Power of creative content
The popular entertainment reality show “Infinite Challenge” recently made headlines once again by featuring 1990s K-pop singers such as S.E.S, Turbo and solo artists Kim Hyun-jung and So Chan-whee.
In an era of single-digit ratings, even for the most-watched programs, that edition of Infinite Challenge reportedly attracted a 22-percent share of the TV audience. The program’s fans reacted widely and teens, vocal consumers of K-pop, have apparently been tapping into the Korean songs of the 1990s.
Retro is always a good bet for those looking to create cultural content; people like to look back and reminisce about the good times. In addition, the 1990s were a good time for K-pop; Seo Taiji of Seo Taiji & Boys also rose to prominence during that era. A cable channel’s two dramas about life in a Korean boarding house last year were also big hits.
Retro can also be a big hit with the nation’s consumers. For example, the Korean film “Ode to My Father” by director Youn Je-kyun, which surpassed the 10 million mark in tickets sold, also looks back at the period from the 1950-53 Korean War through Korea’s industrial heydays.
The movie’s popularity has been an economic godsend for Busan, where the film is largely based. Local tourist agencies have put forth short trip packages to the southern port city that organizes visits to places featured in the movie. The protagonist in the film works at a store called “Kkotbuine” in the “Kukje Sijang,” an international market where foreign goods are sold in a traditional Korean market format. Visitors to Busan’s international market nearly tripled over the weekend, while the city’s hotel operators can barely contain their joy at the influx of visitors.
A film bringing tourists and spurring the local economy has been seen before. Another example was last year’s film “Roaring Currents” starring actor Choi Min-sik (of the film “Oldboy”), which became a mega-hit and prompted books about Korea’s Joseon era (1392-1910) Admiral Yi Sun-sin to sell briskly.
Before that, K-pop singer Psy’s “Gangnam Style” brought in visitors as well. A film dubbed “Gangnam Blues” starring hot hallyu star Lee Min-ho is pending, so it remains to be seen whether the film will give another economic bump to the southern Seoul district, and Seoul in general.
This interesting mix of developments in the cultural sector prompts one to wonder whether a similar formula could work magic for PyeongChang, the host city of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. The city in eastern Gangwon Province, despite having won the right to host the Games on its third attempt, is struggling with only three years left before the com- petition begins.
The city and the province — with its sharp and deep valleys — have served Korean winter sports lovers for decades now. Yet, as a Winter Olympic venue, so far the city has just been sputtering along because of financial issues. It also suffered an agonizing dilemma of whether it would have to split the hosting of the Games with other cities. However, Gunilla Lindberg, chairwoman of the IOC’s Coordination Commission for the PyeongChang Olympics, ended that debate.
Experts are calling on the central and provincial governments to share responsibility so that the first Winter Games in Korea will be a success.
Korean films have chosen Gangwon Province as their background before. The film “Welcome to Dongmakgol” (2005) is set in the province, and director Hong Sang-soo’s “The Power of Gangwon Province” (1998) is also set there.
Both films were successful, but not to the extent that some Korean films are these days. One wonders whether yet another highly popular film about PyeongChang and Gangwon Province might get its engine started.