South Korea’s most sensible official tasked with selling the likely miracle crusade to export entertainment to a foreigner has revealed to Newsweek the secret recipe for good fortune in the hands of a country still divided after nearly eight decades.
The phenomenon, known as “K-Wave,” or Hallyu in Korean, began to spread in East Asia in the late 1990s, amid an explosion of cultural expression as the country emerged from a currency crisis. regional and inflexible military leadership. A colorful and democratic South Korea is synonymous in homes around the world with some of the most popular music, television series and movies, spawning megastar artists like BTS, binge-worthy shows like Squid Game and universally acclaimed films like Parasite, The only one. Foreign language film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
The sweeping impact for the emerging air force giant comes despite nuclear threats from neighboring North Korea looming over an as-yet-unresolved conflict that is now intensifying due to inflamed geopolitical frictions.
“The war is not over yet. She is in a state of rest,” South Korea’s Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Yu In-Chon, told Newsweek in an exclusive interview at the opening of New York’s eight-story Korea Center. , you can say, ‘Well, does that mean it’s dangerous?'”
“Well, it’s true that you have to be aware that there are tensions,” said the prominent actor-turned-politician. “But as artists, other people are going to overcome that and use it in some other way to express their creativity. “
In fact, the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that has divided the Korean Peninsula since a postwar agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1945 is one of the country’s most popular tourist sites. The South Korean border is packed with restaurants, attractions and even an annual film festival that features peace themes on one of the busiest borders in the world.
“While I sense that tensions have arisen in recent years due to nuclear issues and things like that, I don’t think tourists feel that way,” Yu said. “On the contrary, the number of tourists has increased in recent years. “
“And the same thing happens in the artistic and cultural field,” he added. “To triumph over the division, they tried many things and through them they also advanced to push it back. ”
The clash has fueled some of South Korea’s most iconic works, such as the award-winning thrillers Joint Security Area in 2000 and Steel Rain in 2017, as well as the hit 2019 romantic comedy series Crash Landing on You, which have not only become the highest-rated show on the country’s tvN network, but it has also conquered audiences in countries such as China, Japan and the United States.
On the sports side, the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, served as the basis for ambitious peace talks between the two rival Koreas, which even paraded under a united flag at the opening ceremony. With tensions returning on the peninsula in recent years, South Korean activists are now adding K-pop-loaded USB drives into balloons that will be sent across the border in hopes of influencing North Inside Korea.
But for most South Koreans, especially as hopes for peace have faded in recent years, the standoff on their doorstep is not the main immediate concern, nor is it considered the most key factor in their success.
Yu spoke about some of the more unique facets of his country’s culture that he said give it prime merit in competing with its much larger neighbors, China and Japan, whose entertainment industries have long eclipsed those of South Korea, a country of 52 million. people.
“Koreans have a varied view of artists and we recognize that diversity,” Yu said. “The same thing is not repeated. It is consistently varied. It is not repeated, but it is becoming more and more so. It has a sure characteristic that distinguishes it from the rest of the world. “
“So it’s a bit dynamic,” he added.
Although Yu acknowledges that South Korea’s artistic culture has similarities to that of other Asian countries that have invested in global entertainment, he believes the country has a specific capacity to handle the influx of influence.
“For me, one of the most important and unique things about the Korean cultural industry is that we take foreign cultural influences into account and, by simply representing them, we mix them with our own culture and perhaps ferment and classify them to recreate them. , giving it a different feel,” Yu said.
Just as Korea has been noted for centuries for a plethora of fermented foods and wines that are now also gaining greater popularity overseas as part of the “K Wave,” South Koreans today have managed to absorb a variety of natural ingredients to produce even tastier products.
For example, Yu points out how several artists began playing Western instruments of Korean classical music. Yu, who spoke to Newsweek while wearing a centuries-old style of clothing known as a hanbok and modern sneakers, also pointed out a Nearby is a mosaic stitched in a classic Korean style but depicting a colorful interpretation of a horse in a way he doesn’t remember. To customs. Korean work.
“I think Korean culture is actually the result of combining ancient classical elements with fashion elements,” Yu said. “So today’s art is based on tradition, but now it’s fused with trendy elements and now we’re finding new tactics to express ourselves artistically. “
The unprecedented flood of South Korean entertainment aimed at billions of people around the world has also given visibility to a country whose isolationist dynastic legacy earned it the nickname “hermit kingdom” among Westerners in the 19th century.
