How SLL Plans To Expand On This Year’s K-Drama And Film Success

Hollywood & Entertainment How SLL Plans To Expand On This Year’s K-Drama And Film Success Joan MacDonald Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. I’m a journalist fascinated by Korean drama and film. New! Follow this author to improve your content experience.

Got it! Jun 17, 2022, 08:14am EDT | New! Click on the conversation bubble to join the conversation Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Kim Ji-won and Son Suk-ku star in ‘My Liberation Notes. ‘ SLL What’s in a name? For Korea’s JTBC Studios, changing its name to SLL reflected a determination to become a leading production company in the global entertainment industry. According to SLL CEO Jung Kyung-moon, JTBC Studios is still an excellent brand name and the studio’s positive image has been a driving force behind its growth.

“Nevertheless, the reason for the change is for greater growth and global growth,” said Jung. “We work not only with JTBC, but also with other channels such as tvN, KBS, SBS, etc. , and also produce OTT original series with Netflix, Disney+.

So we thought we needed a new company name to become a global studio. ” SLL stands for Studio LuluLala. “The word ‘LuluLala’ is an onomatopoeia used for fun moments in Korea,” said Jung.

” The name means that we hope that people around the world will be happier as a result of the stories that SLL creates. ” JTBC Studios officially changed its name in April, in conjunction with its expansion plans, which includes more dramas and films. The company is already behind some of this year’s most successful productions—from the teen zombie hit All of Us Are Dead to the introspective slice-of-life drama My Liberation Notes to the fantasy musical drama The Sound of Magic and also the film The Roundup .

All of Us are Dead topped global Netflix content rankings for 15 days and the buzz-worthy My Liberation Note s was one of the top non-English TV series in 10 countries. The Sound of Magic , starring Ji Chang-wook, became the fourth most popular k-drama worldwide on Netflix, while The Roundup starring Don Lee (Ma Dong-seok) and Son Suk-ku became a record-breaking box office success. In past years the studio also enjoyed global success with dramas such as Itaewon Class, Sky Castle and The World of the Married .

The high school zombie drama ‘All Of Us Are Dead’ became an international hit. SLL MORE FOR YOU ‘Dune’ Tops Foreign Box Office With Promising $77M Cume ‘Shang-Chi’ Box Office: Marvel Movie Tops $360M Worldwide 4 Series Coming To Netflix In October That Are Worth The Binge So, what’s the secret for producing successful dramas and films? Popularity and originality are key. “SLL introduced a Greenlight Committee system to listen and collect opinions from the various parties, not only from the production department, but also from business management, sales and even the digital department,” said Jung.

“The most important criterion is popularity. But besides popularity, we appreciate what is different from other existing content. Therefore, I think these two factors will be the things in common to successful dramas.

While appealing to the public, there is a distinctly differentiated point. For example, All of Us are Dead is in the zombie genre, but it adds some freshness with the new concept of teen zombies, and My Liberation Notes also received positive responses by paying attention to ordinary daily life as well as throwing in many serious topics in life. ” With the ever-expanding number of OTT streaming services offering more access to Korean content, Jung does not envision the interest will subside.

“This is a good opportunity for k-dramas and movies as global OTT has been booming worldwide and interest in Korean content has increased,” said Jung. “However, no matter how good the opportunity is, if we don’t actively challenge it, good results will not continue. In this regard, the Korean drama boom will not end as a temporary event as there are studios like SLL that are actively challenging the global market.

” With a growing number of international viewers, it’s tempting to wonder whether Korean dramas will cater to global viewing habits. “As public tastes and needs can change from time to time, we don’t want to do customized production to adapt to the tastes of the world’s viewers,” said Jung. “As we are a creator, we would like to talk about what we want, our story.

I sometimes say to the producers, ‘Do what you want to make. ’” The film ‘The Roundup’ has broken post-pandemic box office records. SLL Nurturing creative freedom results in unique storytelling and that’s part of what makes Korean productions appealing.

“Korean dramas have key strengths in terms of popularity and creativity,” said Jung. ” In particular, Korean dramas deal with themes that everyone can relate to while they also have the distinctive storytelling and authentic materials which seem fresh to global audiences. Also, highly efficient production cost would be another reason.

The cost of production is soaring, but it is still significantly less expensive than Hollywood, and it is also a major competitive edge of k-content that it continues to produce high-quality works. ” SLL plans to invest 3 trillion won ($2. 42 billion) during the next few years with the aim of producing 30 TV series and five films.

During the second half of the year, SLL will release Money Heist: Korea Joint Economic Area, The Accidental Narco and A Model Family , which are Netflix series, as well as Casino for Disney+. They also plan to release several films, including Cobweb, starring Song Kang-ho, winner of the Best Actor award at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival; plus Apgujeong Report , another film starring Don Lee, and Jung-E, a Netflix movie. “We have been working in the movie business since we were JTBC Studios,” said Jung.

“We have acquired B. A Entertainment, Perfect Storm, Film Monster, and other big film production companies and made them our production labels. Recently, B.

A Entertainment’s Roundup is on the verge of surpassing 10 million viewers. ” The company expanded into the US in 2021 with the acquisition of LA-based Studio Wiip, producer of the US TV hit Mare of Eastown . SLL plans to respect Wiip’s autonomy and creativity.

“While exchanging thoughts on each other’s IP, an environment, where we can co-produce or remake will also be naturally created,” said Jung. “We also look forward to active exchanges between creators. ” ‘The Sound of Magic’ is a musical fantasy starring Ji Chang-wook.

SLL SLL is also expanding into Japan, where their dramas such as Itaewon Class and Green Mother’s Club have been big hits. “We thought Japan was a traditional content powerhouse with many potential IPs and an attractive market that loves k-content,” said Jung. “We are planning to do business in Japan with a different approach from the US.

Unlike Wiip’s case in the US, SLL plans to set up its own production company and carry out the production business in Japan. Korea has many global success stories with worldwide OTT platforms that Japan has not experienced, so if we combine the creative power of Korea and Japan, we can create excellent Japanese content which can appeal to a global audience. With Japanese production, we would like to have global success by creating Japanese contents aimed at global OTT.

” SLL is a subsidiary of JTBC, part of JoongAng Ilbo/The JoongAng Group. Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn . Check out my website .

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