By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
New omnibus film "3 In 3 Saek (Three People Three Colors): A Love Story" is screened only on a Web site without opening at theaters.
Directed by three well-known local directors, the film "3 In 3 Saek (Three People Three Colors): A Love Story", opened on Feb. 14., not in theatres, but freely available on the Internet (
Open the link ).
Like many other forms of media, this film joins the work of those who seek various other distribution platforms such as mobile phones, Internet and other portable multi-media devices instead of the traditional big screen.
Thanks to the fast-developing new media which appeals to new generations used to mobility and easy accessibility, it may be argued that joining a long line to buy tickets and sitting cramped together at a cinema is a relic of the past. So experts say the film industry has to keep in step with the latest technologies and survive in an era where various of opportunity windows are offered for films.
"Now many efforts should be made to create new markets as new media for movies have emerged", said Yu Hyeong-jin, researcher of the policy research and development department at the Korean Film Council. "Just relying on the traditional theatrical release can be dangerous for the development of the industry".
To give an example, Yu attributed the prevalence of illegal circulation of movie files in cyberspace to the failure in the systemization of the Internet as a new window for films.
Although "3 In 3 Saek (Three People Three Colors): A Love Story" was made as part of a promotional event by KT, the nation's largest fixed-line and broadband service provider, the film gained a certain quality, having received positive reviews from audiences when premiered at last year's Pusan International Film Festival.
The directors are
Kwak Jae-yong of "
My Sassy Girl",
Kim Tae-gyoon of "
Volcano High" and
Jeong Yoon-cheol of "Running Boy" ("
Marathon") each of whom drew audiences of millions with their films. Under the same theme that a phone works as a bridge between a couple, each director contributed a 30-minute episode for the omnibus film.
Although movie streaming services such as video-on-demand (VOD) started with the dawn of high-speed Internet, they have not been so successful as there are only a limited selection of films people can watch online. It is expected the Internet release of newly produced films can help solve the problem.
In another effort to diversify the platforms upon which to show films, television also seems to emerge as powerful medium for its influence on a large number of viewers.
A horror film series titled "One Day Suddenly" (the tentative English title), will be shot from Feb. 28, and is expected to be screened in July, both on the local TV channel SBS and at theaters.
The series is a cooperative project between CJ Entertainment, SBS and the film production company, Toilet Pictures. The TV station and theaters will get different versions of the series.
"Screening a film through TV as well as at theaters can be much safer in many ways", said Jessica Kim, publicist of CJ Entertainment.
Under the new system, they can reduce risks as they can secure a certain amount of profit from the pre-sale for a television release and promote their movie through it, she explained.
But the most radical changes seem to be led by the emergence of new multi-media devices and technologies such as digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB), wireless broadband (WiBro), mobile phones with multimedia functions, the Internet protocol (IP) TV and portable multimedia player (PMP).
Portal operator KTH, local film cable channel OCN and DVD maker KD will make a 35 millimeter film aimed at various emerging platforms as well as theatrical release.
