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Korea’s genre film output has steadily built up a global fanbase over the years but outside of the commercial realm of film and TV, with their big budgets and stars, a growing range of genre offerings have also begun to creep into Korea’s low-budget film realm. 

Independent cinema has gone from strength to strength in Korea, but by and large, it has been dominated by auteurs, such as HONG Sang-soo and ZHANG Lu, as well as by myriad social dramas from newer voices that explore the many iniquities that pervade local society.

Much like as in many other parts of the world, low-budget horror films have steadily been churned out in Korea but of late the realm has begun to expand, as the acceptance and popularity of genre film have gone mainstream. Now, smaller Korean production companies are tackling all sorts of genre films, with sci-fi, action, and fantasy joining the bellwether horrors. Cheaper visual effects have made some of this possible but it also owes much to a growing thirst for genre content. 

It may seem counterintuitive, but for a long time genre cinema was poorly viewed within the Korean market. Many genre classics have succeeded at the box office, but films like Memories of Murder (2003), which were often praised for their social and historical themes, as well as performances, were seldom singled out for their genre attributes. Even a filmmaker as proficient and successful as KIM Jee-woon (A Tale of Two Sisters, 2003) struggled for years to get proper recognition from local critics for some of his works, a problem he didn’t have when they traveled overseas.

These days commercial genre filmmakers are often held in higher esteem, but the same can’t yet be said for their low-budget contemporaries. The Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BiFan) helps to legitimize some of the low-budget genre titles produced nowadays, but while arthouse films often get theatrical releases with robust marketing campaigns behind them, most small genre films are expected to recoup on VOD (known as IPTV in Korea).

This IPTV market, akin to the B-movies or straight-to-video titles of yesteryear, has hitherto been known for its cornucopia of low-budget softcore erotic dramas. The range of films on offer these days has broadened significantly and among the many genre films on offer, a few clear sub-genres have emerged - the prison film, the high school fight film, and the internationally co-produced comedy.

The prison film

Though not often recognized as a standalone genre in Korean cinema, like the zombie film or the revenge drama, prison films have a surprisingly strong track record at the box office, counting among their ranks Righteous Ties (2006), Harmony (2010), Miracle in Cell No.7 (2013), A Violent Prosecutor (2016) and The Prison (2017). 

It should then come as little surprise that low-budget film producers have cottoned on to those successes, while also recognizing the relatively cheap costs associated with these films. The right location could suffice for most of a production and be easily managed, while costume requirements are minimal, with characters largely wearing the same uniforms day in and out.

A case in point is The Prisoner (2020), in which OH Ji-ho (Sector 7, 2011) plays a former cop who kills the suspect in his wife’s murder. In prison, he’s forced to participate in a fight club that’s broadcast to people outside the prison walls. The film pits him against other violent inmates, including a contract killer, a mob boss, an organ trafficker, and a UFC fighter.

King of Prison ​(2020), starring LEE Seol-goo (The Age of Shadows, 2016) as the top dog in a jail, also features a lot of fighting but adds humor and male camaraderie to the mix. LEE also stars in the upcoming Asura Island (translated title), out this month.

The high school fight film

High school films and TV shows are ubiquitous in Korea and among them, the high school fight drama has long been a popular variant. Spirit Of Jeet Keun Do - Once Upon A Time In High School (2004) stands tall as an enduring classic of the genre, which also includes Volcano High (2001) and Gangster High (2006).

With similar parameters to the prison film and a proven audience, low-budget filmmakers have embraced high school fight films. Two years ago, the punchy school fight club GANG was invited to the Busan International Film Festival.

In Mr. Boss (2020), an unlikely group of outcasts joins forces to defends themselves and the other weak kids in their class from the top gang in their school. In addition to broiling young machismo and plenty of dustups, Mr. Boss features broad humor and relatable characters.

The typically male-driven genre also got a shot in the arm with Justice High (2020), in which a badass JUNG Da-eun plays a tough girl who beats down all her male opponents while training a bullied friend at her new school.

The internationally co-produced comedy

Perhaps the most interesting recent development in low-budget films has been the rise of internationally co-produced genre comedies. Mixing Korean and global on-screen talent in productions that often shoot overseas in locations rarely seen in Korean stories, these films find filmmakers taking advantage of co-production opportunities at home and around the world in search of fresh narratives. 

In the black comedy Sunshine Family (2020), which takes after Alfred Hitchcock’s The Trouble with Harry, a Filipino family hides their car in their home after the father gets involved in a hit-and-run accident. They must then dismantle it, all the while evading the notice of their neighbors. From Tokyo Taxi (2009) director KIM Tai-sik and starring Filipino stars Nonie and Shamaine Buencamino, the film debuted at BiFan.

KIM In-kwon teamed up with the Mongolian-born actress Janska (Yongsoon, 2016) for Hot-Blooded Detective (2020), a procedural action-comedy that sees his bumbling Korean detective team up with her Mongolian agent to solve a case, first in Seoul and then in Ulaanbaatar.

In the musical Farewell Restaurant (2020), a Korean chef goes to Skopelos Island in Greece to open ‘Farewell Restaurant’, an eatery for couples about to break up. There he meets a local girl, played by Greek singer Aprilann, and falls in love.

OH Ji-ho, the king of low-budget genre film

The low-budget genre industry is clearly on the rise and if anyone can claim to be its leading light, that person may be actor OH Ji-ho. Known for big-budget fare such as My Wife Is a Gangster 3 (2006), Sector 7, and The Grand Heist (2012), OH has refashioned himself of late as something of a low-budget genre icon.

Theaters have welcomed five new genres films starring OH over the past 12 months, including the aforementioned The Prisoner (2020), the (David) Lynchian horror film The Nightmare, and the action-comedy The Therapist: Fist of Tae-baek, which competed at BiFan last year, all of which feature him as the lead.  He also appeared in special supping roles as a priest in the action films Dragon Inn Part 1: The City of Sadness (2020) and Dragon Inn Part 2: The Night of Gods.

With his rugged and chiseled looks and his gentle and relatable everyman personality, OH has been a welcome familiar face in these low-budget offerings.