japanamerica

The Johnny's fiasco in Japan is but one reminder that tight corporate/big business control over creative industries can result in corruption and stymie creativity (leaving aside charges of sexual abuse). When I was tasked to write about contemporary Korean vs. Japanese films in my latest column for The Japan Times , one of the starkest differences I found was between the processes of movie and series production in the two countries. In Japan, delivering a product on or under-budget and on-schedule is prioritized, and creatives are treated by corporate owners like disposable gig-economy workers. In Korea, it's more about making works of art. When you see films like "Parasite" and series like "Squid Game" and "D.P.," you get the gist. Does South Korea now have the edge over Japan when it comes to film?         Thirty minutes into “Iron Mask,” the debut feature from Korean writer-director Kim Sung Hwan, its kendo-crazed antihero, Jae-woo (Jo...

From NIKKEI . Oscar-nominated 'Minari' upends Asian immigrant stereotypes Actress Esther Moon on playing Mrs. Oh, a Korean immigrant who finds peace in rural America TOKYO— A little over a year after Bong Joon-ho's coruscating satire of class conflict, "Parasite," became the first foreign-language movie to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards, another film with a Korean lead cast, plenty of translated subtitles and dogged money woes is up for the same top honor. "Minari," directed by Korean American Lee Isaac Chung and based partly on his childhood, follows the Yis, an immigrant family of four, as they move from Los Angeles to rural Arkansas to start a new life on a farm. While Chung's script and direction are far more restrained than Ho's, the reception to his film has been anything but. Released in the U.S. during an alarming spike in anti-Asian hate crimes, "Minari" won Best Foreign Language Film at February's Golden Globe Awar...