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| yna@yna.co.kr 2023-03-18 10:59:06
SEOUL March 18 (Yonhap) -- Cultural exchanges between Japan and South Korea are expected to expand based on the recent Korea-Japan summit, the film industry is showcasing collaborative production between two countries continuously.
In particular, famous Japanese directors such as Hirokazu Kore-eda, Miike Takashi, Sabu and Yukisada Isao, who are well known within South Korea, seem to be actively engaging in productions being released in South Korea.
Experts analyzed that this trend is the result of a combination between the slump within the Japanese film industry and the rise of South Korean content.
◇ From Kore-eda to Yukisada...Japanese Directors are engaging in productions within South Korea.
According to the movie industry on the Saturday, cultural exchanges between South Korea and Japan are not new. However, the recent trend is drawing attention as the productions being showcase nowadays portray unique trend where South Korean production companies and actors and actresses are being directed by Japanese directors.
The movie "Broker," which provided the S.Korean actor Song Kang-ho with the Cannes Best Actor award in 2022, is directed by Japanese director Kore-eda. The movie depicts a story of a broker selling an abandoned child in a baby boxes and a young mother who wants to find a better parent for her son. The movie lays within the similar boundary of director's previous work in terms that it is about the family.
Director Takashi challenged the OTT series with his latest release "Connect," starring actor, Jung Hae-in. By showcasing invincible protagonist director showcased genre which he is known to be good at.
Director Sabu also announced that he will be direct a drama based on the thriller film "Under Your Bed" starring Lee Ji-hoon, and director Yukisada will direct a drama based on the webtoon "Perfect Family."
South Korean film critic, Jung Ji-wook, addressed , "It is a natural for globally recognized K-content to meet various foreign directors, it fits the trend of globalization," adding, "In particular, directors with a domestic fan base are expected to enter Korea."
◇ Japan's recession on film industry while K-content rises
The biggest reason why Japanese directors came over to South Korea to engage in film industry is become the size and reputation of the Japanese film industry has become small.
Japanese content was favored by not only in Koreans but also abroad in between the 1990s to the early 2000s, but the influence it once held has declined dramatically within the last decade or so.
Japanese movies lack in impact like they once did back in the golden era except for some of the genres with solid fan base such as animation and romance. Therefore movies such as "The First Slam Dunk" and "Even if this love disappears from the world tonight" managed to succeed despite of the current trend.
In this given situation some of the critics address that an opportunity to direct South Korean product could be a tempting suggestion for Japanese directors. Jung Deok-hyun, a pop culture critic, addressed, "It is true that Korean works are doing much better than Japanese works in terms of global content scenes," adding, "From the perspective of Japanese directors, it will be a good opportunity to show their capabilities."
It is also worth noting that famous directors, who enjoyed the heyday of most Japanese films, are entering Korea.
In the case of director Kore-eda, he became a world-class director by receiving the award at the Cannes and Venetian film festivals, however in the case of other directors, it has been a long time since he released a remarkable work.
Heo Nam-woong, a film critic, addressed, "Korean film industry, which can attract global attention, and provide wide spectrum for Japanese directors to work with can be seen as attractively."
◇ "Enthusiastic" vs. "Announcement of Language Barriers"...The chances of success are...
Opinions regarding the possibility of success on these films created by foreign directors seem to vary within the domestic film industry.
Part of the public are still expecting and keeping their hopes up that foreign directors will come up with something so grand knowing that they have done in before, but on the other hand, there are concerns that it will be difficult to overcome the language barrier as the two previous works failed to create a great resonance and attract viewers
Director Miike who is known to specialize in unique genre films, and director Sabu is known to specialize in black comedy, and director Yukisada is known for his melodramas. Therefore, some believe that if these directors were to inject their own unique colors within the production, they will be able to create attractive works.
In particular, the emotional barriers between countries, which have recently been lowered around the world due to wide spread of OTT platforms, the scene is set for foreign directors to showcase their works to Korean audiences to shorten the distance between them.
Film Critic Jeong Deok-hyun stated, "Recently, a lot of dramas and films shown in Japan are oddly similar to South Korean contents, this showcase the shortened distance between Japanese and South Korean culture."
However, some point out that it is difficult to see such collaborations can only be seen positively, given that there are no major success stories to prove its success.
Film critic Kim Hyo-jung addressed, "So far, the problems caused by linguistic differences in the work have been revealed to be critical reason for films success," adding, "Given such information, the collaboration are very publically interesting and worth the spotlight however, it is difficult to erase the idea that it is dangerous."
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Joonha Yoo)
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