The studio system in Korea has continued to evolve since the 1990s. The Chaebols (Korea’s family-owned conglomerates) entered the industry in the 1990s led by Samsung leading to significant investment that would transform Korean cinema. When they left to focus on core industries in the wake of the IMF crisis, other conglomerates emerged in the late 1990s with CJ ENM, Lotte and Showbox becoming the three biggest studios. Since then, younger studios have emerged, NEW would be a prominent studio in the 2010s. The impact these companies would have on the industry was huge - often involved in production, distribution, and exhibition. 

The film market in the 2020s is different compared to the 2000s and 2010s. Focus has shifted towards streaming, a change that was already underway in the late 2010s but was accelerated due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The industry is having to adapt to market demands – a process it has done before when it entered a decline in the late 2000s and later recovered. Consequently in an industry that is now pivoting to mini-series, so-called bridge studios are emerging that sit somewhere between the major studios or streamers and small production companies. They are devoted to discovering new talent and collaborate with various sectors of the content market working with established names and new young talent. This is happening as the Korean contents industry is forced to both compete with the likes of Netflix while also providing films and shows for the leading streaming platforms. 

This week we profile four bridge studios looking at some of the contents they produced and what makes them distinctive. 

KT Studio Genie 

Official Website (https://studiogenie.co.kr)

Instagram (@studiogenie_official)

A subsidiary of the telecommunications company KT Corporation, KT Studio Genie was formed in January 2021 that specializes in the planning and production of drama video contents. Given its place as a leading telecommunications company, not only does it have 9.6 million Genie Subscribers that provide a wealth of contents data, but it also has the ENA channel that it can produce content for. 

One of its early successes was the Extraordinary Attorney Woo (2022) that generated a lot of discussion both within and out of the industry for how the production studios involved in the series were able to retain intellectual property (IP). A condition for content to be made exclusively for Netflix is that it owns the IP rights. Concerns were raised following the extraordinary popularity of Squid Game that local companies and talent were losing out. Extraordinary Attorney Woo was able to break away from that model.  

Other content KT Studio Genie has produced include the science-fiction series Genesis (2021) featuring Park Hae-jin and Nana, Lies Hidden in My Garden (2023) starring Kim Tae-hee, the female-centered series Pale Moon that was screened at the Cannes International Series Festival and the romantic drama Tell Me That You Love Me (2023) that is based on the 1995 Japanese series Aishiteiru to ltte Kure. It’s also behind the upcoming drama Crash starring Lee Min-ki and Kwak Sun-young that will air on ENA in May. 

Bridge studios like KT Studio Genie are also seeking to partner with other local companies in what is a competitive market. CJ ENM has invested 100 billion won in the subsidiary and will collaborate on the development of content while KT Studio Genie has purchased a thirty percent stake in the Korean production company Jumbo Film. 

Studio X + U 

Official Website (https://www.studioxplusu.com)

Instagram (@studio.xplusu)

Also part of a telecommunications giant is Studio X + U, which was established in 2022 by LG U Plus that has 12 million wired and wireless subscribers. Like KT it understands what audiences want through the existing data is holds through its IPTV and mobile TV services. 

Its first production was the audio drama Sometimes – Take me Over that was made available on U Plus Mobile TV in January 2023. Later on that year, it released two mini-series: High Cookie and Night has Come that were both available on Netflix in Korea and center on high school students. With episode lengths of less than 40 minutes, it has targeted young audiences that consume a lot of content on YouTube where videos are usually much shorter than films and shows on streaming platforms. 

Its drama slate in 2024 includes the thriller series No Way Out starring Cho Jin-woong and the horror drama Tarot featuring Cho Yeo-jeong from PARASITE as a single mother that was invited to the Cannes International Series Festival in early April where it will compete in the short film competition making it the first Korean production to do so. It also produced the romantic thriller series Branding in Seongsu that dropped on its U+ services in February and March of this year and is also available on the local streaming service Wavve. 

The studio has also sought to capitalize on the popularity of variety programs that is evident on major streaming platforms such as Netflix following the success of Physical 100.  In what is a sign of the ever-increasing appetite for content related to the English Premier League and European football, Studio X Plus U’s 2024 line-up includes the show Man in Europe that reunites two former Manchester United players – Korea’s Park Ji-sung and Patrice Evra. It also produced Be My Side, Search: ME and Tiny Desk Korea. 

Studio X Plus U is also targeting infants and toddlers with the animated series Yupi and Friends that consists of 60 episodes in Korean and 60 in English as it seeks to replicate the success of the adventurous penguin Pororo that was launched in 2003 on the terrestrial channel EBS.

Imaginus

Headed by Choi Jin-hee, the former head of one of the industry’s leading drama production companies Studio Dragon, it’s distinctive for the way it sees itself as a “creator group” as opposed to a conventional studio. The goal is to have a group of creators who own the IP and run the business so when content performs well it benefits not just the business but the creators themselves. Many creators in the industry go freelance and then set up their own production companies, Imaginus has brought some key players together to form one company. 

Currently they have approximately 10 production companies/studios that includes Studio AA co-led by actor Gang Dong-won, Studio Sot run by renowned screenwriters The Hong Sisters (Hotel del Luna, Alchemy of Souls) and About Film, the production company behind the hit film Extreme Job.  

Unlike KT and Studio X + U, it doesn’t have an affiliate channel or outlet from which it can show content, which means it can have options when it produces films or series– can focus more, for instance, on overseas markets where Korean content remains immensely popular. 

One of its forthcoming shows is an 8-part series Polaris (translated title) with Jeon Ji-hyun and Kang Dong-won reported to star.  Its slate also includes Cinderella at 2am with Shin Hyun-bin and Moon Sang-min playing the leads in a contemporary take on the “Cinderella” story for the local streaming platform Coupang Play. It’s also behind the romantic drama Can This Love Be Translated? written by the Hong sisters. 

Higround 

Official Website (http://www.higround.co.kr/)

Instagram (@higround.official)

Starting out as a production company called C-Story, Higround began producing dramas with The Greatest Marriage in 2014 collaborating with TV Chosun. By 2023 it had produced 23 dramas, many of which have aired on the TV Chosun channel.  Love (ft. Marriage and Divorce) season two (2021) secured a nationwide rating of 16.582%, the eleventh highest in the history of cable television. 

Most of its productions have been aimed at those in their 40s and 50s – works based on couples, family, marriage and human relationships but is now attempting to reach a wider demographic that encompasses different generations. This is true of its more recent series: The Law Café (2022), The Heavenly Idol (2023) and Divorce Attorney Shin (2023).

One of its upcoming projects is a dramatization of The Age of the Maid (2022), a novel by Lee Seul-ah, a writer in her thirties. The book is about a girl born into the household ruled by her grandfather and then goes on to take charge of it, which could attract younger audiences – especially female viewers. 

Higround also invested in the feature film, 12.12: The Day by Kim Sung-su that accrued more than 12 million admissions. With a break-even point of 4.6 million viewers it was very profitable demonstrating the potential of the theatrical market for certain projects despite the concerns of a slow recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic. 

It also underscores how the studio is working on a variety of different productions with different distributors, broadcasters and streamers with collaboration at the heart of what it does – along with other bridge studios.