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Film industry suffers from stars` fee dispute
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A dramatic dispute between film directors and film stars highlights how soaring guaranteed payments for actors could cripple Korea`s film industry -already struggling with a shrinking share of the domestic market - and taint the image of the Korean Wave, an Asia-wide surge in the popularity of Korean culture.
Not long ago, Korean filmmaking was touted as a thriving business, with locally made high-quality films outsmarting Hollywood blockbusters at the box office and grabbing awards in the world`s major film festivals. Korea`s film industry is valued at 717 billion won and boasts an 18-percent annualized growth rate, but in recent months, the market share of Korean movies has declined amid an overall slump in ticket sales.
Now, to add to industry woes, producers and actors are locked in an emotional turf war over profit-sharing, marring their own public image and credibility. The row began on June 24 when Kang Woo-suk, one of the most influential filmmakers in Korea, known for the 2004 blockbuster spy flick "Silmido," publicly criticized some star agencies and actors for demanding excessive fees and profit sharing. Kang alleged this led to outsized production costs and placed an unfair burden on producers. Kang`s remark sent shock waves throughout the film industry, as he has built a strong position in Korea through Cinema Service, a major film distributor and investment company. In attacking the growing "star power," Kang made public the names of two actors, Choi Min-sik and Song Gang-ho. Angered by the unprecedented revelation of identities, the actors held a news conference on June 29, attacking director Kang and demanding his apology.
Song said, "It is very regrettable that director Kang distorted the facts by saying Choi Min-sik and his management agency Bravo Entertainment, and my manager Shim Pil-bo and I have an unreasonable guarantee demand." Choi, known for his roles in critically acclaimed "Chihwaseon" directed by Im Kwon-taek and "Old Boy" by Park Chan-wook, both of which made it into the 2004 Cannes film festival, said, "I wonder whether Kang`s reckless remark like `Actors are seeking money only` is appropriate for a person who really cares about the problems of the Korean film industry." Eventually, director Kang sent an e-mail, giving a formal apology, which was accepted by the lead actors. Although the high-pitched emotional battle between the powerful director and actors has been wrapped up, the underlying conflict and problems remain largely unresolved. The heart of the matter is that producers and filmmakers face surging production costs partly fueled by a sharp increase of the guaranteed payment for actors and blame the so-called star system for the troubles plaguing the entire industry. According to government data, the average production cost, including marketing, has been on the rise: from 1.5 billion won in 1998 to 4.17 billion won in 2003 to 4.3 billion won in 2004.
Before pledging to invest in a film project, investors usually ask production houses to secure top actors. As the pool of top-rated actors is fairly small, production houses are forced to offer big money, often an amount that erodes profit margin. If the film flops, producers and investors suffer big losses, but actors routinely get away with fat, guaranteed payments.
From the producers` perspective, the star system is distorting the market. Furthermore, management agencies that control actors are demanding what producers call an "unjust share" of profits through joint production contracts.
Actors claim that producers are just passing the buck. In interviews with local media, a host of leading Korean actors have argued that a surge in actors` fees has been decided by the market, not their "greed" to seek excessive income. In addition, actors said some directors and producers complain about getting top actors to sign on to their film projects, but in many cases, producers and directors should scrutinize the quality of their projects before blaming actors for refusing to accept casting proposals. The star system is also a common practice in the global movie industry. Hollywood, for instance, revolves around the star system in which the "logic of capital" decides the fate of major filmmaking projects, the Korean actors say.
In fact, not all top actors are determined to cash in on their star power right away. Actor Song Gang-ho, who has decided to play the main character for "Monster" to be directed by Bong Jun-ho, said at a press conference last week that his guaranteed payment amounts to 500 million won, but instead of receiving the sum in case, he has re-invested it into the film project.
Question
1. Have you heard about conflict between movie star and producer these days? How do you feel?
2. Usually, what do you think about Korean film? ( In view of star power )
3. What is the reason Korea film industry suffers?
4. What action should be taken in these situations?
이 글은「대학연합영어토론동아리」www.pioneerclub.com에서 제공하는 영어토론 정보입니다.
