Anticipation for Friday’s worldwide Netflix release of the first Korean sci-fi blockbuster movie set in space, “Space Sweepers,” could be felt by the cast members and director during an online press conference and fan meeting held Tuesday. Set in 2092, “Space Sweepers” from director Jo Sung-hee revolves around a space cleanup crew trying to sell a weapon of mass destruction: humanoid Dorothy. “Around 10 years ago, a friend of mine told me about the trash i

Film Feb. 3, 2021

Omnibus drama “Love Scene Number,” spotlights themes of love, marriage and sex, with an emphasis on showcasing a woman’s point of view. The drama, made by streaming platform Wavve and terrestrial broadcaster MBC in a collaborative effort, kicked off Monday on both platforms. Wavve, the streaming platform created by three terrestrial broadcasters -- KBS, MBC and SBS -- and SK Telecom released all four episodes of “Love Scene Number” on Monday morning as soon as t

Television Feb. 2, 2021

Jungwook Hong, a former National Assembly representative and former chairman of Herald Corp., has released a book of 50 essays about his journey to find his life’s purpose. Hong is a bestselling author whose 1993 autobiography, “Seven Acts, Seven Scenes,” sold over 1 million copies. That first book, which centered on his personal experience of studying in the US at Choate Rosemary Hall and Harvard University, led many wealthy South Korean parents to consider sending their tee

Books Jan. 30, 2021

The National Council of Churches in Korea, along with Young Men’s Christian Association and Young Women’s Christian Association, apologized on Friday for Christian organizations’ frequent links coronavirus cluster infections and called on churches to follow distancing guidelines. “We look back on the reality of how Korean churches have been recognized as one of the main institutions causing harm to public health and sincerely apologize to the people of Korea,” sai

Social Affairs Jan. 29, 2021

South Korean game maker NCSoft launched its K-pop entertainment platform Universe in 134 countries on Thursday. The all-in-one platform allows users to access exclusive content such as music videos, entertainment shows K-pop groups appear on and celebrity photos, while also allowing artists and fans to interact. Fans can also share their creations on the platform. One of the platform’s most noticeable features is a private messaging and call function powered by artificial intelligence

Performance Jan. 29, 2021

Terrestrial broadcaster SBS’ newest entertainment show “Battle of the Century: AI vs Human” will have experts in six different fields pitched against the latest artificial intelligence programs in a competition, starting with the first episode at 10 p.m., Friday. The producers were inspired by the famous competition between Korean Go master Lee Se-dol and Google’s artificial intelligence program AlphaGo in 2016. “I enjoyed watching AlphaGo vs. Lee Se-dol in 201

Television Jan. 29, 2021

InterContinental Seoul Coex presents ‘Wise Drinking Life with Cookat Market’ InterContinental Seoul Coex in Samseong-dong is offering the Wise Drinking Life With Cookat Market package starting in February. The package comprises the popular traditional drink Goheung yuzu liquor, a dessert called the Strawberry-in-Milk Sticky Rice Cake and three spreads from convenience food store Cookat Market. During the Lunar New Year holiday, guests born in the Year of the Ox are offered a 10

Food Jan. 29, 2021

Kim Hong-sun, the director of multiple hit OCN dramas, is back Monday with a tvN action drama titled “L.U.C.A.: The Beginning.” “L.U.C.A.: The Beginning” centers on an experimental cell, Ji-O, that was created through the L.U.C.A. project. The aim of the project was to create the Last Universal Common Ancestor -- the cell that holds the secret to all life forms in existence. Ji-O takes human form and has supernatural powers, but loses his memory after escaping the faci

Television Jan. 27, 2021

Kakao TV’s original series “No, Thank You” placed in the top 10 most popular dramas’ list on streaming platform Wavve, the first such feat for a Kakao TV original drama, according to Wavve on Tuesday. The drama list is compiled based on the number of minutes played in total on Wavve in the fourth week of January. “No, Thank You” ranked 10th while SBS megahit drama “The Penthouse: War in Life” took the top spot and SBS’ “Delayed Justic

Television Jan. 26, 2021

With Korean players enjoying success in the League of Legends World Championships since 2013, teams from all around the world are keen on importing Korean talents to help them enter and win the big tournament. Koreans were the most represented nationality at the world stage every year since 2013, with the exception of 2014 when LMQ, consisting of all Chinese players, played for North America. Two of the five players in the two Chinese teams that won the world championships in 2018 and 2019 wer

More Sports Jan. 26, 2021

The Korea Creative Content Agency’s 2021 budget has been set at 484.2 billion won ($440 million), a 54.4 billion won increase from last year. KOCCA uploaded multiple videos on its YouTube channel on Monday, outlining the details of the budget distribution by sector. The broadcast sector will receive 49.6 billion won, games 61.5 billion won, culture technology 81.6 billion won, virtual interactive content 49 billion won, music 41.1 billion won and regional content 49.7 billion won, among

Culture Jan. 25, 2021

Over-the-top media giant Netflix stood out as the most popular OTT platform in South Korea last year, with over half of OTT users here subscribing to Netflix, according to data analyst Consumer Insight. In a survey of some 40,000 Koreans by Consumer Insight, 46 percent of respondents said they’d paid for OTT services last year with 24 percent subscribing to Netflix. The second-most-popular OTT service was YouTube Premium, with 15 percent of respondents subscribing. In December, Netfli

Culture Jan. 25, 2021

Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi, a member of the National Assembly‘s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee announced Sunday that the Culture Ministry would conduct an investigation of all literary awards in Korea. The literary community was shocked earlier this month to find out Sohn Chang-hyun had won multiple literary awards with work that plagiarized author Kim Min-jung’s “Ppuri,” or root, the winner of the 2018 Baekma Culture Award. The Baekma Culture Award i

Books Jan. 24, 2021

The five-star Mayfield Hotel Seoul, located in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, is offering the Wellness Forest package for those looking to refresh, relax and recover. The package, available until mid-December, offers a one-night stay in a superior room and a variety of programs to help guests heal both body and mind. Breakfast that includes rocket juice, eggs and croissant is offered as room service, as well as a dinner at one of the hotel’s restaurants, Bongraeheon or La Festa. Complimentary tea i

Travel Jan. 24, 2021

Popular tvN period comedy drama “Mr. Queen” will receive “administrative guidance” for controversial scenes in the drama, the subcommittee of Korea Communications Standards Commission announced Wednesday. “Mr. Queen,” which revolves around a present day playboy who enters the body of Queen Cheorin of Joseon, has been enjoying steady popularity since the airing of the first episode. It reached a 13.2 percent viewership rating for the most recent episode on S

Television Jan. 23, 2021