"K-Contents at the Center of Korea-China Exchange... Expanding Despite Political Variables"

K Content Event Held in Beijing, China

"The K-content industry has continued to grow despite the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic. Content business is also at the center of Korea-China exchanges. (Cho Hyun-rae, President of Korea Creative Content Agency)"

"China, with its rich and diverse culture and history, and Korea's content industry, which is showing rapid results in the global cultural service market, can complement each other's strengths and weaknesses. If the two countries cooperate, we can establish our position in the global cultural ecosystem. (Li Jiashan, Executive Deputy Director of the National Cultural Development International Strategy Research Institute)"

Cho Hyun-rae, President of the Korea Creative Content Agency, is delivering the keynote speech at the Chiko Forum during the '2023 Korea Contents Week in Beijing (Kocon Week)' held on the 4th at the Grand Metropark Hotel in Beijing. (Photo by Kim Hyun-jung)

Tensions in Korea-China relations are rising, but voices calling for targeting the global market through cultural cooperation between the two countries have emerged in Beijing, China.

The Korea Creative Content Agency Beijing Business Center announced that it will hold the "2023 Korea Contents Week in Beijing (Kocon Week)" event at the Beijing Grand Metropark Hotel from the 4th to the 6th. The event is centered on Korean content and combines forums with business consultations.

On the 4th, Cho Hyun-rae, President of the Korea Creative Content Agency, said in his keynote speech, "Content has become a savior for our country's exports," introducing it as "one of the main export items beyond home appliances and displays." He added, "Content business is also at the center of Korea-China exchanges," emphasizing that "the distribution of cultural content between Korea and China has been steadily increasing over the past decade."

He particularly stressed, "Despite political variables, the popularity of each other's cultural content is spreading in both Korea and China," and expressed hope that "exchanges will continue to expand steadily despite the complex diplomatic situation." He further explained, "China has a vast land and a large population, so there are many cultural stories. We need to solve how to express these today and how to approach consumers through Korea-China cultural exchanges." He then proposed, "I hope the content industry will be revitalized by creating synergy effects through various methods such as co-productions and remakes that leverage the strengths of both countries."

Earlier, Li Jiashan, Executive Deputy Director of the National Cultural Development International Strategy Research Institute, who gave the keynote speech, said, "The cultures of China and Korea are complementary," adding, "Korea is much further ahead than China in cultural service fields such as film and entertainment." Li emphasized, "China's vast consumer market can provide sufficient testing grounds for the Korean cultural industry," and stated, "If the two countries combine well, they can realize the development and innovation of traditional culture and create joint demand." He added, "We will work solidly with Korea in the cultural industry sector and contribute wisdom to jointly build East Asian brands."

Yoon Ho-jin, Director of the Korea Creative Content Agency Beijing Business Center, said regarding this event, "It is a place where Korea-China cultural content experts have in-depth discussions about content," and expressed hope that "it will be an opportunity to exchange valuable and useful information."

On the same day at the venue, a commemorative video screening for "25 Years of Korean Wave in China" and the 1st Chico Awards ceremony were held. In the content category of the Chico Awards, "Hospital Playlist" and "True Beauty" were selected, and the Achievement Award went to Cha Young-hoe, CEO of GH E&M.

On the 5th, business consultations between Korean and Chinese content companies will take place, with 24 content companies across all genres including drama, animation, webtoon, story IP, music, and games conducting a total of 160 consultations with 46 Chinese content companies. On the 6th, a local company visit program will be held, visiting Chinese content companies Kuaikan Manhua and Pop Mart headquarters.

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