Will the Korean Film Triumph Bring a 'Cannes Film Festival Breeze' to Theaters?

Cannes Film Festival Wins Best Director and Best Actor Awards
Theater Atmosphere Heats Up with Social Distancing Lifted
Cinema Officials: "Attendance Already Recovered to 70% of Pre-COVID Levels"

Since the restriction on eating and drinking inside theaters was lifted on the 25th of last month, cinema concession stands have started to bustle again with customers buying popcorn and cola. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lee Seohee] As Korean films received acclaim at the 75th Cannes International Film Festival, expectations are rising for a ‘Cannes Film Festival breeze’ to blow through the theater scene. With movie theater eating allowed since the 25th of last month, the theater industry is gradually reviving, and several Korean films that have recently received global praise are about to be released one after another.

At the Cannes Film Festival closing ceremony on May 28 (local time), actor Song Kang-ho won the Best Actor award for director Hirokazu Koreeda’s film Broker, and director Park Chan-wook was honored with the Best Director award for Decision to Leave. This is the first time in Korean film history that two Korean films won awards simultaneously in the competition section of the Cannes Film Festival.

With two Korean films winning awards side by side, audience anticipation for their theatrical releases has also increased. At the audience talk (GV) event for Broker held after the Cannes Film Festival awards, 2,037 people gathered within three days. Since the event was a lottery for 190 people, the competition rate was about 10 to 1. Users of domestic film communities also did not hide their excitement about the films. One community user wrote, “I just applied for the Broker preview screening. Decision to Leave is coming out at the end of June, but how can I wait that long?”

On the 28th (local time) at the 75th Cannes International Film Festival held in Cannes, France, director Park Chan-wook (left), who won the Best Director award for "Decision to Leave," and Song Kang-ho, who became the first Korean actor to win the Best Actor award for the Korean film "Broker" directed by Hirokazu Koreeda, are taking a commemorative photo. (Photo by Yonhap News)

The recent lifting of social distancing and the return of food in movie theaters are also factors attracting citizens back to cinemas. On the 25th of last month, the government lifted restrictions on eating in movie theaters and indoor performance venues, and major theaters such as Megabox and Lotte Cinema discontinued the ‘one-seat gap’ seating policy. As a result, citizens freely enjoyed movies while eating popcorn and drinking cola inside screening rooms.

According to statistics from the Korean Box Office Information System (KOBIS), the number of moviegoers surged more than eightfold from 870,000 in April, before the eating restrictions were lifted, to 7.44 million in May, after the restrictions were lifted. Riding on various positive factors, the film Crime City 2, released on the 18th, surpassed 6.74 million cumulative viewers within two weeks of its release. The film Doctor Strange 2, released on the 4th, also recorded 5 million cumulative viewers within 13 days of release.

Movie theater officials predict that the number of visitors will increase further starting in June, as Cannes Film Festival award-winning films are released next month. Mr. A, who works at CGV, said, “It feels like the number of viewers has recovered to about 70% of the pre-COVID-19 level,” adding, “Especially at the concession stands, there are not enough staff to serve customers, so the waiting line exceeds 50 people.” Mr. B, an employee at Megabox, also said, “Since the release of Doctor Strange and Crime City, we have been working nonstop without even time to go to the restroom. There are three staff members at the ticket booth, but we take orders continuously for hours.”

Meanwhile, the films Decision to Leave and Broker received scores of 3.2 and 1.9 out of 4, respectively, on ScreenDaily ratings, which are evaluated by critics and film experts from 11 media outlets worldwide, including the UK’s Guardian, the US, France, and Germany. Decision to Leave recorded the highest rating this year. The two films are scheduled to be released on June 29 and June 8, respectively.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.