Korean Rapper Loco Reveals He's Engaged

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Next month’s London Korean Film Festival cloaks itself in a panoply of the country’s recent cinema, with a mix of commercial blockbusters, festival titles and documentaries. The long-running event also pays tribute to Kang Soo-youn, the performer who was the first Korean to win a best acting award in Venice and who died in May this year. The event runs from Nov. 3 – 17, 2022 in venues across London and comprises 35 films. It opens with a previously announced screening of “Alienoid.” The Cinema Now section includes: Jeong Ji-yeon’s psychological thriller “The Anchor”; Davy Chou’s “Return To Seoul,” which premiered in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard; Byun Sung-hyun’s “Kingmaker”; “Hot Blooded,” the long-awaited directorial debut by acclaimed novelist and screenwriter Cheon Myeong-kwan; nostalgic road chase movie “Stellar: A Magical Ride”; “Director’s Intention,” by Kim Min-geun.

BTS from compulsory military service.On October 4 at the National Defence Committee’s interpellation session, Lee was asked for his opinion on a bill proposed by Kim Young-bae of the Democratic Party of Korea last month, which aims to allow pop celebrities like BTS, who have received merits from the government, to serve an alternative form of military service.According to KoreaJoongAngDaily, the defence minister stated that it is “desirable that members of BTS carry out their mandatory military service”. However, Lee also added that he would “respect the revised law if it does pass in Congress”.This follows the statement he made shortly after Kim’s bill was proposed, in which Lee said it would be “difficult” to extend this alternative [military service] programme to BTS due to “aspects of fairness on fulfilling mandatory military service”.In his original proposal, Kim suggested for existing provisions for athletes, actors, directors and classical musicians who have made a significant international impact be made available to decorated pop musicians such as BTS.

Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM), the industry platform of Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), is making a return as a fully-fledged in-person event this year, after being mostly held online for two years during the pandemic.

After two years of holding in-person but stripped down editions of the festival, South Korea’s Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, October 5-14) is back in full force this year with a packed line-up of screenings, red carpets, parties, awards and industry events.

TIME Magazine’s annual ‘TIME100 Next’ list.On September 28, TIME unveiled the 2022 edition of its annual ‘TIME100 Next’ list of rising stars across the world, featuring 100 individuals across a multitude of sectors who the outlet believes will shape the future. These individuals range from musicians and medical professionals to movement leaders and top CEOs.The Squid Game break-out star became the first Korean actress to appear on the list.

Lookism.On September 25, the streaming platform premiered the trailer on its YouTube channel, at the same time revealing that Lookism will begin streaming on November 4.The trailer follows an overweight high school student named Park Hyeong-seok, who is frequently bullied and harassed by his peers who consider him unattractive. One day, Hyeong-seok wakes up and discovers that he has received a new, conventionally attractive body, which he can use while his original body is asleep.With his days spent split between the two different bodies, Hyeong-seok begins to realise just how differently the world treats him based on his physical appearance.The trailer is soundtracked by a snippet of an original song performed by K-pop boyband ATEEZ.

Hallyu! The Korean Wave will feature around 200 objects from outfits worn by K-pop groups ATEEZ and aespa to a recreation of the bathroom from Bong Joon-ho’s Oscar-winning movie Parasite. Digital displays and interactive installations will also take visitors deeper into the scenes the exhibition explores.Curator Rosalie Kim began pitching the exhibition to the Victoria & Albert museum in 2019 after noticing that younger visitors coming to the museum’s Korean Gallery and comparing items to ones they had seen in K-dramas and films.

BTS’ Order of Cultural Merit awarded by former president Moon Jae-In in 2018 — should be allowed to serve an alternative form of military service.Korea JoongAng Daily reported on September 21 that Defence Minister Lee has since responded to the proposal, saying that it would be “difficult” to extend this alternative [military service] programme to BTS due to “aspects of fairness on fulfilling mandatory military service” during an interpellation at the National Assembly held on September 19.Kim Young-bae’s original proposal suggests that existing provisions in place for athletes, actors, directors and classical musicians who have made a significant international impact should be expanded to include decorated pop celebrities. “Korean pop celebrities active in the international field make unimaginable economic and social contributions,” said Kim, per The Korea Times.He also added that BTS’ recent appointment as ambassadors of Busan City is one way the boyband are actively serving South Korea’s national interests.

SM Entertainment on brand-new artist-themed attractions.According to a report from Korea JoongAng Daily earlier today (September 21), SM Entertainment announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Everland to introduce a space dedicated to content related to the SMCU (SM Culture Universe). The SMCU is a shared universe established by the music label featuring its artists engaged in fictional adventures.The collaboration will see the introduction of new SMCU-themed attractions and rides including “the Hurricane, Bumper Car, Amazon Express and Music Garden”.

Baek Yerin will soon be heading to North America to tour – find dates, cities and ticket sale info below.On September 20, the singer took to Twitter to announce her forthcoming 2022 North American tour, which will take place from November to December. Baek will be kicking off the 14-show tour in Atlanta on November 28, before heading to cities like Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.<2022 Yerin Baek North America Tour>⠀Nov 28 : AtlantaNov 30 : HoustonDec 1 : Fort WorthDec 4 : Santa AnaDec 5 : Los AngelesDec 7 : BerkeleyDec 9 : DenverDec 11 : ChicagoDec 13 : TorontoDec 15 : BostonDec 17 : New YorkDec 19 : Washington DC— Yerin Baek (@yerinbaek) September 19, 2022Tickets to the concerts, which will be available here via Ticketmaster, go on sale on September 22 at 10am local time.

