DMZ documentary festival to go ahead on-site despite pandemic

The 12th DMZ International Documentary Film Festival will take place this month on-site as planned, but in a significantly scaled down form amid the COVID-19 pandemic, its organizers said Wednesday. Asia’s largest documentary film festival will run Sept. 17-24 in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, just north of Seoul. The festival, which was originally scheduled to take place at three screening venues, will now be held only at the Megabox Baekseok branch. Audience numbers will be limited to 50 p

FilmSept. 2, 2020

Son Yeol-eum, Clara-Jumi Kang recital to be streamed online

A much-awaited recital from pianist Son Yeol-eum and violinist Clara-Jumi Kang will be held online Friday without a live audience. Credia, organizer of the duo recital, announced Wednesday that Friday’s recital will be held without an audience for safety reasons. The recital was to be held at the Lotte Concert Hall, with audience members sitting in every other seat. The venue had been moved from the Seoul Arts Center as state-run cultural facilities were shut down under social distanci

PerformanceSept. 2, 2020

A pianist on a journey with Beethoven

Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas are deemed to provide a profound insight into the music and life of the iconic German composer. Pianist Sohn Min-soo thinks he came to understand the great mind more than ever before by recording the complete cycle of 32 sonatas. The album will be released Sept. 11 under the Sony Classical label. “Though the recording took 2 1/2 years, Beethoven is a lifelong journey for me. This album does not mean the end of my exploration of Beethoven. I am waitin

PerformanceSept. 2, 2020

Furniture designer Ha Ji-hoon, Living and Arts Creative Center win Craft Prize 2020

Furniture designer Ha Ji-hoon and the Living and Arts Creative Center -- a social enterprise that promotes craft art -- were selected for Craft Prize 2020, an annual craft award organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Crafts & Design Foundation. The annual award is given to craft artists or institutions that have contributed to promoting the beauty of craft art at home and abroad. The creativity section of the award went to furniture designer Ha Ji-hoon wh

Arts & DesignSept. 2, 2020

Korean Cultural Center in Paris to reopen with contemporary art exhibitions

The Korean Cultural Center in Paris will reopen next week with a contemporary art exhibition titled “Real DMZ Project: Negotiating Borders,” after it shut down in March due to the spread of COVID-19. The exhibition will run from Sept. 11 to Nov. 6. “The COVID-19 situation is still bad, but we will reopen our center to invigorate the daily lives of art lovers in France,” a Korean Cultural Center Paris official said in a statement. The special exhibition aims to mark

CultureSept. 2, 2020

Kakao M to launch 25 original contents this year

Kakao M, the entertainment arm of internet company Kakao, on Tuesday officially launched its mobile contents streaming platform Kakao TV and unveiled seven of 25 original titles that will be available this year. “We will showcase 25 titles -- six drama series and 19 variety show programs -- totaling some 350 episodes as Kakao TV’s original content within this year,” Shin Jong-su, the director of Kakao M’s digital media content department, said in a prerecorded video mes

TelevisionSept. 1, 2020

2020 World Heritage Festival in Jeju to kick off Sept. 4

The 2020 World Heritage Festival, cohosted by Cultural Heritage Administration and the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, kicks off Sept. 4 on the southern island. The 17-day festival will allow visitors to enjoy some of the restricted sites, including lava caves on Jeju Island that are not normally open to the public. The agency said it has selected 550 people for the 3-day guided tour around Seongsan Ilchulbong and caves of the Geomunoreum Lava Tube System. It added that the participant

TravelSept. 1, 2020

[Video] Celebrating the 30th episode of ‘The Trend Herald’

Being a YouTuber, or YouTube content creator, is gaining more traction in the South Korean job market. People are drawn to the video-sharing platform because of the money-making potential and the unique features YouTube offers. One of the biggest perks for YouTubers is the ability to shoot and showcase different content to an audience relatively freely. The creative control and flexibility make it easier to convey various ideas to a rising number of viewers across the world. The Trend Herald

CultureSept. 1, 2020

Era of virtual artist: Riot Games’ virtual K-pop group K/DA returns

Virtual K-pop group K/DA released the group’s new single, “The Baddest,” on Aug. 28, with the first EP to be released later this year. K/DA debuted at the opening of the 2018 League of Legends World Championship finals in Incheon, when four artists performed with their characters through hologram representations. K/DA consists of four female LoL characters -- Ahri, Kai’Sa, Evelynn and Akali -- who are each voiced by different artists. The group name derives from a stati

PerformanceSept. 1, 2020

Korean musicals with English subtitles available online

Online festival K-Musical on Air, organized by the Korea Tourism Organization, kicked off its four-day run Monday. On Monday, the musical “Fan Letter” was streamed via Naver TV and V Live. Musicals “The Goddess is Watching,” “Red Cliff” and “The Fiction” will follow. The four musicals come with English subtitles. Since 2017, the KTO has supported 14 musicals in offering foreign-language subtitles with the goal of expanding the global audience b

PerformanceAug. 31, 2020

How will BIFF weather COVID-19?

