The Korea Times

Park Min-young says 'Forecasting Love and Weather' was like hard assignment

Actress Park Min-young played the role of meteorologist Jin Ha-kyung in the rom-com series “Forecasting Love and Weather.” Courtesy of Hook Entertainment By Lee Gyu-leeActress Park Min-young has referred to her recent romantic comedy series “Forecasting Love and Weather” as overcoming a difficult homework.“I wasn't in my best place mentally and physically before I took part in this work. So 'Forecasting Love and Weather' felt like a major assignment,” Park said during a recent interview with The Korea Times. “Although I'm not completely satisfied with my acting (in this series), this project has taught me a good lesson.”Led by “When the Camellia Blooms” director Cha Young-hoon, the rom-com series revolves around meteorologist Jin Ha-kyung (Park) who is in charge of one of the forecast divisions at the national weather service. She promises herself never to commit to a workplace romance after a bitter breakup with her 10-year fiancee. But when she welcomes newcomer L

Apr 13, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

Park Min-young says 'Forecasting Love and Weather' was like hard assignment

Shows & Dramas

INTERVIEW Kim Se-jeong portrays different aspects of character in 'Business Proposal'

Kim Se-jeong played the role of Shin Ha-ri in the SBS' rom-com series “Business Proposal.” Courtesy of Jellyfish EntertainmentSinger-turned-actress takes stab at rom-com genreBy Lee Gyu-leeKim Se-jeong, who rose to stardom as a member of K-pop girl group I.O.I after competing in Mnet's hit audition show “Produce 101,” has taken her first step in a romantic comedy with the recent SBS series “Business Proposal.”“My emotions toward the series' wrapping up is 'relief.' We went through a lot, from the pre-production to its production … with the coronavirus and such,” she said during a recent interview with The Korea Times. “Going through plenty of issues, we finally came to an end on a pleasant note.”Based on the popular webcomic, “The Office Blind Date,” the rom-com series follows a woman named Shin Ha-ri (Kim) who goes on a blind date on behalf of her best friend and meets her CEO Kang Tae-moo (Ahn Hyo-seop). Faced with the unexpected encounter, she juggles the dates with her boss while trying to hide the fac

Apr 13, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

[INTERVIEW] Kim Se-jeong portrays different aspects of character in 'Business Proposal'

Shows & Dramas

Netflix-led media environment changes benefit K-content's popularity: scholars

A poster for Netflix's smash-hit series, “Squid Game” / Courtesy of Netflix By Lee Gyu-leeGlobal streaming platforms, Netflix in particular, have sparked a new hallyu trend, appealing to a broader range of audience members, as evidenced by its smash-hit series, “Squid Game” and “All of Us Are Dead.” Park So-jeong, an assistant research professor of communication at Seoul National University, said the new media environment, led by Netflix, has reshaped the viewing experience of Korean content across the world.“The development of hallyu is closely related to the transformation of the media environment. And Netflix is signaling a new transformation: not only does it provide a new environment in terms of industry, but it also creates new consumption behavior,” she said in an academic conference titled, “Is Netflix Riding the Korean Wave or Vice Versa?” that held online, Friday.The two-day conference through Saturday was organized by the Center for Hallyu Studies at SNU

Apr 8, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

Netflix-led media environment changes benefit K-content's popularity: scholars

Shows & Dramas

INTERVIEW 'Twenty Five Twenty One' taught Kim Tae-ri new aspects of acting

Actress Kim Tae-ri played the character of Na Hee-do in tvN's romantic comedy series, “Twenty Five Twenty One.” Courtesy of Management mmmBy Lee Gyu-leeActress Kim Tae-ri, who got her breakthrough in director Park Chan-wook's “The Handmaiden,” has proven herself as a versatile actor by playing roles such as a determined independence activist in the period series, “Mr. Sunshine,” to the charismatic leader of a space crew in the sci-fi film, “Space Sweepers.”About four years after she starred in the hit series, “Mr. Sunshine,” the actress has returned to the small screen to play a lovely, aspiring fencer in the tvN series, “Twenty Five Twenty One,” taking her first stab at the romantic comedy genre. “This series has given me a lot of takeaways. I've learned to be appreciative. I'm thankful that I had a chance to do such great work during these tough times and I'm grateful that I get to take part,” Kim said during an interview with The Korea Times, last week. “(The series) taught me what it is like

