I think I was a little reluctant about starring in a Korean space-related project. Even after receiving the scenario, I was uncertain about the moon exploration series. But my attitude completely changed after watching the director‘s short film ‘The Silent Sea,’” B

FilmDec. 22, 2021

Christmas market kicks off at DDP

From Thursday, a Christmas market will be set up at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza until the end of the year to celebrate the festive season. Under the theme “The Christmas airport - Travel to Santa’s world,” a total of 40 stalls will be in operation from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m, at Allim Hall 2, located within the plaza. The 2021 Seoul Christmas Market at DDP displays and sells a variety of holiday-related products, including light ornaments and other home decor, as well as accessori

CultureDec. 22, 2021

‘Joseon pop’ pioneer Seodo Band wins JTBC’s ‘Poongryu’

Seodo Band -- which describes itself as the creators of Joseon pop -- took home the top prize from the hit JTBC music competition show “Poongryu” on Tuesday, which included 100 million won ($83,880) in prize money. “Poongryu,” which premiered in September, captured viewers by introducing a variety of twists on traditional Korean music, or gugak, melding it with elements of other Western music genres such as R&B, K-pop, hip-hop music and even breaking. The six finali

PerformanceDec. 22, 2021

Lee Sook-kyung of Tate Modern to helm Gwangju Biennale in 2023

A London-based Korean curator has been appointed to head the 2023 Gwangju Biennale. Lee Sook-kyung, senior curator of International Art at the Tate Modern, will take on the role of artistic director of the 14th Gwangju Biennale scheduled to take place in April 2023, the Gwangju Biennale Foundation announced Tuesday. Lee, who has been active in the global art scene for the past 28 years, specializes in “transnational curating.” Her previous posts include being commissioner and curat

PeopleDec. 22, 2021

Musical ‘The Lion King’ to be delayed due to COVID-related travel problems

The opening of the musical version of “The Lion King” will be delayed, as performers and crew face difficulties in flying into Korea after several airlines abruptly canceled flights bound for the country, according to S&Co, the production company of the international tour. “Our performance team members’ entry (into Korea) has been delayed due to COVID-related travel problems,” S&Co said in a statement released Tuesday. The statement further read that thos

PerformanceDec. 22, 2021

Watcha’s first music variety show ‘Double Trouble’ to feature star-studded duet performances

South Korean over-the-top service provider Watcha is set to air its first original music variety show “Double Trouble,” featuring duets by 10 K-pop stars. “Double Trouble” presents a series of performance battles in which 10 male and female idol members compete for the title of “Best Duo.” During its 10-episode run, the artists will pair up with different partners to put on five performances. “K-pop idols often take to the stage together for special

TelevisionDec. 22, 2021

'Spider-Man' tops 3 million admissions on 7th day

"Spider-Man: No Way Home," the latest Spider-Man series film, has topped a cumulative 3 million admissions at the fastest pace in the pandemic era, box office data showed Wednesday. The blockbuster attracted 196,000 people on Tuesday, bringing its combined total to 3.18 million on the seventh day following its release, according to the data by the Korea Film Council. Its pace outmatched that of the biggest pandemic-era hit, "Deliver Us From Evil," which needed 11 days to ac

FilmDec. 22, 2021

What do you know about ‘aegyo’?

The inclusion of “aegyo” among 26 Korean words and phrases added to the Oxford English Dictionary in October brought renewed attention to the word. According to the OED, aegyo is used to describe the “charm and cuteness, especially of a sort considered characteristic of Korean popular culture.” It means behavior regarded as cute, charming or adorable as well. The word is commonly used in association with adorable babies or cute pets. Traditionally, aegyo is associa

CultureDec. 21, 2021

Indieground streams 87 independent films to wrap up 2021

To mark the end of the year, the Korean Film Council is screening a selection of films from Indieground’s “2021 Independent Movie Library.” 　 The movie library is part of an Indieground project to promote Korean independent films to the public and find new distribution channels for filmmakers. For this year’s “Independent Movie Library,” a total of 727 films were submitted and 87 films -- 22 features and 65 short films -- were selected. A special screenin

FilmDec. 21, 2021

‘Special Cargo’ invited to 2022 International Film Festival Rotterdam

“Special Cargo” featuring Oscar-winning “Parasite” star Park So-dam will be screened at 2022 International Film Festival Rotterdam’s Harbour program, according to the film distributor NEW. The film festival will be held offline from Jan. 26 to Feb. 6 next year. Founded in 1972, the annual film festival has been held at the end of January at various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. In 2020, the festival premiered the black-and-white version of “Paras

FilmDec. 21, 2021

Korean streaming platform Tving reveals new original content list for 2022

The number of subscribers at CJ ENM’s streaming platform Tving has increased dramatically since October last year on the back of its original content, the company said. The number of paid subscribers to Tving increased by 256 percent as of Dec. 18, a rise which the company attributed to the popularity of its 60 original and exclusive content that it started offering in January. To further expand its reach, the streaming platform operator on Tuesday unveiled a list of new Tving original

FilmDec. 21, 2021

Ancient art of lacquer on show at Asian lacquerware exhibition

The National Museum of Korea launched the special exhibition “Ottchil, the Coated Splendor of Asian Lacquerware” on Tuesday, showcasing some 260 pieces of lacquerware produced in different parts of Asia. Lacquer, called “ottchil” in Korean, is a natural paint that has been used in Asia since ancient times. The water-repellent and insect-repellent aspects of lacquer increases the longevity of the objects, while adding a beautiful luster to them. Lacquer crafts are time

Arts & DesignDec. 21, 2021