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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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Music

BTS draws French president to Paris concert ahead of World Cup halftime show

K-pop powerhouse BTS drew French President Emmanuel Macron and first lady Brigitte Macron to its stadium concert in Paris on Friday (local time), highlighting the global influence of the band ahead of its historic upcoming performance at the World Cup final. President Macron shared a video of the concert on his social media on Saturday with a message in French saying "Bienvenue a Paris," which means welcome to Paris. The K-pop band held the European finale of its world tour, titled "BTS WORLD TOUR 'ARIRANG,’” at the Stade de France from Friday to Saturday. During the first show on Friday, the French leader and the first lady surprised the audience by watching the performance from the stands. The presidential couple appeared on the stadium's giant screens during the concert while the band members were moving around the stage to interact with the crowd. The stadium instantly erupted into cheers as the screens showed the couple smiling and holding the official BTS glowing fan light sticks. French media observed the concert took place as Korea and France celebrate the 140th anniversary o

Jul 19, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
BTS draws French president to Paris concert ahead of World Cup halftime show
People & Events

Jeju Olle founder posthumously awarded top cultural medal

The government posthumously awarded the Moran Medal of the Order of Civil Merit to the late Suh Myung-sook, the founding president of the Jeju Olle Foundation, in recognition of her pioneering contribution to eco-tourism and sustainable travel in Korea. On Saturday, Chae Hwi-young, minister of culture, sports and tourism, visited the Jeju Olle Traveler Center on Jeju Island to present the prestigious medal to her bereaved family. Suh died in April at the age of 68. "Through the medium of walking tours, the late president built a sustainable ecological and cultural space where nature, travelers and local residents harmoniously coexist," an official from the culture ministry said. Suh’s legacy dates back to 2007, when she established the nonprofit Jeju Olle Foundation and began creating and operating the very first trail on Korea's southern volcanic island. Inspired by her own journey along the famous Camino de Santiago, or the Way of St. James, in Spain, the former journalist sought to create a trekking route that could help tired people from the city relax and enjoy the beautiful scene

Jul 19, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Jeju Olle founder posthumously awarded top cultural medal
Films

Sci-fi film 'The Fin' explores discrimination in unified Korea

The new dystopian sci-fi film "The Fin," directed by Park Sye-young, offers a grim look at a post-unification Korean Peninsula where environmental collapse has created a deeply divided society. The movie follows the struggle of the Omegas, a marginalized group of mutants with fins and three-toed feet, who face severe discrimination and labor exploitation by the human population. Park said the inspiration for the film came from his reflections on historical discrimination and modern social issues. "I came up with the idea of the Omegas while thinking about how marginalized people in Korean society face discrimination and how they are altered by government propaganda and image washing," Park said during a press conference for the movie, Friday. "It was a challenging project, where a small team poured everything they had into it for four years, and I think that intense effort and sweat can be felt in the film." The film centers on an unnamed Omega (Goh Woo), who escapes his harsh labor duties at East Colony 114, drawing the attention of Su-jin (Kim Pu-reum), a government official tasked with

Jul 14, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Sci-fi film 'The Fin' explores discrimination in unified Korea
Films

Hit comedy 'Okay! Madam' returns with luxury cruise sequel

The action-comedy film "Okay! Madam," which drew over 1.22 million viewers amid the COVID-19 pandemic in August 2020, is returning with its sequel, "Okay! Madam: Bon Voyage." Director Lee Cheol-ha expressed his deep gratitude and excitement about the sequel, recalling the bittersweet memories of releasing the original film during the height of the pandemic. "I remember looking back at the situation six years ago when the pandemic was spreading and prebooked tickets were being canceled, which made the actors very sad during our promotional events," Lee said during a press conference in Seoul on Monday. "It was heartbreaking that our hard work could not reach more viewers at the time, but we were so grateful that many people still watched it, and the film generated good revenue through streaming platforms, which allowed us to make this sequel." The sequel expands its universe from an airplane in the first movie to a massive luxury cruise ship, following a former secret agent Mi-young (Uhm Jung-hwa) and her family, who get caught up in a cruise hijacking in the middle of the ocean. Lead acto

Jul 13, 2026By Baek Byung-yeul
Hit comedy 'Okay! Madam' returns with luxury cruise sequel
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

Jul 11, 2026By 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

Jul 10, 2026By 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
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