Apr 7, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

[INTERVIEW] 'Twenty Five Twenty One' taught Kim Tae-ri new aspects of acting

Shows & Dramas

Webcomics-based boys' love genre dramas on rise

A scene from Watcha's original series, “Semantic Error” / Courtesy of Watcha By Lee Gyu-leeThe genre of “Boys' love,” known in Korea as BL, which once was considered a minor subculture, has come into the spotlight with a number of BL webcomics and web novels adopted into series.BL is the genre that is loosely rooted in the Japanese manga genre, Yaoi, which features male characters' homoerotic relationships. Unlike most queer genres, BL eliminates realistic factors like struggles and prejudices that same-sex couples might encounter in real life, instead, putting the emphasis on sweet romantic plots.Local streaming platform Watcha's original series, “Semantic Error,” has been a huge hit since being released on Feb. 16, becoming the talk of the town. Based on the web novel of the same name, which was also made into webcomics in 2020, the series revolves around a rule-abiding computer science major, Chu Sang-woo (Jaechan), and an extroverted visual arts major, Park Seo-

Apr 5, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

Webcomics-based boys' love genre dramas on rise

Shows & Dramas

'Twenty Five Twenty One' uses 9/11 attack as backdrop for romance, outrages some viewers

A scene from Saturday's episode of the series, “Twenty Five Twenty One,” showing Back Yi-jin (Nam Joo-hyuk) reporting from New York about the Sept. 11 terrorist attack. / Screenshot from Naver TV By Lee Gyu-leeTvN's popular romance series, “Twenty Five Twenty One,” has stirred up controversy after its episode inappropriately featured the Sept. 11 terrorist attack that killed thousands in New York City in 2001. The romance series follows a love story between a high school girl, Na Hee-do (Kim Tae-ri), who grows up to become a fencing medalist, and a college dropout, Back Yi-jin (Nam Joo-hyuk), who later becomes a news reporter. Saturday's episode showed the pair's dating life while both trying to juggle their lives: Hee-do as a national fencing team member traveling abroad for international games, and Yi-jin as a newly-transferred reporter to a local news team. Toward the end of the episode, Yi-jin is sent to New York to cover the Sept. 11 attack as a correspondent,

Apr 4, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

'Twenty Five Twenty One' uses 9/11 attack as backdrop for romance, outrages some viewers

Shows & Dramas

Kim Hee-sun turns into stylish grim reaper in 'Tomorrow'

From left, actors Lee Soo-hyuk, Yun Ji-on, Kim Hee-sun and Rowoon pose during an online press conference for MBC's new fantasy series “Tomorrow,” Friday. Courtesy of MBC By Lee Gyu-leeActress Kim Hee-sun transformed herself into a pink-haired, stylish grim reaper in MBC's new fantasy series, “Tomorrow.”“This is the first time I've ever dyed my hair pink and cut it this short. I wasn't sure if I could pull it off and felt a bit overwhelmed at first. But I didn't overthink it because I love the series and its story, as well as my fellow co-stars,” Kim said during an online press conference for the series, Friday. Based on the popular webcomics of the same name, the fantasy drama series follows hard-at-work grim reapers who work for an underworld company. At the company, Koo Ryeon (Kim) leads a risk management team responsible for saving people who attempt to commit suicide.The series' first episode, which kicked off with a 7.6 percent viewership rating on Friday, show

Apr 3, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

Kim Hee-sun turns into stylish grim reaper in 'Tomorrow'

