Articles by Song Seung-hyun
Song Seung-hyun
ssh@heraldcorp.com-
[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week
Soul (US) Opened Jan. 20 Animation Directed by Pete Docter Joe Gardner, a middle school music teacher, dreams of becoming a jazz musician. One day, Joe auditions for the band of jazz legend Dorothea Williams. Impressed with Joe’s piano playing, Dorothea offers him a chance to perform later that night. As Joe heads off to prepare for the show, he falls down a manhole and ends up in the “Great Before.” Iamhere (France) Opened Jan. 14 Drama Directed by Eric Lartigau Ste
Film Jan. 22, 2021
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Two-term lawmaker Hwang Hee named new culture minister
Culture Minister nominee Hwang Hee is a two-term lawmaker affiliated with the ruling Democratic Party, who began his political career in the late 1990s as a secretary to the late President Kim Dae-jung. He has served as the Democratic Party’s head of public relations and as its deputy floor leader. He was elected to his first term as a lawmaker in the general elections in 2016, and was reelected in 2020. Until recently, he was the administrator of the National Assembly’s defense c
Culture Jan. 20, 2021
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KOFIC to launch English website promoting Korean actors
The Korean Film Council on Tuesday announced that it will start the “Korean Actor 200” global campaign to promote Korean actors overseas. A total of 200 actors -- 100 women and 100 men — have been selected for the campaign based on such criteria as domestic and international film awards received. An English-language website featuring the selected actors will launch in March, the state-run film organization said, and will include 200 videos that show the actors’ careers
Film Jan. 19, 2021
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Moon So-ri to return to big screen as eager-to-please middle child
Veteran actor Moon So-ri is returning to the big screen as a middle child of three sisters, a devout Christian who always tries to please the pastor, in the upcoming movie “Three Sisters.” During a press conference held at the CGV Yongsan movie theater in Seoul on Monday, Moon said she had some difficulty understanding her character Mi-yeon at first. “I have one younger brother and no sisters. I never attended church either,” Moon said. She added that she attended chur
Film Jan. 19, 2021
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Won Buddhism appoints leader for centers in the Americas
Won Buddhism announced Monday that it had appointed Juksan Hwang Do-gook as its new leader in the Americas. Hwang’s appointment ceremony took place virtually on Jan. 13 with followers from 23 countries watching. Hwang is the first leader in charge of Won Buddhism centers located outside South Korea, according to the religious group. The decision to appoint a leader outside Korea was reached as Won Buddhism found it necessary to have a leader who understands the local situation. Hwang h
Culture Jan. 18, 2021
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CJ CGV hopes to attract video gamers to theaters
Are you tired of playing video games on your small TV screen? CJ CGV, the country‘s largest cinema chain, on Saturday officially launched its console game platform business AzitX, which will allow video gamers to play at 34 local movie theaters, including CGV Yongsan in central Seoul. CGV said it launched an AzitX pilot service for five days at four local theaters, including CGV Ilsan, and received positive feedback. “We saw that AzitX was popular among many people who wa
Film Jan. 17, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Second episode of ‘Youn’s Stay’ records over 10% viewership rating
The second episode of “Youn’s Stay” -- a spinoff from reality TV show “Youn’s Restaurant” -- marked a viewership rating of 10.2 percent, according to Nielsen Korea on Saturday. During the show that aired Friday night, the cast served traditional Korean drink makgeolli, as well as Korean foods they had learned to make in the previous episode, including bugak (seaweed chips), tteokgalbi (beef patties), jeon (savory pancakes) and vegan gungjung tteokbokki (roy
Television Jan. 17, 2021
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[Weekender] Korean gatherings go virtual on Minecraft amid pandemic
Over the Christmas holidays, seven Korean YouTubers gathered in a room to draw lots for a Secret Santa gift exchange. In another room, almost a hundred YouTubers posed together for a group picture. No one wore face masks. Or rather, their virtual, Lego-like avatars didn’t. Under South Korea’s strict social distancing guidelines because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the YouTube community took their gatherings online on Minecraft – the most popular video game of all time. Communiti
Culture Jan. 16, 2021
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Culture Ministry to create W298.5b fund to support local cultural industries
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Thursday announced that it plans to establish three funds worth a total of 298.5 billion won ($271.6 million) to support local content creators and sports and tourism businesses. The money will be injected through a fund-of-funds managed by Korea Venture Investment Corp., in line with the Culture Ministry’s practice since 2005 of investing indirectly in small and midsized cultural businesses through venture capital funds instead of choosing
Culture Jan. 16, 2021
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[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week
Wonder Woman 1984 (US) Opened Dec. 23 Action Directed by Patty Jenkins In 1984, the title character Diana (Gal Gadot) works at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington while performing heroic deeds. One day, Diana unknowingly uses a stone to wish her deceased lover Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) back to life. However, new enemies also emerge, preying on humanity’s desires. Diana is now the only hope of saving the world. In the Mood for Love (China) Reopened Dec. 24 Romance Directed
Film Jan. 15, 2021
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Kim Young-jin selected as new head of KOFIC
Kim Young-jin selected new head of KOFIC Kim Young-jin, former vice director of the Korean Film Council, has been selected as the new chairman of the state-funded film organization. Kim was chosen through a vote by the nine KOFIC committee members during the committee‘s first regular meeting Monday. His term of office runs through Jan. 3, 2022. “We will seek a practical support plan to overcome the difficult times of COVID-19, and also focus on presenting a blueprint for respon
Film Jan. 13, 2021
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Youn Yuh-jung continues to capture US film critics’ heart
Veteran actor Youn Yuh-jung won three more best supporting actress trophies from US film critic circles -- the San Diego Film Critics Society, Music City Film Critics Association and the DiscussingFilm Critic Awards -- for her role in “Minari.” So far, Youn has won a total of 11 best supporting actress awards given by US film critics circles and festivals, including the Columbus Film Critics, Oklahoma Film Critics Circle and the North Carolina Film Critics. Drama film’s dire
Film Jan. 13, 2021
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Korea’s CHA presents mural conservation manuals to Myanmar
South Korea’s Cultural Heritage Administration in Myanmar held a ceremony on Monday to present four booklets on Korea’s mural conservation and management to Myanmar’s cultural authorities. Minister of Religious Affairs and Culture of Myanmar Aung Ko, the director of the Department of Archaeology and National Museum, South Korea’s ambassador to Myanmar Lee Sang-hwa and Head of the Bagan Office of the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation Kim Dong-min attended the event at
Culture Jan. 11, 2021
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‘Wonder Woman’ fails to save Korean movie theaters
The number of moviegoers over the weekend dropped to a new record low last week, according to data from the Korean Film Council. A total of 80,735 people went to theaters from Friday to Sunday last week, a deep plunge from 149,000 a week earlier. Over the three days, “Wonder Woman 1984,” directed by Patty Jenkins, topped the local box office with attendance of just 26,000. The Hollywood superhero movie has been dominating the local box office, with the accumulated number
Film Jan. 11, 2021
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TvN’s ‘Youn’s Stay’ off to good start
“Youn’s Stay” -- a spin-off of the popular Korean reality TV show “Youn’s Restaurant” -- got off to a good start Friday with a rating of 8.2 percent. The show features foreign guests staying at a hanok guesthouse in Korea run by a group of celebrities. It began with the production team expressing concerns about airing a program during the pandemic. It was noted that all celebrities and guests on the show had tested negative for the coronavirus. “Youn
Television Jan. 10, 2021
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