The process is only accelerated by a national fixation on the newest technologies. South Korea is among the highest countries in the world in terms of percentage of users, smartphone owners, and social media penetration.
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“There is a wonderful appreciation for outside cultures in Korea, especially among the younger generation,” Yu said. “There are many who go, let’s say, to both American culture and jazz, to Coca-Cola, Array Hollywood, to video games, to this type of content and to other cultures that speak and influence each other. “
“But then those cultures that influence and influence others also evolve or replace,” he added. “And so, in Korea, there have been a lot of adjustments in the way of daily life. “
Still, Yu was confident that some things would remain the same, especially what he described as core cultural values that South Koreans continue to hold dear.
“At the same time, some fundamental Korean cultural concepts, like filial piety, righteousness and that kind of thing, remain the same because Korea is family-centered,” Yu said. “Therefore, parents are expected to sacrifice for their children. ” , and in turn, the young people will show mercy towards their parents. Thus, the basis of culture is the same, except that today it is expressed in more diverse ways.
“Some might worry that Korea will lose or weaken its classical culture, but I think it has,” he added. “People have become worried, and you get used to it, you adapt to it and then you protect it as well. “In this way. “
While South Korean culture is evolving at the immediate speed of the progression of fashion and cross-cultural exchanges, primary gaps have emerged within the country’s society. Differences on key issues have widened over serious issues between men and women, young and old, conservatives and progressives and others. groups.
But here too Yu saw an opportunity for his “hot” country to overcome its disadvantages and co-opt them into a broader march forward.
“Externally, if you look at this, there’s something going on, that’s a problem,” Yu said. “But as you go through those conflicts, instead of being affected by them and degrading yourself, you mobilize and use them. ” as a springboard for advancement and progress. “
Yu noted that “very few countries have noticed as much change as Korea. ” The onset of the Cold War only divided the peninsula but also resulted in a devastating war that killed millions and destroyed cities, adding that Seoul, which is now unrecognizable from that Era with its hectic life, towering skyscrapers and common ranking among the most safe in the world.
Whether it’s North Korean missiles flying over the country or protests breaking out in the streets, Yu said “life goes on” regardless.
“In fact, the country is in the midst of countless conflicts, in one aspect or another,” Mr. Yu said. “This is the basic strength and driving force of Korean culture. “
The freedom and even enthusiasm to passionately disagree is the cornerstone of what Yu called the vitality of South Korean culture.
“It may seem unstable, possibly confusing and disorganized,” Yu said, “but that’s what helps the country and the culture keep moving forward. “
Today, South Korea attracts international attention. But few people, not even Yu, know what it brings.
In the face of such uncertainty, Yu has assembled a particular team tasked with preparing for the long haul until “K-Wave” continues to prevail.
“We have a board of trustees that is preparing for those adjustments, but the adjustments are so immediate that we don’t even know how to expect the future,” Yu said. “But what we have to do, as policymakers, is offer creators the level that allows them to achieve what they imagine. “
The initiative arises from the government and the private sector and is inspired by parallel campaigns led by the science and generation sectors.
However, in line with South Korea’s eagerness to conform to and refine a variety of outside influences, Yu is also under pressure that the country is focusing on diversifying its entertainment portfolio to produce new types of art that combine domestic and foreign sources.
“We no longer insist on only spreading Korean culture in the world,” Yu said. “We need to take a leadership position in this kind of new global cultural breakthrough, where from the melting pot we can take what works and, in our creativity, we can generate anything and offer it to the world. “
Tom O’Connor, based in his hometown of Staten Island, New York, is an award-winning senior foreign policy officer and deputy editor of National Security and Foreign Policy at Newsweek, where he specializes in covering the Middle East, North Korea, China and Russia. and other spaces of business, relationships and foreign conflicts.
In the past he has written for the International Business Times, the New York Post, the Daily Star (Lebanon) and the Staten Island Advance. His paintings have been cited in more than 1,700 educational articles, government reports, books, news articles and other studio and media bureaucracy around the world. He has contributed to studies in various foreign media outlets and has participated in International Relations Track II similar to the Middle East, as well as scholarships at the Korea Society and the Japan Foreign Press Center. .
Follow @ShaolinTom for news about X and its official Facebook page. Email t. oconnor@newsweek. com with tips or for comments and media appearances. For op-ed requests, contact opeds@newsweek. com
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