In this September, there is a 3rd Korean Film Festival in Australia (KOFFIA). KOFFIA will showcase 20 of the best and latest Korean feature films and will allow audiences to discover their connection to Korean cinema and culture. As one of Korean living in Australia, I get a chance to volunteer in KOFFIA media team. That is one of the reasons why do I choose a ‘film’ as this week blog topic.
Why should we care about film? Because films stand for cultural identities and have long been the main vehicle for cultural expression. Regarding to film, there were disputes in Korea whether ‘the screen quota system’ should be reduced, if not completely removed a few years ago (Seo 2005, p.1). ‘The screen quota system’ is one of the major protective film policies such as subsidies, import quotas, screen quotas and television quotas (Lee 2005, p.1). To protect Korean film industry’s market share and help it grow, Korea’s screen quota policy prescribes the proportion of domestic films and the number of days on which they are shown.
The advocates of the screen quota emphasize cultural diversity, cultural exceptions and national identity as justification (Seo 2005, p.1). They argue that ‘the screen quota has contributed to cultural diversity as it protects local films from the flood of Hollywood movies’ (Seo 2005, p.2). On the other hand, the opponents of the screen quota contend that ‘the screen quota system hampers free trade and limits domestic consumers’ choices’ (Seo 2005, p.2).
References
Lee, H 2005, 'An Economic Analysis of Protective Film Policies: A Case Study of the Korean Screen Quota System', Conference Papers -- International Communication Association, pp. 1-38, retrieved 30 July 2012, Communication & Mass Media Complete, EBSCOhost.
Seo, Y 2005, 'The Politics of the 'Screen Quota System' in Korea: Art, Culture, and Film in the Age of Global Capitalism', Conference Papers -- American Political Science Association, pp. 1-24, retrieved 30 July 2012, Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost.
Picture source
koreanpopculture.blogspot.com
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