South Korean movie director Kim Ki-duk died of complications from COVID-19 in Latvia on Friday.  News reports from Russia said the director died in the hospital from complications associated with COVID-19. Kim Ki-duk's family confirmed to multiple Korean media that the news was correct and that they had received a call on the day.  According to the sources, Kim arrived in Latvia in the middle of last month. He reportedly lived there with the help of film industry figures in L

The Korea National Ballet canceled its “The Nutcracker” show slated for the Christmas holidays, following the recent resurgence of COVID-19 infection cases here. The national ballet troupe announced Friday that the iconic performance of “The Nutcracker” in December would have to be fully canceled due to the rapid spread of COVID-19. The ballet troupe was to hold the performances at the Seoul Arts Center from Dec. 19-30, leaving two-thirds of seats empty under the gov

With just two weeks left until Christmas, BTS on Friday unveiled a holiday remix version of its upbeat chart-topping song "Dynamite." The remix version, released at 2 p.m., shows the band singing in front of a Christmas tree holding selfie sticks. The jolly ambience and Christmas bells in the background heighten the festive mood. "The BTS digital single 'Dynamite' made history throughout the second half of 2020 thanks to the incredible affection and support shown from all fans,&

Overseas inquiries about South Korean movies have been on the rise thanks to the Oscar-winning Korean film "Parasite," the national film archive said during a forum in Seoul. The Korean Film Archive (KFA) has produced DVDs of major Korean films, ranging from the early years of the 1950s to the present, every year since 2012 and distributed them to overseas research institutions for Korean studies, cultural centers, Korean language institutes and university libraries as part of efforts

K-pop megastar BTS has been named the Time magazine "entertainer of the year," the US weekly said Thursday. BTS "isn't just the biggest K-pop act on the charts. They've become the biggest band in the world -- full stop," the influential magazine said in a Twitter post. "Between releasing multiple albums and breaking every type of record in 2020, BTS ascended to the zenith of pop stardom," it added. BTS had a record year with two of its songs -- "Dynamite&quo

Fifteen years after its launch as a small company by producer Bang Si-hyuk, Big Hit Entertainment is starting a new chapter of its history with its first “labels” concert, which brings together artists from the company’s now-expanded portfolio. Taking place on the very last day of the year, “2021 New Year’s Eve Live – presented by Weverse” is expected to feature K-pop sensation BTS and other Big Hit-affiliated K-pop idols such as Tomorrow X Together, E

Anticipation builds up for JTBC drama, with online press conference reaching record viewer numbers

While the iconic Broadway remains shut down until at least May, Broadway stage actors with Korean backgrounds will connect with international audiences at home via YouTube. The Korean Culture Center New York, affiliated with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, announced it will host the year-end musical gala concert “Farewell 2020,” featuring Korean or Korean-American stage actors working on Broadway through its official YouTube channel on Dec. 17.   The concert wi

An English-language documentary series on South Korean films, “K-Cineflex,” will air on Arirang TV from Thursday to Saturday, introducing popular Korean films and discussing the development of the Korean film industry. The 1994 film “Whiteman (Baeksaekin)” from Bong Joon-ho, the Oscar-winning director of “Parasite,” will be shown as part of the first episode Thursday at 10:30 p.m. The 16-minute film with English subtitles will be shown along with the directo

At 30 percent audience capacity, large musical productions pushed to the brink

JYP Entertainment's new girl group NiziU has topped Japan's Oricon weekly music chart with its debut single album, the company said Tuesday. The nine-member group's album, "Step and a Step," ranked No. 1 on Japan's Oricon weekly singles chart for the first week of this month, just five days after it topped the daily CD singles chart of the Japanese music publisher, according to the agency. NiziU is only the second girl group to reach the top of the weekly Oricon chart with its debut

Random cluster infections are breaking out across the country and the South Korean music industry is no exception from the new coronavirus. In most cases, infections have escalated into bigger cases involving consecutive screening tests, as music programs and events often feature multiple artists and a big production staff. Earlier this month, Kogyeol and Bit-to of boy group UP10TION tested positive for the infectious virus after Bit-to came into contact with a COVID-19 patient. While no addi

Five K-pop idols in their 20s running through scenic courses around the country is the theme of Mnet’s “Running Girls,” whose first episode airs Wednesday. Sunmi, Chungha, Hani of EXID, YooA of Oh My Girl and Chuu of Loona run together as a crew in a show that is as much about bonding as it is about introducing viewers to running courses. Chungha, who was confirmed with COVID-19 on Monday, was absent from the online press conference for the show held Tuesday. With filming hav

K-pop superstar BTS ranked as the sixth most tweeted about people globally, data from Twitter Inc. showed Tuesday, in apparent proof of the seven-member group's strong influence in the social media platform. While US President Donald Trump and President-elect Joe Biden topped the list, BTS was one of two musicians to be among the top 10 most tweeted about global figures, with the other being American rapper Kanye West. BTS also topped Twitter's list of the most tweeted about K-pop accounts glo

Members of K-pop girl group TWICE have tested negative for the new coronavirus, their agency said Tuesday. "TWICE members, including Sana, and their manager have all tested negative for the new coronavirus," JYP Entertainment said in a statement sent through a text message. The agency added that Sana will go into home isolation until Dec. 18 in line with guidelines distributed by health authorities, while the remaining members will work as planned. Members of the nine-piece band got