Jeollabuk-do Province: Rising Location for Diverse Films
59 is the number of films and dramas shot in Jeollabuk-do Province in 2015. Among these, 28 are feature films, 12 are TV dramas and 19 are shorts and other types of films. Jeonju Studio Complex was in operation for 689 days last year. However, it's not just last year that the province had been prolific. In 2013 and 2014, respectively 56 and 57 films and dramas were filmed in the province. The number has increased since the opening of Jeonju Studio Complex in 2008. Now Jeollabuk-do Province is becoming a central film venue in its real sense, by warmly receiving spectators in Jeonju International Film Festival and inviting many filmmakers and film lovers to the shooting location.
It is even clearer if you look at the list of the films made in Jeollabuk-do Province for the last 3 years. Secretly Greatly, which attracted 7 million viewers in 2013, was made in Jeonju Studio Complex, and The Face Reader (2013) was shot in the Wansan swimming pool and Buan Park. Seen by 17.62 million viewers, all-time Korean box office winner Roaring Currents (2014) was shot in various places in Buan-gun. Besides, KUNDO : Age of the Rampant (Jeonju Studio Complex, Gimje Saemangeum), The Attorney (the former provincial government building, Gunsan Port) and The Pirates (Muju Deogyusan Mountain, Buan Park and Jeokbyeokgang River) were made in Jeollabuk-do Province in 2013. In addition, 30 or so feature films were shot in Jeollabuk-do Province in 2014, including The Fatal Encounter (Jeonju Studio Complex), The Shameless (Myeongseong Town in Naun-dong, Gunsan) and Twenty (Jeonju Studio Complex, Jeonbuk University Hospital).
2015 lineup was even more impressive. Among the films that have already been released are The Tiger (Jeonju Studio Complex), A Violent Prosecutor (Gunsan Saemangeum reclaimed land), SORI: Voice from the Heart (Jeonju Studio Complex, Junghwasan-dong in Jeonju, Gunsan Inner Harbor) and DONGJU; The Portrait of A Poet (Namwon Seodo Station, Iksan Cultural Foundation, Jeonju Studio Complex). Also, many of the promising new films of this year such as PARK Chan-wook’s The Handmaiden (Buan Suseongdang Masilgil), NA Hong-jin’s Goksung (a deserted house in Jangsu-gun) and CHOO Chang-min’s 7 Years’ Night (Dongjin Body Shop, Wanju Sanggwan Purification Plant) were also shot in Jeollabuk-do Province last year.
Where the Present and the Past; and the Nature and the Urban Blend
One of the reasons why filmmakers like Jeollabuk-do Province is its efficiency. You can achieve studio shooting and location shooting at the same time. First of all, Jeonju Studio Complex has become the stage for numberless Korean films since its opening in 2008. In its 56,800㎡ area, the indoor studio (J1), multi purpose studio (J2), outdoor set and outdoor shooting center are placed, also equipped with a set production room, staff room, make-up room and art and props room.
PARK Min-jeong, the producer of The Tiger, says that the film chose Jeonju Studio Complex “while looking for an outdoor set in a vast area” and thinks highly of its accessibility as well. Most films travel from one place to another for shooting, and therefore "it is very convenient for filmmakers to set their base camp in Jeonju, since this city is located in the middle of the Korean peninsula."
Another reason for the popularity of Jeollabuk-do Province as film location is its unique characteristic that embraces both modernity and tradition, the nature and the urban. Jeollabuk-do Province has some of the rare places in Korea that still have old buildings and streets. Especially Gunsan and Jeongeup are said to be the best places to shoot period films because they have cultural monuments from the recent past. That is why DONGJU; The Portrait of A Poet, which is set in the 1940s, chose Jeollabuk-do Province as its main filming location.
KIM Ji-hyoung, the producer of DONGJU, asserts that Jeollabuk-do Province "still has the architecture and atmosphere from that time. DONGJU was shot at the Namwon Seodo Station, Iksan Cultural Foundation and Sorokdo Island, and we could film the atmosphere from the past without having to construct extra sets since there still were the houses where the Japanese railroad workers lived back then.” In addition, the beautiful ocean, mountains and rivers nearby make Jeollabuk-do Province even more attractive for the filmmakers.
Solid Support System that Covers Locations Scouts to Accommodations
The popularity of Jeollabuk-do Province as a film shooting location owes greatly to the Jeonju Film Commission’s support. The Jeonju Film Commission has assembled an efficient support system, from recommendation of shooting locations to assistance in kind through the incentive program. Application is simple, too. All you have to do is to click a few buttons at the web sites of Jeonju Film Commission (http://www.jjfc.or.kr) or FILM KOREA(https://www.filmkorea.or.kr/eng/). Once application is submitted, the designated location manager in the shooting support team provides a one stop service for film shooting.
The location scouting service is especially helpful for filmmakers who are not from the area and therefore aren't familiar with Jeollabuk-do Province. Namwan Seodo Station and Iksan Cultural Foundation in DONGJU all have been recommended by the Jeonju Film Commission's managers.
The incentive program provides actual help for the filmmakers. This program divides into Jeonbuk Location Incentive and Jeonju Cine Incentive, and provides assistance in kind, for example, covering lodgment, meals, gas, reimbursement for set construction and recruiting supporting actor agencies.
PARK expresses satisfaction about their collaboration with the Jeonju Film Commission, saying “what I find helpful is not just individual assistance in kind, but the very system, where everything is efficiently assembled, so you can just concentrate on film making.”
KIM Young-hyun, the promotion and planning manager at the Jeonju Film Commission, explains: “We keep in touch with those who shot their films in Jeonju and meet them regularly. We hold a presentation meeting at the beginning of the year, and also hold an event during the Jeonju International Film Festival so we can all meet again,” and adds that "it is our hope to invite films at their planning stage."
Among the upcoming films to be shot in Jeollabuk-do Province are The King by HAN Jae-rim, With God by KIM Yong-hwa and Okja by BONG Joon-ho. It seems the Jeollabuk-do Province's shooting location craze will surely continue into 2016.