Back in January, how long the COVID-19 pandemic would last was anyone’s guess. The organizers of the annual Busan International Film Festival slated for next month probably had no idea that it would continue to wreak havoc. The official preview press conference scheduled for Sept. 7 was canceled as the novel coronavirus spreads wider and faster than before in what is seen as a second surge. “We were supposed to announce whether the event would be held offline during the press co

FilmAug. 31, 2020

[Feature] Film crowdfunding: When viewers are stakeholders

Just as the local cinemas seemed to be recovering from the monthslong slump caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, local film distributor Merrychristmas Inc. announced that it was turning to crowdfunding platform Crowdy to fund its marketing budget of 300 million won ($254,000) for upcoming film “Space Sweepers.” A relatively new company seeking crowdfunding for a large blockbuster was unprecedented, and more than 4,500 people signed up to be notified of the actual start of the crowdfun

FilmAug. 31, 2020

[Newsmaker] Police look into Travelholic after porn found on Instagram account

Seoul Gangnam Police Station said it has started an internal investigation into popular social media page Travelholic on Sunday, a day after its CEO Jo Jun-ki allegedly uploaded illegal porn to its Instagram account. Travelholic, a company that introduces travel destinations and tourist attractions via social media platforms, uploaded a post introducing a sheep farm in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, to its Instagram account with over 1.2 million followers at around 6 p.m. Saturday. However, on

CultureAug. 30, 2020

Yue Hua Entertainment penalized after Chinese artist performs for Korean military

Beijing-based Yue Hua Entertainment was penalized by the Chinese government after Wang Yiren, a Chinese member of K-pop girl band Everglow, performed at an event for South Korean military troops in June last year, according to the South China Morning Post. The K-pop girl band is produced and managed by Yue Hua Entertainment’s subsidiary in Korea. The Chinese company is reported to have apologized Thursday for the negative influence it caused through its subsidiary firm Yue Hua Korea&

PerformanceAug. 30, 2020

[The Arts and COVID-19] ‘New normal’ orchestra in tune with COVID-19 era

Faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra is seeking the flexibility to overcome the obstacles and adapt to the changing times. In mid-February, when the orchestra’s new Music Director Osmo Vanska led two concerts in Seoul, not many could have known that that would be the orchestra’s last live performance for many months. As the COVID-19 outbreak swept the nation, many live music performances were canceled or postponed. When the SPO returned to the stage

PerformanceAug. 30, 2020

[Photo News] Media art displayed on digital signage in Seoul

Starfield Coex Mall in Gangnam, southern Seoul, is holding a media art exhibition titled “Cube9” to commemorate its installation of ultrahigh-definition LED signage. Cube9 presents impressionist paintings of various artists in video format on the signage, providing shoppers another type of entertainment at the mall. The exhibition will run through Sunday. (Photos: Shinsegae Property Starfield-Yonhap) By Kim Tae-eun (kimt17@heraldcorp.com)

Arts & DesignAug. 29, 2020

[Weekender] Coronavirus and weddings: Tying the knot in virus times

Without a doubt, 2020 has not been a great year to hold events. Some events, however, cannot easily be canceled or postponed. Like most other countries, weddings are big business in Korea, and celebrations are typically planned out at least a year in advance. People often travel across the country to attend, and guests are tightly packed in during a ceremony, which is followed by a reception that often involves buffet stations. With the government imposing stringent health measures to cur

CultureAug. 29, 2020

‘Light will always be stronger than darkness’

Though Classic Revolution 2020 Seoul Beethoven began with high hopes, the summer music festival was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Social distancing rules in Seoul tightened on Aug. 16, a day before the festival opened. Six orchestras, under regional governments, had to cancel performances, including the opening concert. A total of 10 performances, mainly chamber music, stayed on the festival schedule. The cancellations were devastating for many who had been awaiting the festival, includ

PerformanceAug. 29, 2020

Cultural Heritage Administration designates two volumes of ‘Samguk Yusa’ as national treasure

The Cultural Heritage Administration said Thursday that it has designated two printed volumes of the “Samguk Yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms)” as National Treasure No. 306-4. Volumes No. 4 and No. 5 of the “Samguk Yusa,” a collection of legends and folktales mainly from Korea’s Three Kingdoms (Goguryeo, Silla, Baekje) period and printed using wooden blocks, are currently owned by Beomeosa, a Buddhist temple in Busan. They were originally owned by Beomeosa&

CultureAug. 29, 2020

[Herald Interview] Ex-minister Kang Kum-sil envisions peace and life at DMZ

JeongSeon Forum 2020, hosted by the Gangwon Provincial Government and Gangwon Convention & Visitors Bureau, successfully finished its three-day session last week. On the second day of the forum, former Justice Minister Kang Kum-sil held an interview with The Korea Herald. Freshly appointed as chair for Gangwon Art and Culture Foundation this spring, she openly discussed her vison to make a better environment for artists and citizens living in the province. “I have two goals for now

PeopleAug. 29, 2020