 |
| CJ Group Vice Chairwoman Lee Mi-kyung, second from left in the front line, smiles after "Parasite" won the Oscar for best picture at the 92nd Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. Sunday (local time). / Reuters-Yonhap |
By Kim Jae-heun
The Korean thriller "Parasite," directed by Bong Joon-ho, became the first non-English language film to win best picture at the Academy Awards along with three more ― best director, best foreign language film and best original screenplay.
Bong described his "surreal" feeling about the unprecedented honor he enjoyed during the 92nd Oscars ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Sunday, (local time), after the accomplishment surprised not only Koreans but movie fans around the world.
The success put filmmaker Bong and his cast in the spotlight as The Academy gave recognition to their great work producing the movie, but film industry officials say it would not have been possible if CJ ENM had not supported Parasite behind the scenes.
The movie was produced by Barunson E&A, however, it was CJ ENM's role as investor and distributer that put the film on track to win.
CJ Group Vice Chairwoman Lee Mi-kyung's appearance on the stage to give an award acceptance speech at the Oscars shows how much of a role she played to promote Parasite.
In Hollywood, people discuss "Oscar season" and "Academy movies," referring to films released in time to be considered for the award; as opposed to blockbusters opening in the summer regardless.
The reason Hollywood studios try to make films targeting the Academy Awards is simple. A movie's performance at the Oscars becomes a barometer for appraising studios and film producers.
The late American film producer Saul Zaents was called a tycoon in the field after winning three Oscars for best picture with "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest," "Amadeus" and "The English Patient."
All the films released in the "Oscar season" are in the race to compete at the Academy Awards and the studios' promotional activities are referred to as "campaigning" in Hollywood.
According to Entertainment News during last year's Oscar season, it requires about $30 million "to campaign" for an Academy movie. This is spent "lobbying" the 8,000 members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), who have the right to vote.
Right after Parasite won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, CJ ENM took strategic action to join the race to win an award.
CJ Group's entertainment company contacted a local PR agency that works with actors such as Sean Penn and Jake Gyllenhaal to promote Parasite.
It held VIP preview events for Academy members while hosting after parties and receptions. To create public awareness for the film, it promoted "Parasite" on NBC's "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon."
Distributor NEON's promotion of the thriller on social media using main character Jessica from the film went viral aiding "Parasite" to become the highest grossing non-English language film in the U.S. in 2019.
The scale of promotion targeting opinion leaders in the American film industry and the money invested was relatively large. Although CJ ENM failed to reveal the exact amount, an executive hinted in an interview with local media that the company spent less than the $30 million Roma used in campaigning costs.
Considering the 13.5 billion won ($11.42 million) spend for Parasite's production costs, it is predicted that CJ ENM spent even more on campaigning.
The vice chairwoman also accredited the honor to her younger brother and CJ Group chairman Lee Jay-hyun for his unconditional support to make such an impossible dream come true.
"We have never revealed the amount of money we spent on 'campaigning,'" a CJ ENM official said. "It is true that the company worked with NEON to promote Parasite and held preview events targeting opinion leaders there. However, we do not want the great achievement of Parasite to be blinded by money stories," a CJ ENM official said.
![[INTERVIEW] Ex-NIS chief urges politicians to stop misusing spy agency](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/59da8df88faa4a50ad42945501b03bca.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[REVIEW] Musical 'Monte Cristo' returns with riveting tale of vengeance, love](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/3934be1fa6844478b619a015d610bc5b.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] Meet the man behind giant rubber ducks that once took over Seoul](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/df32c60c8204448e98ccdb9841366bec.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
