At the Korea Customs Service, all administrative work is done through a massive computerized system. An average of 118,000 export and import reports are handled every day, and the accumulation of vast data allows KCS to make good use of big data analysis and artificial intelligence. “We plan to open a KCS big data portal for the public late this year, which will offer customized services for bu...

“The Policeman’s Lineage” is based on a Japanese novel of the same title written by Joh Sasaki. Cho said that he has still not read the original novel yet, but he met with the author while filming. “The author came to our filming site. He gave me a signed book. It was too thick,” Cho said. “I will read it when I am traveling.” Sasaki’s translated book in Korean is 684 pages long. “I could feel...

Another goal for KOCIS is to expand the roles of the 33 existing Korea Culture Centers located in 28 nations worldwide to encourage greater cultural exchange with its global partners. “The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of how we communicate, but the importance of physical spaces dedicated to Korean culture - the Korea Culture Centers, for example - hasn‘t lessened,” he added. “Each...

Kim said a program like Dream Gream Young Designer will have a positive impact in the arts field. “I heard that the students who participated as mentees in the Dream Gream’s arts scholarship return as mentors after going to the arts college. In that sense, I think Dream Gream is leading a positive change, giving meaningful values to the people in the arts industry,” she said. Crayon Studio and ...

South Korea should join the democratic coalitions designed to keep China in check, instead of hedging between the US and China, which could result in Seoul having to deal with Beijing alone, says Victor Cha, a former top adviser on North Korea in the George W. Bush administration. “Hedging is not a long-term strategy for South Korea between the US and China. It does not help relations with eithe...

Even for veteran performer Song Se-byeok, 42, who debuted in 1988 as a stage actor, understanding the reckless character of Kyung-pil in the upcoming film “Special Cargo” by Park Dae-min was not easy. “Special Cargo” is a crime-action film that centers around a professional delivery driver named Eun-ha (Park So-dam). She delivers anything that cannot be delivered legally. One day, Eun-ha receive...

The actor said that being an executive producer was an interesting experience. “When a new movie or drama series is unveiled, (as an actor) I should focus my performance on expressing the given role. But I had to see the bigger picture as a producer. I tried hard to listen to different comments and reflect on what I could have done better to satisfy viewers,” Jung said. Though Jung thought that...

The eight-part series ranked in the fifth place as of Monday on the global Netflix chart, according to the US-based streaming analytics firm FlixPatrol. By Lee Si-jin ( sj_lee@heraldcorp.com )

Washington should ease sanctions on North Korea with a “snapback” clause, as current measures only give Pyongyang justification for nuclear armament, says the head of the Korean National Diplomatic Academy. “The original purpose of sanctions is to make a country a normal state so that they stop further provocation or give up nuclear weapons. Punishment for doing wrong is incidental,” said Hong H...

Music as a new endeavor “Show Me The Money” discovered a gem and built the rapper into a star. But surprisingly, Jo Gwangil said music was something he had never dreamed of. “I’ve always wanted to be a StarCraft gamer. I actually participated in some competitions. But the company suddenly halted its service, and my dreams went up in smoke,” he said. “I questioned myself about what I wanted to d...

If entry restrictions are eased by the end of January, B.I.G will go to Japan for a while for concerts there, the group hinted. Jinseok, who is called “Arabian prince” by other members, said he has received messages from global fans on social media, asking to “hold a performance ASAP.” He felt sorry about the pandemic situation, and promised to work harder to improve his singing and performing ...

Music as a tool of change Before Davii unlocked his musical passion, Choi Kyu-wan was a boy who relished singing in church. He said he loved listening to music and wanted to be like artists he revered but never had the audacity to do so. “I wanted to live a life like my father, but he is a person who gained success through academics,“ the musician said, speaking about his dad, who is a mechanic...

While there are many amazing and classic Christmas songs, the musician chose her all-time-favorites that she wanted to sing the most and “everything fell into place,” the singer-songwriter said. The musician also participated in writing six of the 13 songs on the album. She feels the most attached to the first track “Christmas Calling (Jolly Jones),” and the song helped inform the whole album wi...

Hong, a representative of the Korean Society for Laboratory Medicine’s COVID-19 taskforce, has been in several meetings with the government over monitoring and diagnostics against the original virus and its variants. He was also among the experts developing Korea’s very first test kits against COVID-19 using the prototypes provided by the World Health Organization back in January last year. By K...

The next president should improve social awareness and welfare for the disabled, says Rep. Kim Ye-ji, South Korea's first visually-impaired woman to hold a parliamentary seat. The visually-impaired pianist-turned-politician of the main opposition People Power Party said in an interview with The Korea Herald that she asks whoever becomes the next president to raise awareness of disabled people an...