The first Korean-made film was shown to the public in 1919. Entitled "Righteous Revenge," it was a so-called kino-drama designed to be combined with a stage performance. The first feature film, "Oath Under the Moon," was screened in 1923. In 1926, charismatic actor-director Na Un-gyu drew an enthusiastic res-ponse from the public by producing "Arirang," a cinematic protest against Japanese oppression.

After the Korean War in 1953, the local film industry grew gradually and enjoyed a booming business for about a decade. But the next two decades saw a stagnation of the industry due largely to the rapid growth of television. Since the early 1980s, however, the film industry has regained some vitality thanks mainly to a few talented young directors who boldly discarded old stereotypes in movie making. Their efforts succeeded and their movies have earned recognition at various international festivals including Cannes, Chicago, Berlin, Venice, London, Tokyo, Moscow and other cities. This positive trend has been accelerating in the 1990s with more and more Korean directors producing movies that have moved the hearts of world citizens based on unique Korean experiences and sentiments.


In 2000, "Chunhyangjeon" (the story of Chunhyang), directed by Im Kwon-taek, became the first Korean film to compete in the Cannes Film Festival. Four other films were screened in non-competitive categories. The film "Seom" (Island), directed by Kim Ki-duk, competed in the Venice International Film Festival.

Following these films, in 2001, "Joint Security Area" was selected to compete in the Berlin International Film Festival and another film by Kim Ki-duk, "Address Unknown" entered the competition section of the Venice International Film Festival.

Director Park Chan-wook garnered the Jury Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival in 2004 for his film "Old Boy." He also won the Best Director Award at the Bangkok International Film Festival for "Old Boy" in 2005 and "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance" in 2006.

Public interest in films has been mounting and several international film festivals have been staged by provincial governments or private organizations in Korea. They include the Pusan International Film Festival, the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, the Jeonju International Film Festival and the Women's Film Festival in Seoul.


As in other countries, Korean cinema circles are seeing a noticeable expansion of the animation and cartoon industry. More than 200 companies are producing works in this up-to-date genre.

The film, video, animation and online content industries are also undergoing a boom in Korea, fueled by the availability of high-speed Internet services.

In 2003, Korea's film industry experienced great success at the box office. The market share of local films was over 53.5% due to several Korean blockbusters. In the same year, Korea released 240 films and movie theaters showed 65 Korean-made films.

In Sept. 2006, the monster movie "The Host" overtook the epic film "King and the Clown," becoming the most-viewed film at the box office in Korean cinema history. The blockbuster by director Bong Joon-ho broke the previous ticket sale record _ 12.3 million previously set earlier in 2006 by the historical piece "King and the Clown" _ in just 38 days; the latter took 112 days.