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Baek Byung-yeul

Korea Times K-Culture Reporter

Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.

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Films

'Korean cinema's crisis is invisible from NY' says US film fest chief

"From New York, and the U.S. in general, the drought is almost invisible," Samuel Jamier, the executive director of the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) said, challenging the prevailing anxiety surrounding the future of Korean cinema. "Film, television and K-pop blur into a single triumphant category — Korean content — and its sheer popularity overshadows the predicament of the industry that produces it." In a recent email interview with The Korea Times, the executive director offered a refreshing global perspective on Korea’s pop culture scene, arguing that while structural bottlenecks are very real in Seoul, the global appetite for Korean storytelling remains as fierce as ever. His insights come as NYAFF kicks off its landmark 25th anniversary edition, running from Friday (local time) to July 26 in New York, featuring a massive Korean cinema spotlight co-hosted by the Korean Cultural Center New York and the nonprofit Film at Lincoln Center. Supported by the Korean Film Council, this year's festival is screening 23 Korean movies across five venues. Opening the festival on Frid

1d agoBy Baek Byung-yeul
'Korean cinema's crisis is invisible from NY' says US film fest chief
People & Events

K-beauty expands into men's grooming

Korea's globally recognized beauty industry, long associated with skin care, cosmetics and hairstyling for women, is increasingly extending its influence into men's grooming, with a new international festival aiming to showcase the country's growing barber culture. Organized and hosted by N2RAGE Global, Korea’s first beauty subculture community exclusively for men, the DISTRICT 82 festival is set to take place on Aug. 24. The organizer said Thursday the event will bring together barbers and hairstylists from Korea, Japan, Brazil and other countries for a day of live demonstrations, educational seminars, music performances and an international barber competition. “The event will be a platform where grooming is presented not simply as a service but as part of contemporary youth culture,” said An Hee-jin, global head of N2RAGE. “It will attract up to 700 professionals and enthusiasts.” The event reflects a broader evolution of K-beauty, a term for Korea's globally influential cosmetics sector that has traditionally focused on skin care and women's trends but is now expanding into

2d agoBy Baek Byung-yeul
K-beauty expands into men's grooming
People & Events

Yoido Full Gospel Church ramps up efforts to tackle low birthrate

Yoido Full Gospel Church is stepping up its efforts to combat the country’s chronically low birthrate by expanding its financial support and community programs for multichild families, demonstrating how religious communities can help address the national demographic crisis. The move comes as the country’s total fertility rate stood at 0.95 in the first quarter of 2026, according to the Ministry of Data and Statistics. While showing a slight rebound, the figure is still very low by global standards, which is why the church decides to take a more active role in supporting families. To mark World Population Day on July 11, the country’s largest megachurch announced Thursday that it will hold a special ceremony during its Sunday service on July 12. The church will present appreciation plaques and cash prizes to 42 families with five or more children, and plans to expand this initiative next year to include families with four children. Under the program, the church will distribute a total of 33.3 million won ($22,000) in incentives. Families with five children will receive 700,000 won

Jul 9, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Yoido Full Gospel Church ramps up efforts to tackle low birthrate
Films

Can 'Hope' save Korea's bleeding cinema?

The Korean film industry currently finds itself in a strange paradox where its global influence is expanding while its domestic foundations are crumbling rapidly. While prominent foreign filmmakers continue to praise the country as a world-class cinema powerhouse, local insiders fear that Korea might repeat the tragic decline of Hong Kong cinema due to an ongoing structural recession. That's is why all eyes are now on director Na Hong-jin and his upcoming sci-fi thriller “Hope,” scheduled to hit theaters on July 15. It is the most expensive project in Korean cinematic history with a budget exceeding 50 billion won ($33 million) and represents what many call the final lifeline of the domestic box office. The global reputation of Korean films remains remarkably high, contrasting sharply with its grim domestic reality. "I have long admired Korean cinema and Korean audiences for their enthusiasm," American director Josh Safdie said during an online press conference with Korean reporters on July 2, introducing his movie “Marty Supreme,” which hit local cinemas the day before. "Korea is

Jul 9, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Can 'Hope' save Korea's bleeding cinema?
Law & Crime

N. Korea-born ex-lawmaker's son faces 5-year prison demand over crypto fraud

Prosecutors on Tuesday demanded a five-year prison sentence for the eldest son of former People Power Party lawmaker Thae Yong-ho on charges of swindling about 1.4 billion won ($924,086) in a cryptocurrency investment scam. The prosecution made the request during the first hearing of the case involving the defendant at the Seoul Central District Court. The younger Tae faces charges including fraud under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes. "The nature of the crime is grave because the total damage reached 1.4 billion won and the defendant exploited the victims' trust in him," the prosecution said. "He continued his crimes through a Ponzi scheme, using money from new investors to pay off his existing debts." The state prosecutors also noted that the damage has not been recovered yet and it is unlikely that the victims will get their money back anytime soon. The defendant admitted to his crimes and asked the court for mercy during the trial. "I admit my wrongdoing and I have cooperated faithfully with the investigation by submitting all my financial and cryptocu

Jul 7, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
N. Korea-born ex-lawmaker's son faces 5-year prison demand over crypto fraud
Films

