CONTENTS

Kim Dong-hee and Jung Da-bin in Netfl ix thriller Extracurricular

K-DRAMA The drama continues

Hallyu — better known to the international industry as the Korean Wave — started in Japan and China, before sweeping out across Asia. Now, the rest of the world is succumbing to Korea’s addictive tales of star-crossed lovers, scheming parents and zombie detectives. Andy Fry reports

KOREAN drama has had an avid global fanbase for many years. Check out any one of a dozen online destinations and you’ll fi nd fans from EMEA, the Americas, Asia-Pacifi c, India and sub-Saharan Africa debating the relative merits of Winter Sonata, Descendants Of Th e Sun, Full House and Secret Garden. Coming into 2020, there is no evidence that this passion for K-drama is diminishing, either at home or internationally. Series including MBC’s Coff ee Prince and JTBC’s Itaewon Class seem to be attracting as much excitement as their predecessors. And they are not alone. CJ ENM’s head of format sales, Diane Min, says: “When it comes to scripted, our subsidiary production company Studio Dragon has an extensive track record of successful dramas across a variety of genres, including romantic comedies, family dramas and action/ crime thrillers. Most recently, Crash Landing On You was a huge ratings success in Korea and was also popular with international viewers on streaming platform Netfl ix.”

Crash Landing On You was a huge ratings success in Korea and was also popular with international viewers on Netfl ix

Diane Min

It’s a similar story at JTBC, where Sky Castle has been a recent hit: “Sky Castle follows the lives of the elites who would do anything to get their children into the best colleges,” says Charlie Park, JTBC’s executive manager. “Th e series broke all rating records in Korea. Coincidently, a real-life college-admission bribery scandal happened in the US a few months later, proving that parents wanting more for their children is a universal theme. Th e format was optioned in the US and has become our most sought-out format.”

Th is interest in scripted formats is a relatively new phenomenon for Korea — especially outside Asia. And it has taken Korean drama exports to the next level. A lot of the credit for that goes to KBS’ Th e Good Doctor, which was transformed into a hit series by ABC in the US and Fuji TV in Japan.

“The success of The Good Doctor in the US provided an opportunity for KBS to make a name for itself worldwide,” says Joun Je-Yeon, the public broadcaster’s director of content business. “It has drawn interest from global producers in KBS programmes, including Blood, a new title from the writer of The Good Doctor, Park Jae-beom. Recently, The CW Network in the US aired the pilot Iconic: TLC, which is adapted from KBS music show Immortal Songs. We are awaiting a series order from CW.” CJ ENM’s Min says her company has also seen growing interest in its scripted formats, particularly action thrillers such as Voice and Tunnel. “We have a couple of formats in development across Europe and the US, so we are hoping for a major hit that emulates KBS’ The Good Doctor,” she adds. Channel A is another Korean firm that has ramped up its activity around scripted formats. “We are making more and more dramas, and we believe our scripted formats have potential in the market,” says Channel A assistant manager Son Dahye. “We are introducing some to buyers during MIPCOM Online+. One new drama, Lie After Lie, is the story of a woman who is falsely accused of murdering her husband.” Another factor that has boosted interest in

Park Eun-soo in CJ ENM’s Voice

Korean scripted formats was CJ ENM’s decision to acquire Scandinavia-based Eccho Rights. Eccho has enjoyed success bringing Turkish drama content to the world, and has now built up a large scripted-format catalogue from several Korean producers. Recent additions include Queen Of Ambition and Incarnation Of Money from broadcaster SBS. Queen Of Ambition is the story of a woman born into poverty who will let nothing stand in her way as she rises to the top. Yun Sangil, deputy general manager of SBS Contents Hub’s global business team, says: “Eccho Rights has a proven track record of getting scripts adapted across borders, ensuring remakes retain the ingredients that made the originals so successful, but also providing something new to the international market.”

Alongside the growing interest in scripted formats, the emergence of OTT in Korea has led to a more offbeat and edgy line in scripted content. KBS’ Joun cites comic drama Zombie Detective, about a man who was murdered and born again as a zombie without any memory of his past. “This series is scheduled to be aired on KBS and, simultaneously, on local OTT platform Wavve, which is a joint venture by SK Telecoms and local broadcasters.” Wavve prioritises scripted content and has invested 100% in original drama The Tale Of Nokdu. Then there is the Netflix effect. As in other countries, the streaming giant is providing opportunities for Korean content-makers to explore new narratives via genre mash-ups. After the success of zombie period drama Kingdom, which has been renewed for a second season, Netflix greenlit a quirky slate of shows in late 2019, including supernatural action drama The School Nurse Files, sci-fi romance My Holo Love and thriller Extracurricular, a 10-episode series that tells the story of a group of high-school students who become tangled in a series of conflicts. Greg Lee, producer of the show at Studio 329, says: “Extracurricular first came to us as a short web-series script that writer Gin Hansai had done on spec. Details changed as we developed the show, but the initial set-up was there — an anti-hero series about a seemingly normal high-school kid who secretly moonlights as a prostitution broker.” Lee says the voice of the show was so strong in the script that 329 jumped at the opportunity to develop it further: “Generally, high-school shows in Korea tend to be romantic and optimistic. We felt a show like Extracurricular, which combines genre storytelling with teen drama elements, could appeal outside of the usual K-drama audience. The show touches on darker themes than most Korean dramas. But it’s not a completely isolated example. There have been excellent shows, such as Sky Castle, that deal with similarly dark themes.”

We felt Extracurricular could appeal outside of the usual K-drama audience. The show touches on darker themes than most Korean dramas

Greg Lee

One challenge with Extracurricular was making the characters feel authentic to the Korean high-school experience, Lee reports: “That meant letting the main characters be contradictory and flawed, and also making sure the way they interacted with each other rang true. We wanted fresher faces in the key roles, so we cast through an extensive audition process. We were lucky to end up with such an amazing, talented cast. All four of the main cast members have landed leading roles in other projects since the show wrapped last year.” Working with Netflix “was a blast”, Lee adds. “They were generally very hands-off, but also provided thoughtful feedback whenever it was needed. Most importantly, they encouraged us to be bold with the storytelling, despite what could be seen as controversial subject matter. We’re developing a new series with Han-sai, the writer, and would love to work with Netflix again.”