BTS’ Order of Cultural Merit awarded by former president Moon Jae-In in 2018 — should be allowed to serve an alternative form of military service.Kim’s proposal suggests that existing provisions in place for athletes, actors, directors and classical musicians who have made a significant international impact should be expanded to include decorated pop celebrities.“Korean pop celebrities active in the international field make unimaginable economic and social contributions,” said Kim, per The Korea Times.He added that BTS’ recent appointment as ambassadors of Busan City is one way the boyband are actively serving South Korea’s national interests.

BLACKPINK’s latest album.In a recent story by Variety, several songwriters whose work featured on BLACKPINK’s sophomore studio album ‘Born Pink’ discussed the stories behind their contributions to the record.Among them are singer-songwriter and longtime collaborator Bekuh Boom — known for co-writing the act’s debut singles ‘Boombayah’ and ‘Whistle’ — who penned the track ‘Typa Girl’ from the new record.“It’s a song to empower women,” said Boom of the B-side, adding: “When I hear it, I feel like the shit — and I want other women to hear it and feel that way too.” The songwriter went on to reveal that she had written the demo for ‘Typa Girl’ in 2021, and that she had originally “thought Lisa might use it for her next solo single.”“But I’m super happy that it’s […] on the album,” she said. “It’s a blessing to always get asked back.

Girl band Blackpink front row at Paris fashion week. Hour-long queues for BTS merchandise in Las Vegas. Ariana Grande dressed in a glittery emerald two-piece from Miss Sohee.

EXCLUSIVE: The prevalence of Korean projects heading to the U.S. continues.

Netflix’s series, Narco-Saints, which is set in Suriname.In a statement issued on Tuesday (September 13), the Korean embassy in Venezuela – which also oversees relations with Suriname – advised Koreans residing in the South American country to pay attention to their safety.“We are assuming that many Korean residents in Suriname are very troubled due to the aftermath of Suriname [the title Narco-Saints is marketed as in Korean promotional materials],” the embassy’s statement reads, per Korea JoongAng Daily.“Please pay attention to your safety, and if there are any concerns or need for help, please notify us through the local president of the Korean community immediately,” the statement adds. “The embassy has the safety of Koreans as our first concern and will do our best for your security.”This statement comes a day after reports that the Suriname government is considering plans to pursue legal action against the producers of Narco-Saints and to lodge a diplomatic protest with the South Korean government over Suriname’s portrayal in the Netflix series.Narco-Saints follows an ordinary entrepreneur who joins a group of undercover secret agents working to capture a Korean drug lord operating in Suriname.

Netflix has unveiled the first trailer for its upcoming Korean music reality show Take 1, starring MAMAMOO, AKMU, Rain and more.The new visual was shared on September 15, and features a number of South Korean musicians – Yim Jae-beom, Yoo Hee-yeol, Park Jung-hyun, Rain, AKMU, MAMAMOO and Sumi Jo – as they gather to discuss what it means for them to stage “the most meaningful performance of their careers”, according to a press release from Netflix.Each participating act is given a countdown clock, indicating the amount of time they would have to prepare for their performances, for which they’re only given one song to perform. Take 1 lands on Netflix on October 14.Take 1 marks the first music reality show Netflix has produced, and will see the participating musicians devise the ultimate performance. They will be allowed to choose who they would like to invite for their performances, what they wish to sing as well as the location of the performance, but will only have one take to nail it.Helming the upcoming series is director Kim Hak-min, who previously worked on the Korean music reality programme Two Yoo Project Sugar Man 3 in 2019.

Squid Game star Lee Jung-jae has made history by becoming the first Korean actor to win an Emmy award for Best Actor in a Drama. During Monday (12 September) night’s ceremony, the 49-year-old actor won the Emmy award for his lead role in the Korean-language series. “Thank you to the Television Academy, thank you to Netflix and thank you to the director for making realistic problems we all face come to life so creatively on the screen with a great script,” he said during his acceptance speech at the star-studded ceremony.

Director  JD Dillard says he grew up hearing all about his own father’s  experiences as the second African American Blues Angels pilot, so naturally when Adam Makos’ book, Devotion came out he was instantly intrigued about adapting to the screen. The book tells the story of the friendship and, yes, devotion (where the title comes from in part) of two elite US Navy fighter pilots who made a big difference in one of the Korean War’s most intense battles in the early 1950’s.  But the story has great significance as it really tells the extraordinary tale of Jesse Brown who became the first Black  aviator in Navy history, and together with his unique friendship and working relationship with Tom Hudner the pair became legend as authentic Navy wingmen heroes.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Make no mistake: CJ ENM is on the move. The South Korean conglomerate that has done as much as any company to build out the nation’s entertainment ecosystem is actively looking to expand its “production capability and competency.” That’s the word from Kang Ho-sung, CEO of the cluster of film, TV and music companies that now share the CJ ENM banner. Kang gave a rare, extensive interview to Variety on Aug. 21 in downtown Los Angeles on the sidelines of CJ ENM’s KCON LA pop culture convention, which brought in close to 100,000 fans from across the U.S.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Prolific Japanese film director Miike Takashi and Indonesian genre specialist Kimo Stamboel will be among the star names in the ‘On Screen’ section of the Busan International Film Festival given over to TV series. Miike has made “Connect,” a Korean-language crime fantasy thriller about a man who is kidnapped and has one of his eyes removed by a gang of organ harvesters and transplanted into the body of a notorious serial killer. The unwilling donor now has terrible visions as he witnesses terrifying attacks on the residents of Seoul. The show was written by Nakamura Masaru and Heo Dam (“Monstrum”). It features Korean talent including Jung Haein (“Snowdrop,” “Start-Up,” “Tune in for Love”) in the lead role and Ko Kyungpyo (“Decision to Leave,” “Seoul Vibe,”) as the serial killer, and Kim Hyejun (“Inspector Koo,” “Kingdom,” “Sinkhole”) as the mysterious Irang.