Na Hong-jin reinvents sci-fi thriller in 'Hope' with fierce pace, raw style

Na Hong-jin has returned to the director's chair for the first time in a decade with his highly anticipated sci-fi thriller "Hope," a film that undeniably breaks new ground in the history of Korean cinema. Following its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May, the blockbuster underwent careful editing and visual enhancements to shave four minutes off its runtime, resulting in a tighter 156-minute theatrical cut that delivers a relentless and high-octane cinematic experience. Set in the 1980s in Hopo Port, a fictional small coastal town near the Demilitarized Zone, the movie begins with a scary discovery. A remote outpost chief Bum-seok (Hwang Jung-min) responds to a report of a mutilated cow lying on a rural road. Believing a wild tiger is around, the village people grab their weapons to search for the threat. While tough young men including Seong-gi (Zo In-sung) head straight into the mountains, Bum-seok gets caught in a dangerous encounter with the creature, while staying in touch with a local police officer Seong-ae (Jung Ho-yeon). However, they soon realize that the mysteri

Jul 7, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Na Hong-jin reinvents sci-fi thriller in 'Hope' with fierce pace, raw style
  • Record-budget sci-fi 'Hope' gears up for local theaters after Cannes
Films

Record-budget sci-fi 'Hope' gears up for local theaters after Cannes

Director Na Hong-jin said his new sci-fi blockbuster “Hope” underwent minor editing changes after its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May to achieve the maximum cinematic effect for audiences. "The film has gone through some changes since its screening at Cannes," Na said during a press conference after the movie's Seoul premiere Monday. "If you saw the movie at Cannes, about five minutes of footage has been deleted. At the same time, around three to four minutes of new scenes were added, bringing the final runtime to a slightly different version." The highly anticipated sci-fi thriller follows Beom-seok (Hwang Jung-min), a small-town port outpost chief in the Demilitarized Zone, who puts the entire village on high alert after receiving reports of what they believe is a tiger sighting from local young men. The film features a star-studded international cast including Korean actors Hwang, Zo In-sung and Jung Ho-yeon, alongside Hollywood stars Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Taylor Russell and Cameron Britton. The film has already generated immense buzz as Korea's mo

Jul 6, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Record-budget sci-fi 'Hope' gears up for local theaters after Cannes
People & Events

Pope Leo invited to homeland of St. Andrew Kim Taegon next year

The mayor of Dangjin requested a papal visit to the birthplace of St. Andrew Kim Taegon (1821-1846), Korea’s first Catholic priest, ahead of the upcoming 2027 World Youth Day in Seoul, the city said Monday. On Sunday, Dangjin Mayor Kim Ki-jae met with Cardinal Lazzaro You Heung-sik, the prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy of the Holy See, to request that Pope Leo visit the Solmoe Holy Ground during the global Catholic festival. The meeting took place at the Solmoe Holy Ground in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province, where the cardinal was visiting to celebrate a mass commemorating the feast day of St. Andrew Kim Taegon. During the meeting, the mayor emphasized the symbolic importance of the birthplace of Korea’s first priest, calling it the cradle of Korean Catholicism. Additionally, looking ahead to a potential papal visit to North Korea, he proposed a performance of the Gijisi tug-of-war, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage that originated in Dangjin, as a symbolic gesture to convey a message of peace and inter-Korean harmony. You, who spoke with reporters in Seoul on Friday

Jul 6, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Pope Leo invited to homeland of St. Andrew Kim Taegon next year
Shows & Dramas

'Agent Kim Reactivated' finds success by focusing on father's love

Actor So Ji-sub's action drama "Agent Kim Reactivated" surpassed the 20 percent viewership mark just four episodes into its run. According to ratings tracker Nielsen Korea on Sunday, the fourth episode of the SBS Friday-Saturday drama, recorded a nationwide rating of 21.6 percent on Saturday. That makes it the third-highest-rated SBS Friday-Saturday drama in history, trailing only "The Penthouse 2," which hit 29.2 percent, and "The Fiery Priest,” which reached 22 percent. The show has climbed steadily since its premiere. It opened with 9.5 percent, jumped to 15.7 percent in the second episode, reached 18.8 percent in the third and broke 20 percent by the fourth episode. The series, which premiered on June 26, follows Kim (So Ji-sub), a former special agent, who now lives a quiet life as a worker at a small bank. The change in job was the last wish of his late wife, who asked him to "just live as a father." However, when his only daughter Min-ji (Seo Su-min) is kidnapped, he draws on his deadly fighting skills to save her. In the fourth episode, Kim teams up with his old friends Seong Ha

Jul 5, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
'Agent Kim Reactivated' finds success by focusing on father's love
People & Events

Koreans mourn Kang Hee-seon, voice actor for ‘Crayon Shin-chan,’ Hollywood actresses

Voice actor Kang Hee-seon, best known as the Korean voice of Misae Nohara, referred to by local audiences as Bong Mi-seon, Shin-chan's mother in the Japanese animation "Crayon Shin-chan," died Saturday after battling cancer. She was 65. Over a career spanning more than four decades, Kang became one of Korea's most recognizable voices through animation, foreign film dubbing and public transportation announcements. She provided the Korean voice for Hollywood actors including Sharon Stone, Julia Roberts and Nicole Kidman, while her subway announcements accompanied millions of commuters in Seoul and Busan for nearly three decades. News of her death prompted an outpouring of tributes across social media, where many users described her voice as a defining part of their childhood. Posts featuring Bong Mi-seon's memorable scenes from "Crayon Shin-chan" quickly filled with messages thanking Kang for bringing warmth, humor and emotion to one of Korea's most beloved animated mothers. Public figures also paid tribute. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said Kang's voice had accompanied Seoul citizens throughout

Jul 5, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Koreans mourn Kang Hee-seon, voice actor for ‘Crayon Shin-chan,’ Hollywood actresses
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