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| ▲This photo, shows Busan bridge and Myung-do bridge from Yeongdo. (Yonhap) |
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| ▲This photo, provided by Busan Film Commission, shows Busan film production studio. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
SEOUL, July 12 (Yonhap) -- The number of movies and videos filmed in Busan has recovered to the level before the COVID-19.
The number of movies and videos to be filmed in the first half year was 57 (11 movies and 46 other videos) while the total duration of filming was 319 days, announced Busan Film Commission on Monday.
This is an increase of six films compared to 51 films (9 movies and 42 videos) during the same period last year, and an increase of 15 films from 42 films (11 feature films and 31 other videos) in the first half of 2019 before COVID-19.
This shows that the situation of filming in Busan and production support, which has been deteriorating over the past two years due to COVID-19, is recovering for normalization.
Representative works filmed in Busan include movie “Gil Bok-soon” starring Jeon Do-yeon and Sol Kyung-gu. “Rebound” by director Jang Hang-jun, and “Twenty-Five Twenty-One” which gained popularity with its relatable story.
Although the number of feature films decreased due to COVID-19 in the first half of last year, Loosened social distancing and recovery of audience numbers led to the rise of feature films this year.
Unlike the past which concentrated in Noir, there has been variety of genres ranging from comedy to drama and romance.
seven dramas, five comedies, four actions, four crimes, and other works of various genres including romance, documentary, thriller, sports, and SF were filmed at Busan.
“Busan is where most of genres can be filmed with no trouble because it has an excellent natural landscape such as mountain and sea and is a city where history and technology coexist,” said Yang Young-joo, head of the video business team at the Busan Film Commission.
Busan film studio was utilized total of 352 days in the first half year, reaching 97% rate of operation.
This is an increase of 25.7% compared to 280 days during the same period last year.
Increased demand for the studio usage is due to the increase of OTT platform and the production of delayed movies.
Judging that limited studio space with only two buildings cannot accommodate demand, the Busan Film Commission is currently looking for alternatives to expand facilities by encouraging the usage of open sets and building additional studios,
In the first half of this year, films supported by Busan Film Commission entered domestic and foreign film festivals and received awards.
Movie "Jung Soon" (directed by Jung Ji-hye), which received Busan rising writer's film development mentoring, won the grand prize in one of the categories at this year's Jeonju International Film Festival.
Last year, "The Unpredictable Detective," selected to be supported, was released on major OTT platforms in Korea (Wave, Tving, Season, Watcha, etc.), becoming a leading role in the development of local film’s distribution.
"In the first half of this year, film production support recovered to the level before COVID-19 and entered a stable period," adding, "In the second half, we plan to focus on international business and offline previews postponed by COVID-19," said Kim In-soo, chairman of the Busan Film Commission.
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Jiwon Woo.)
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