Entertainment

HYBE, Pinkfong listed on TIME's 100 Most Influential Companies

HYBE Entertainment's founder Bang Si-hyuk, center, poses with BTS members on the cover of TIME magazine. Captured from TIME InstagramBy Lee Gyu-leeHYBE Entertainment, which houses K-pop star BTS, and The Pinkfong Company, which created the popular children's song “Baby Shark,” have made it onto the list of the 100 Most Influential Companies by TIME magazine in the U.S.The magazine released this year's list, Wednesday (local time), and called HYBE “the pop powerhouse,” saying the entertainment company and its founder Bang Si-hyuk are “transforming the music business.”This is the second year in a row the entertainment company has been selected for the list. Founded in 2005 under the name Big Hit Entertainment by musical mastermind Bang, the company went public on the KOSPI in 2020 and is now valued at $9.5 billion. “HYBE's vision has always been ambitious ― to the point of being presumptuous,” Bang was quoted as saying by the magazine. “Our vision is to become the world's leading entertainment lifestyle platform, with music as our f

Mar 31, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

HYBE, Pinkfong listed on TIME's 100 Most Influential Companies

Shows & Dramas

Ahn Hyo-seob, Jeon Yeo-been to star in Netflix's 'Someday or One Day' remake

From left, actors Ahn Hyo-seob, Jeon Yeo-been, and Kang Hoon will star in Netflix's new series, “A Time Called You.” Courtesy of Netflix By Lee Gyu-leeNetflix's new Korean remake, “Someday or One Day,” is based on a Taiwanese smash-hit romance series. The streaming platform confirmed the production of the adaptation of the wildly popular, “A Time Called You,” Thursday, announcing that actors Ahn Hyo-seob, Jeon Yeo-been and Kang Hoon will be taking the lead roles.Based on the 2019 Taiwanese series that scored a billion views on Netflix, “A Time Called You,” revolves around a woman named Joon-hee (Jeon) who loses her long-time boyfriend to an accident. While spending her days depressed since his death, she slips through time and finds herself to be a high school girl named Min-joo from 1998. In that era, she meets a boy who looks just like her dead boyfriend.Ahn will play two roles, one as Joon-hee's boyfriend, Yeon-joon, and another as a boy from 1998, Si-hun, who is

Mar 31, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

Ahn Hyo-seob, Jeon Yeo-been to star in Netflix's 'Someday or One Day' remake

Shows & Dramas

Netflix's 'Celeb Five: Behind the Curtain' to present K-comedy

Celeb Five members, from left, Song Eun-yi, Shin Bong-sun, Kim Shin-young and Ahn Young-mi, pose during an online press conference for the new Netflix show, “Celeb Five: Behind the Curtain,” Wednesday. Courtesy of Netflix By Lee Gyu-leeK-pop girl group Celeb Five, comprised of four veteran comedians ― Song Eun-yi, Ahn Young-mi, Shin Bong-sun and Kim Shin-young ― will show off Korean comedy to overseas audiences through Netflix's new show, “Celeb Five: Behind the Curtain,” set to release on Friday.Led by the producer of Netflix's original show, “Busted!,” Kim Joo-hyung ― who also directed the stand-up comedy, “Lee Su-geun: The Sense Coach” ― as well as producer Go Min-seok, the mockumentary follows the four comedians-cum-singers preparing for their stand-up comedy special. “We were actually offered to do a stand-up comedy show at first, but the real comedy was in our process of brainstorming and discussing. So we suggested (to the production team) to make that into t

Mar 30, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee

Lee Gyu-lee

Read more

Park Min-young says 'Forecasting Love and Weather' was like hard assignment

INTERVIEW Kim Se-jeong portrays different aspects of character in 'Business Proposal'

Netflix-led media environment changes benefit K-content's popularity: scholars

INTERVIEW 'Twenty Five Twenty One' taught Kim Tae-ri new aspects of acting

Webcomics-based boys' love genre dramas on rise

'Twenty Five Twenty One' uses 9/11 attack as backdrop for romance, outrages some viewers

Kim Hee-sun turns into stylish grim reaper in 'Tomorrow'

HYBE, Pinkfong listed on TIME's 100 Most Influential Companies

Ahn Hyo-seob, Jeon Yeo-been to star in Netflix's 'Someday or One Day' remake

Netflix's 'Celeb Five: Behind the Curtain' to present K-comedy

Top 5 stories