[Kulture Issue] Popularity of sports-themed K-content

Recent movies revolving around sports have been captivating domestic audiences.

Let's take a look at what’s behind the popularity of sports-themed content with culture critic Professor Chie Hye-won at Kyung Hee University’s Arts and Cultural Management Program. Welcome Professor Chie!

Q1-1. “The Match“ (“Seungbu“), which deals with the board game Go, or “baduk“ in Korean, (and is considered a sport), and the golf film “Lobby“ are ranked first and second at the domestic box office, respectively. Please, tell us first what the movies are about. Let’s start with “The Match.“

Q1-2. What’s “Lobby” about? The title seems to tell us it’s not just about golf?

Q2. So, let’s talk more about Go or “baduk“. It’s a very interesting topic, but also a challenging game that requires lots of brain. Are there any other Go-themed movies? Go does seem to appear quite frequently (in many cases casually) in scenes of various K-content. Why is that?

Q3. When it comes to golf, this sport has been tremendously popular in Korea in recent years, even being a major theme on variety of entertainment programs on TV. What’s behind the popularity of golf as a means of content?

Q4. Sports was once considered an unpopular topic in Korea in TV and movies, so why has it gained so much traction in recent years?

Q5. So, which Korean dramas and movies revolving around sports have stood out and received praise?

Q6. What are some of the things to keep in mind when using sports as a main theme in content?

Q7. What are the strengths of combining Korean content with the sports genre, and how can we make it more appealing to a wider audience?