Not long ago, Korean filmmaking was touted as a thriving business, with locally made high-quality films outsmarting Hollywood blockbusters at the box office and grabbing awards in the world`s major film festivals. Korea`s film industry is valued at 717 billion won and boasts an 18-percent annualized growth rate, but in recent months, the market share of Korean movies has declined amid an overall slump in ticket sales.
Now, to add to industry woes, producers and actors are locked in an emotional turf war over profit-sharing, marring their own public image and credibility. The row began on June 24 when Kang Woo-suk, one of the most influential filmmakers in Korea, known for the 2004 blockbuster spy flick "Silmido," publicly criticized some star agencies and actors for demanding excessive fees and profit sharing. Kang alleged this led to outsized production costs and placed an unfair burden on producers. Kang`s remark sent shock waves throughout the film industry, as he has built a strong position in Korea through Cinema Service, a major film distributor and investment company. In attacking the growing "star power," Kang made public the names of two actors, Choi Min-sik and Song Gang-ho. Angered by the unprecedented revelation of identities, the actors held a news conference on June 29, attacking director Kang and demanding his apology.
Song said, "It is very regrettable that director Kang distorted the facts by saying Choi Min-sik and his management agency Bravo Entertainment, and my manager Shim Pil-bo and I have an unreasonable guarantee demand." Choi, known for his roles in critically acclaimed "Chihwaseon" directed by Im Kwon-taek and "Old Boy" by Park Chan-wook, both of which made it into the 2004 Cannes film festival, said, "I wonder whether Kang`s reckless remark like `Actors are seeking money only` is appropriate for a person who really cares about the problems of the Korean film industry." Eventually, director Kang sent an e-mail, giving a formal apology, which was accepted by the lead actors. Although the high-pitched emotional battle between the powerful director and actors has been wrapped up, the underlying conflict and problems remain largely unresolved. The heart of the matter is that producers and filmmakers face surging production costs partly fueled by a sharp increase of the guaranteed payment for actors and blame the so-called star system for the troubles plaguing the entire industry. According to government data, the average production cost, including marketing, has been on the rise: from 1.5 billion won in 1998 to 4.17 billion won in 2003 to 4.3 billion won in 2004.
Before pledging to invest in a film project, investors usually ask production houses to secure top actors. As the pool of top-rated actors is fairly small, production houses are forced to offer big money, often an amount that erodes profit margin. If the film flops, producers and investors suffer big losses, but actors routinely get away with fat, guaranteed payments.
From the producers` perspective, the star system is distorting the market. Furthermore, management agencies that control actors are demanding what producers call an "unjust share" of profits through joint production contracts.
Actors claim that producers are just passing the buck. In interviews with local media, a host of leading Korean actors have argued that a surge in actors` fees has been decided by the market, not their "greed" to seek excessive income. In addition, actors said some directors and producers complain about getting top actors to sign on to their film projects, but in many cases, producers and directors should scrutinize the quality of their projects before blaming actors for refusing to accept casting proposals. The star system is also a common practice in the global movie industry. Hollywood, for instance, revolves around the star system in which the "logic of capital" decides the fate of major filmmaking projects, the Korean actors say.
In fact, not all top actors are determined to cash in on their star power right away. Actor Song Gang-ho, who has decided to play the main character for "Monster" to be directed by Bong Jun-ho, said at a press conference last week that his guaranteed payment amounts to 500 million won, but instead of receiving the sum in case, he has re-invested it into the film project.
Question
1. Have you heard about conflict between movie star and producer these days? How do you feel?
2. Usually, what do you think about Korean film? ( In view of star power )
3. What is the reason Korea film industry suffers?
4. What action should be taken in these situations?
이 글은「대학연합영어토론동아리」www.pioneerclub.com에서 제공하는 영어토론 정보입니다.
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