Actor
Jang Dong-gun and actress
Han Ga-in have earned the most votes in a recent popularity survey.
Rain and
Lee Hyo-lee topped the singers' list and
Yoo Jae-seok and
Jo Hye-ryeon took the comedian vote.
The results come from a September survey conducted by a marketing research firm on 1,400 Korean men and women in five major cities.
Among actors, Jang, with 23 percent of the votes, again ranked atop the poll as he did in the year's first half. Trailing behind was
Ahn Seong-gi (9.5%),
Song Il-gook (8.9%),
Lee Joon-ki (5.3%) and
Han Seok-Kyu (5.2%). ...
MoreMovie companies shine spotlight on stock markets, online sales
Unable to gain access to investors by traditional means, Korean filmmakers are rewriting the script to give stock traders and cyber fans starring roles.
The industry currently generates an estimated 700 billion won ($605 million) per year, which is meager compared to Hollywood where a single project may cost more than $100 million.
But with current blockbusters "
Silmido" and "
Taegukgi" streaking through attendance levels, filmmakers and analysts say the local movie industry has proven that it can produce movies with tremendous commercial value.
"Movies are not yet a driving economic force, but it has the potential to become just that in coming years", said Ko Jung-min, chief researcher at Samsung Economic Research Institute.
For many filmmakers, access to the local stock markets is not possible because they lack enough equity to meet requirements.
However, Myung Films Co. and KangJeGyu Films, ranking No. 2 and No. 3 in the Korean movie industry, figured out the back door is better than standing in line waiting for a handout to enter.
They joined hands last month to merge with Seshin Buffalo Co., an industrial toolmaker that spun off from Seshin Co. on Jan. 16. Together, the threesome created MK Buffalo Co., set to be officially launched next month.
More importantly, Seshin Buffalo is a publicly traded firm, meaning automatic access to the Korea Stock Exchange for the two filmmakers.
Best alternative
"Some may disapprove of the way we entered the market, but we see it as the best possible alternative considering that the chances of getting listed were pretty dim for us", says Park Jin-gyu of Myung Films.
MK Buffalo plans to finance movies at its newly installed filmmaking division with the profit generated by Seshin Buffalo.
"The marriage of a manufacturing arm and a filmmaker is not exactly desirable, but considering the overall effect, which is reliable...
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