Korean actor Ahn Sung-ki was announced as the winner of the Brand Laureate Awards at Hotel Shilla in Seoul on Tuesday. Ahn is the first Korean to win the award, which is organized by Australia-based The World Brands Foundation. It recognizes individuals, organizations and corporations that hold high international brand value. Founded in 2005, TWBF is a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing brands in diverse fields. (The Brand Laureate)

People June 23, 2021

Kim Min-seol, a 22-year-old student at the Seoul Institute of Art, won the top award at the Miss Chunhyang beauty pageant in Namwon, North Jeolla Province, May 19. “For me, it was a learning opportunity,” Kim said during a recent interview with The Korea Herald. “I understand that beauty pageants are becoming an issue. By participating in the contest and winning, I found out that the Miss Chunhyang beauty pageant does not focus only on external beauty but also provides a chan

Culture June 23, 2021

When violinist Kim Bomosori was asked to describe her new album “Violin on Stage” during a press conference held Monday in Apgujeong-dong, Seoul, she relayed her acquaintance’s response to the album. “My acquaintance told me that after starting the first track, he couldn’t stop the music for a bathroom break because it was like the movie ‘The Bourne Identity,’” Kim, 31, said with a shy smile. “He said the album is like watching continuous a

Performance June 22, 2021

Naver’s V Live is being criticized for translating kimchi as “pao cai” -- a pickled vegetable dish eaten in China -- in the June 15 episode of BTS’ variety program “Run BTS!” 　 On the show, the BTS members are divided into two teams and make two different types of kimchi with restaurateur Paik Jong-won. Each time kimchi is mentioned in the video, the Chinese subtitles read “pao cai.” With Chinese media having claimed kimchi originated from pao c

Culture June 21, 2021

For actor Jo Woo-jin, playing his first title role in the upcoming action film “Hard Hit” in his 22-year career seems like a miracle. “There was a posting that I recently wrote to my fans. It says: ‘Hard hit’ will be released and I am now starting my race. I came to Seoul in 1999 with only 500,000 won ($440.84) in my hand. Everything that is happening to me from now on will feel like a miracle,” Jo said during a press conference held last Wednesday in CGV Y

Film June 21, 2021

Baritone singer Kim Gi-hoon,won the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition held in the United Kingdom on Saturday. Established in 1983, the competition is organized jointly by BBC Wales and Welsh National Opera and its winners include some of the biggest names in opera such as Bryn Terfel. With the win, Kim became the first Korean to receive this main prize at the competition. Kim received 20,000 pounds ($27,600) in prize money. Korean Baritone No Dae-san and bass Park Jong-min have wo

Performance June 20, 2021

Whispering Corridors 6: The Humming (Korea) Opened June 17 Horror Directed by Lee Mi-young Eun-hee (Kim Seo-hyung) is posted as a vice principal at a girls high school where she was once a student. After starting work at the school, she begins having hallucinations. One day, Eun-hee unexpectedly meets student Ha-yeong (Kim Hyun-soo) in a hidden washroom at the school that is now used as a storage space, and they hear a mysterious humming sound.  A Quiet Place Part II (US) Opened June 16

Film June 18, 2021

“Everglow,” directed by So Jun-moon, depicts the love story of Jin-ok, a 70-year-old female diver of Jeju Island, also known as “haenyeo,” and a 30-something documentary producer Kyung-hoon. The unconventional love story was a shock to veteran actor Go Doo-shim, 70, who plays Jin-ok in the upcoming film. “Ji Hyun-woo and I have somewhat of an age gap. I was an actor who did not get to perform in many romantic films so I craved them. But when I read the script, I

Film June 16, 2021

The Korean Theater Association, which includes the top three local multiplex operators -- CGV, Lotte Cinema, Megabox -- among its members, has thrown a lifeline to two film distributors to encourage the release of their high-budget movies, “Escape from Mogadishu” and “Sinkhole,” it announced on Tuesday. Instead of splitting the ticket sales 50:50 between theaters and film distributors as is the practice, the theaters will forgo ticket sales proceeds until the amount rea

Film June 15, 2021

DAEJEON--The Cultural Heritage Administration and Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency on Tuesday jointly announced that 11 suspects who attempted to smuggle out 92 valuable Korean cultural artifacts have been caught. The two agencies also unveiled the items the suspects allegedly tried to take out of the country during a press briefing held at Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency on Tuesday. “We started working together with the CHA from 2018,” Kim Jae-chun, an official from Daejeon

Culture June 15, 2021

Not all expectant mothers experience a “pregnancy glow,” says director Kim Hye-mi, who hopes to highlight the tumultuous journey some pregnant women go through in her animated horror film “Climbing.” “I wanted to show that pregnancy not only has bright sides to it but a dark side to it as well. And I wanted to show is that we don’t have to always view it only positively,” Kim said during a recent interview with The Korea Herald. “I wanted to focu

Film June 14, 2021

Walt Disney Korea on Monday announced that Marvel superhero film “Black Widow” will be released globally on July 7, in theaters and its streaming service Disney+. Movie fans have long been waiting for news of the film’s release, its trailer was unveiled in March 2020. The release date of the film has been delayed multiple times due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Popular Avengers character Natasha Romanoff, known as Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) appears in the new film

Film June 14, 2021

At the far end of a long, spooky hallway, a girl with long hair in a school uniform is standing still. As the creepy atmosphere conquers the space, the girl swiftly moves toward the audience. The well-known scene comes from the first “Whispering Corridors” movie, which came out in 1998. The signature scene was re-created in the upcoming “Whispering Corridors 6: The Humming,” which marks a return to the series after 12 years. “As I was making the film, I mostly us

Film June 12, 2021

The Visit Korean Heritage campaign, which began last year, is back, and this time with some new global projects, according to its co-organizers the Cultural Heritage Administration and the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation. “We can sense people’s sentiment toward Korean culture changed recently through contents like BTS’ Daechwita, band Leenalchi’s Korea promotional videos and Minari,” Kim Hyun-mo, head of the Cultural Heritage Administration, said during a press

Culture June 11, 2021

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (US) Opened June 3 Horror Directed by Michael Chaves In 1981, 8-year-old boy David Glatzel (Julian Hilliard), possessed by a demon, stabs his father’s leg. Demonologists Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) try to help the boy but it is not easy. During an exorcism, Arne Johnson (Ruairi O’Connor), boyfriend of David’s sister, invites the demon to enter his body instead of David’s. Cruella (US) Opened May 26 Drama

Film June 11, 2021