How Did Zombie Stories Gain Popular Interest?

Special Exhibition at Korean Film Museum 'Right Now Our Zombies Are...'

The Korean Film Museum is holding a special exhibition titled "Right Now Our Zombies Are: The 21st Century K-Zombie Chronicle" until March 26 next year. This is a permanent exhibition highlighting zombies, which have become a mainstream element in global popular culture. It broadly examines the process through which zombies, once considered the exclusive domain of a small group of enthusiasts, gained widespread public interest in Korea.

The museum focuses on director Yeon Sang-ho's "Train to Busan (2016)" as the starting point. Zombies had been used as a subject in various films before, but mostly served only as devices to create horror. "Train to Busan" enhanced the genre's appeal through dramatic transformations such as speed and claustrophobic fear. Additionally, it reflected the characteristics of modern society to explore the realities and hopes of our lives.

Its unique originality and freshness captivated audiences worldwide, sparking the K-Zombie syndrome. Successive hits followed, including "Kingdom (2019)," "#Alive (2020)," "Hellbound (2021)," and "All of Us Are Dead (2022)." Each of these works resonated by warning of dangers such as division and isolation, which have recently become problematic, through the fear and anxiety embodied by zombies. They pointed toward new possibilities by aiming for coexistence and camaraderie.

The museum stated, "We aim to explore why 21st-century popular culture has been fascinated by zombies and how K-Zombies have influenced and been influenced by other popular culture."

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