[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

Aug. 31, 2020

BTS wins 4 awards at MTV VMAs, performs 'Dynamite'

K-pop band BTS picked up four awards at the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards held in the United States on Sunday (US time), while putting on its first television performance of its hit single "Dynamite" on the American TV network. The South Korean septet won in the categories of best pop, best group, best K-pop and best choreography with "ON," the lead song off the band's studio album "Map of The Soul: 7" released in February, at the awards show held in New York City wi

Aug. 31, 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&

Aug. 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

Aug. 30, 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

Aug. 29, 2020

‘It’s Okay to Not Be Okay’ penalized for sexually inappropriate scenes

Popular tvN drama series “It’s Okay to Not Be Okay” has been slapped with a warning by the Korea Communications Standards Commission for sexually suggestive and inappropriate scenes. The broadcast censorship body on Wednesday held a subcommittee and decided to issue a legal sanction to the television series for several breaches against the broadcast deliberation regulations, including Article 27 on duties of integrity and Article 30 on gender equality. “Even consideri

Aug. 28, 2020

Song Joong-ki’s ‘Space Sweepers’ release shelved again

The release of Korean space blockbuster “Space Sweepers” has been delayed yet again as new coronavirus infections continue in South Korea, with 371 new cases confirmed Friday.　 On Thursday, the film’s distributor Merry Christmas released an official statement, announcing the second delay of the highly anticipated film. Originally slated to hit the local theaters on Sept. 23, its release has been pushed back indefinitely as for now. Coming from director Jo Sung-hee, who helme

Aug. 28, 2020

Blackpink teams up with Selena Gomez to chill summer heat with ‘Ice Cream’

One of the most high-profile music collaborations of this year, Blackpink has teamed up with US pop star Selena Gomez for the group’s long-awaited new single “Ice Cream.” The sugary song was dropped on Friday at 1 p.m. along with a pastel-tinged music video featuring Gomez herself. “When we first heard the song, we had a feeling of sweetness filling up our mouth. We thought ‘Ice Cream’ would offer some chilling time for those suffering from this late summer

Aug. 28, 2020

[Newsmaker] Public art troupe member’s private lesson in spotlight after infection

A member of an art troupe under the National Gugak Center will be questioned for conducting a private lesson, after having contact with a high school student who was tested positive for COVID-19. On Aug. 19, the member gave a private lesson to a Gugak National High School student at a private studio in southern Seoul. Few hours later, the student’s mother was confirmed positive of the virus. The student was tested positive of the virus on Aug. 19. The troupe member was tested negative

Aug. 28, 2020

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Fukuoka (Korea) Opened Aug. 27 Drama Directed by Chang Lu So-dam (Park So-dam) takes Je-moon (Yoon Je-moon) to Fukuoka to reconnect him with his long estranged friend Hae-hyo (Kwon Hae-hyo). The two men parted ways 28 years earlier after falling in love with the same woman. In Fukuoka, So-dam is able to communicate without speaking the same language, and understand people’s minds without talking to them. With this mysterious woman, the two men set off on a journey through their memories.

Aug. 28, 2020

Japanese auteur Hirokazu Koreeda’s first Korean film to star top Korean actors

Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Koreeda will take on his first Korean movie with top-tier actors Song Kang-ho, Bae Doo-na and Gang Dong-won, according to the film’s distributor CJ ENM. Tentatively titled “Broker,” the film is a drama about people involved with “baby boxes” -- temperature-controlled containers in which unwanted newborns are dropped off. The Japanese writer and director, well reputed for his portraits of families that reveal their complexities and re

Aug. 27, 2020

[Herald Interview] Back with ‘Boca,’ Dreamcatcher proves global prominence

One of the most distinct K-pop acts on the scene, Dreamcatcher has been solidifying its status more than ever despite the pandemic era. Having returned with its new moombahton-rock “Boca,” the seven-piece act appeared in a recent live broadcast with The Korea Herald held via Naver’s V Live. The hourlong session was also jointly hosted by Christian Burgos, a popular Mexican entertainer based in Seoul. Chinese member Handong, who’s been staying in China, couldn’t ta

