What happens behind the ‘transnational’ of transnational films? Examining China and South Korea’s co-productions

Abstract

The global popularity of the Korean Wave has enhanced the reputation of South Korea’s (hereafter Korea) creative industries, making Korea an ideal collaborator for China as they develop and produce ‘created in China’ content. Focusing on China’s film industry, as of 2021, China sits at the top spot in terms of box office revenues and has been opened to co-producing with other national industries. To promote cultural flows in East Asia, Koreans are keen to develop the relationship due to China’s growing reach and its promising returns. But when transnational collaborations such as co-producing takes place, it can result in various forms of cultural complexity that may hinder discussions and negotiations. Through semi-structured interviews with Korean filmmakers, the paper examines how complexities are untangled when the two nations collaborate. Demonstrating the importance of obtaining cultural intelligence, the paper shows how cultural capital impacts Korean filmmakers as they navigate language and cultural differences.

Keywords:

• Transnational film
• film co-production
• cultural capital
• cultural intelligence
• Chinese cinema
• Korean cinema

Acknowledgement

I would like to thank my interviewees, Andy Yoon, Lee Hong-dae and Chuck Chae for their time and generosity in sharing their experiences. Thank you to the anonymous reviewers and editor-in-chief Graeme Harper for giving me the opportunity to publish my work. Most importantly, I would like to give a huge thanks to my PhD supervisors Dr Sue Turnbull and Dr Quah Ee Ling, Sharon for providing invaluable feedback and encouragement throughout my PhD journey and beyond.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethics approval

The study was reviewed by the University of Wollongong Human Research Ethics Committee (Social Science, Humanities and Behaviour Science) on 21 September 2016 (HE15/457).

Notes

1 2020 accumulated North American box office revenue was at USD 2.28 billion (Yin and Sun 2021).

2 In 2016 Wu Yue was the Deputy of China Film Co-production Corporation.

3 KOFIC is a self-administered organisation under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Korea

4 Both films were released prior to the ban in 2016

5 Four Dan actresses are the four most bankable actresses in China.

6 EXO is a K-Pop idol group created by SM Entertainment. Lu left EXO in 2014 to focus on his solo career in China

7 The Witness behind-the-scenes footage can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAtas9Kdb4k

8 Girl crush is a term popularised by Korean popular culture to describe a confident woman who does not confine to social rules and driving the concept of female empowerment.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kai Ruo Soh

SOH Kai Ruo is a Lecturer in the department of Communication and New Media at the National University of Singapore. Her research explores how foreign film collaborations are transnational in their ability to forge connections across borders both culturally and economically. Prior to joining the department, she held positions in marketing and communication within the arts and social impact space.