- Box Office Reports
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- Stranger Than Fiction: Politics & History Inspire Cinema
- The Korean box office has had a rocky ride through the first two trimesters of 2017, but this period was not without its success stories. Though controversies and an uneven slate of films presented some obstacles, Korean history remained a strong driver for profits, particularly in a shifting politi...
- by Pierce Conran / Oct 12, 2017
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- Box Office Report for the first quarter of 2017
- The first quarter of 2017 was one of few surprises at the Korean box office but one which demonstrated the industry’s stability, both as a global exhibition market and a local production industry. Though not quite reaching the highs of 2013 (55.47 million) or 2015 (54.56 million), Q1 this year handi...
- by Pierce Conran / May 08, 2017
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- A Good Enough Year, but the Best Year for Korean Films
- Box Office Report of 2016 After five years of consecutive growth, the Korean film industry remained healthy in 2016, though the half-decade streak of gains came to an end as the industry essentially remained flat. Admissions reached 217.02 million, which was down just 0.1% from 2016. A wide range of...
- by Pierce Conran / Feb 10, 2017
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- MASTER Dominates Over Xmas Weekend
- Business boosted a hefty 75% over the Christmas weekend to bring admissions to the four million mark, which despite being 15% lower than last year’s comparable weekend was still one of the biggest of the year. A hot Korean local release drove up the local market share to 72%. Sucking up 57% of the m...
- by Pierce Conran / Dec 28, 2016
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- Review of the first three quarters for 2016
- After a few years of major growth at the beginning of the decade, the Korean box office has remained flat once again, with this year’s total to date staying at the same level as 2015. However, where gains have been made is in the local industry, which has churned out several major hits and found its...
- by Pierce Conran / Nov 01, 2016
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- THE AGE OF SHADOWS Remains Top Draw Post-Chuseok
- Following the Chuseok festivities business cooled off significantly at the box office and with no new wide releases on deck, a new diversity release landed in the top five. Though falling just shy of a majority, Korean releases still led the country market share, accounting for 46% of the 1.96 milli...
- by Pierce Conran / Sep 28, 2016
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- NA Hong-jin’s THE WAILING Howls in First Place
- Massive Debut for Critically-Acclaimed Thriller A week after it received a rapturous response from Korean critics, NA Hong-jin’s latest film, the Cannes Out of Competition thriller THE WAILING, bowed to huge numbers this past weekend. The thriller helped keep the box office brisk, as 2.85 million s...
- by Pierce Conran / May 18, 2016
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- Comfort Women Drama SPIRITS’ HOMECOMING Tops New Releases
- Led by the debut of comfort women drama Spirits' Homecoming, local titles pushed the market share for domestic films back up to 56% as a total of 2.47 million visitors were recorded over the weekend. Driven by high public interest, the crowd-funded film Spirits' Homecoming by director CHO J...
- by Pierce Conran / Feb 29, 2016
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- DEADPOOL Leads New Releases in Korea
- A VIOLENT PROSECUTOR Begins to Wind Down A slew of new releases lifted admissions at the Korean box office, as Hollywood fare edged out local competition with 61% of the marketplace. Overall, 2.56 million tickets were shifted over the frame. The R-rated superhero film Deadpool got off to a strong ...
- by Pierce Conran / Feb 24, 2016
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- A VIOLENT PROSECUTOR Remains in Pole Position
- Business remained brisk over the weekend following the Lunar New Year holiday, with 2.24 million viewers crowding the multiplexes. A Violent Prosecutor maintained its dominant position, hoisting the market share for local films to 66%. Stars HWANG Jung-min and GANG Dong-won continued to draw in lar...
- by Pierce Conran / Feb 17, 2016