Aug. 27, 2020

[Herald Interview] Opera ‘Red Pants’ to sing of housing bubble

Property prices in and around Seoul have been hitting record-high levels for the past few months, even as the government has declared war on the region’s housing bubble. That housing bubble first began to form about 50 years ago. In the 1970s and ’80s the Gangnam area, an affluent neighborhood in southern Seoul, started to fill up with massive apartment blocks. “Red Pants,” a new Korean-language opera that will be presented by the Korea National Opera on Friday and S

Aug. 25, 2020

Chinese viewers still upset with Lee Hyo-ri over ‘Mao’ quip

Chinese viewers remained unappeased and continued to demand an apology after the producers of the MBC program “Hangout With Yoo” posted a statement Monday about a comment that singer Lee Hyo-ri made on Saturday’s episode. The problem arose when Lee suggested Mao as the name of her character in “Hangout With Yoo.” “Let’s make a Chinese to be more global. How about Mao?” said Lee on Saturday’s episode. Lee’s statement infuriated man

Aug. 25, 2020

[Herald Interview] Cherry Bullet talks love for music, innermost dreams

Just like its new summery pop tune “Aloha Oe,” Cherry Bullet was full of shiny energy, brimming smiles and -- especially -- love for music. “When we first heard the new song, me and Yuju actually cried, saying, ‘This is the song we were waiting for!’” said Bora during the group’s recent interview held via V Live broadcast. The hourlong session was also jointly hosted by Christian Burgos, a popular Mexican TV personality based in Seoul. “There w

Aug. 24, 2020

Are 90-second movies capturing subway audience?

People riding subways will want to keep a close eye on the destination information screens on subway trains and at stations for the next few weeks: The Seoul Metro International Subway Film Festival kicked off Monday, bringing short films to commuters through Sept. 18. The official slogan for this year’s festival, now in its 11th year, is “90 seconds, enjoy the subway!” “I hope many people using the subways can enjoy arts and culture by watching the super-short films,&

Aug. 24, 2020

[Herald Interview] ‘Dreamlike love story in ‘Fukuoka’ is all around us’

In the upcoming film “Fukuoka,” So-dam, played by Korean actor Park So-dam, takes Je-moon -- played by Yoon Je-mun -- to Fukuoka, saying that while she doesn’t speak Japanese, she knows that she will somehow be able to settle there. She is able to talk with not only the Japanese, but the Chinese as well, without speaking a word of the languages. The strange, sometimes surreal film does not go deep into anything. It appears to merely touch the surface of another dimension of

Aug. 24, 2020

[Herald Interview] Festival delves into 'K-World music'

Like most fests this year, the 11th ACC World Music Festival has not been able to escape the crippling impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The annual music festival kicked off Friday, despite the fast-spreading virus crisis. However, as the government decided to expand strict social distancing guidelines nationwide Saturday, the rest of the festival schedule had to be canceled. “It was like ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream,’” string instrument geomungo virtuoso Heo Yoon-

Aug. 23, 2020

Culture sector close to complete shutdown

With the virus pandemic here unraveling out of control nationwide, productions from the stage to the small screen are shutting down to prevent further spread of the coronavirus. After a cast member of the musical “Kinky Boots” was notified of having close contact with a person who was confirmed to have COVID-19, the show canceled its weekend performances. The musical “Rent” took a blow, too, as stage actor Choi Jae-rim, who stars in “Kinky Boots,” appears i

Aug. 23, 2020

BTS' 'Dynamite' tops Global Top 50 on Spotify

The hit song "Dynamite" by K-pop superstars BTS has topped Spotify's main chart, making the band the first K-pop act to achieve the feat, the group's agency said Sunday. The K-pop septet's EP garnered 7,778,950 streaming hits on Friday (Korea time) on the Global Top 50 chart compiled by music streaming service provider Spotify. It marks the highest streaming record by a K-pop song on Spotify on the day of release this year, Big Hit Entertainment said. The song beat the previous rec

Aug. 23, 2020