Netflix See What's Next Korea 2021
Cover Photo: Netflix

Riding on the the success of recent Korean content on its platform, Netflix continues to expand the horizon of Korean culture and entertainment

Netflix has confirmed the productions of award-winning director Jung Byung-gil's action blockbuster Carter and director Park Hyun-jin's upbeat and unexpected romance Moral Sense (working title), the first self-produced Korean films by the leading streaming entertainment service.

Revealed at the recent See What's Next Korea 2021 virtual event, the two previously unannounced movies are part of Netflix's continued investment in the Korean creative community. Netflix also disclosed that in 2021, they'll be pumping in nearly US$500 million (over RM2 billion) on Korean films and series, in an effort to double down on content and add more variety and diversity to its offerings.

Read more: Netflix Reveals 13 Original Korean Shows For 2021

Carter

Helmed by director Jung Byung-gil, whose skilled hand has produced many unique action films, Carter is a chase thriller about an agent suffering from memory loss and thrown into the middle of a mysterious mission.

Director Jung got the spotlight with his feature debut Action Boys, which earned him a seat at the 27th Vancouver International Film Festival as well as other prominent events. Since then, his 2012 film Confession of Murder earned him the Best New Director award at the 50th Grand Bell Awards and the Thriller Award at the 31st Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival.

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Tatler Asia
Jung Byung-gil Carter Netflix
Above Jung Byung-gil (Photo: Netflix)

His 2017 film The Villainess was selected for Midnight Screenings at the 70th Cannes International Film Festival, raising his profile among international filmmakers. Carter, his collaboration with Netflix, is expected to present a cathartic experience for viewers with high-quality, difficult to execute, non-stop action scenes.

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Moral Sense

Moral Sense depicts a different kind of romance between a man with unusual tastes in sex and a woman who inadvertently learns about them. It's based on the hit webtoon by the same name, which has the main character under the humorous and suspenseful premise of hiding his unusual sexual proclivities from his colleagues.

Veteran romance director Park Hyun-jin will lead the production with her keen insight and experience in the genre. Her films include Like for Likes, which weaves romance into the trend of sharing one’s daily life on social media, and Lovers of Six Years, a realistic portrayal of a longtime couple.

Tatler Asia
Park Hyun-jin Moral Sense Netflix
Above Park Hyun-jin (Photo: Netflix)

She's expected to unleash her full command of genre-specific knowledge in an unfolding thrilling romantic development between a man with a secret he doesn’t want to reveal to anyone and a woman who discovers it.

Both Carter and Moral Sense will bring a new kind of viewing pleasure to audiences worldwide. The two films will be released exclusively on Netflix.

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Speaking to regional press and media after the See What's Next Korea 2021 panel sessions, Netflix VP of Content (Korea, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand) Minyoung Kim revealed that Netflix's ultimate goal is to bring diverse stories that haven't been told before in the traditional system, stories Korean storytellers want to tell, and ultimately content that will resonate with its audience

Tatler Asia
Minyoung Kim Netflix VP Content
Above Minyoung Kim (Photo: Netflix)

When asked if we'll be seeing more documentary-styled Korean content such as the wildly popular Blackpink: Light Up The Sky, Netflix's first K-pop original content which premiered to much fanfare, Kim told Tatler Malaysia: "Blackpink's Light Up The Sky was our effort to bring K-pop stories into the documentary genre on Netflix, and documentaries are something we're really good at.

"What I can tell you right now is that we do have plans to find those stories that are authentic to the local market, just like Blackpink's, from different parts of Asia and we want to make sure to bring those stories to our audience in Asia," she added.

"There are a lot of projects underway that I can't talk about right now, but I'm very sure that you'll be able to hear about the projects that are on the way to our audience very soon," Kim hinted.

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