Korean Movie Screen Quota System To Be Discussed at APEC Summit

GIKorea | November 5, 2005 | Uncategorized | 2 Comments

A topic of interest to Hollywood film makers is to be addressed at this month’s APEC Summit in Pusan:

Filmmakers are angry at what they see as undue pressure by the United States to open the market to more Hollywood films. The current issue is a law requiring that cinemas show South Korean movies 146 days a year.

The United States has made it clear that it considers the screen quota a trade barrier and one of the biggest obstacles to free trade agreements between the countries. Hollywood considers South Korea to be one of its more lucrative foreign markets. South Koreans typically have a major presence at the American Film Market, a bazaar this month in Santa Monica, where foreign buyers shop for rights.

The quota issue is expected to come up again when President George W Bush attends the Asia-Pacific Economic Conference, in Pusan from November 18-19. In a rehearsal for protests to come, filmmakers railed against the US at the Pusan International Film Festival, the largest industry event in Asia.

A South Korean lobbying group, calling itself the Coalition for Cultural Diversity in Moving Images, released a feature-length documentary (called Fatal Attraction in reference to the infamous snake incident) that in conspiratorial tones worthy of Michael Moore covered subjects including Henry Kissinger and McDonald’s in an attack on American cultural imperialism.

Filmmakers from France and Iran joined forces with the South Koreans.

I think the Korean screen quota system is probably not needed now due to the current high quality and success of the domestic movie market. I often find myself watching Korean movies because what is coming out of Hollywood now a days is so bad. The Fantastic Four was the summer blockbuster and it was absolutely horrible.

Korea’s screen quota system did not deny Hollywood access to the Korean market because all the latest Hollywood movies can be seen in Korea, they are just not in theatres as long as movies in America due to the screen quota system. This system did have impact in helping to develop the current high quality movie productions currently in Korea. So the 146 day system is probably about right for developing film industries.

However for movie goers in Iran, watching the Fantastic Four for the eighth time would probably be better then watching Mullah-tron all day on TV. The citizens of Iran are eager for contact with the outside world. That is why the Mullahs need to legitimize totally blocking Hollywood movies in Iran for cultural reasons to prevent their people from seeing them.

Then France, which prides itself in being such a culturally enlightened society; I find it interesting that they cannot produce a domestic movie better than the Fantastic Four even though they have a fully developed film industry. I look at it this way; if your country needs to completely embargo the Fantastic Four I think this says a lot more about your country than it does mine.