South Korea’s film industry is taking new steps to reduce rising production costs, with major management agencies representing stars such as Lee Byung Hun and Jeon Do Yeon joining a voluntary agreement on actor fees.
On July 16, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korean Film Council signed an agreement with major film production companies and management agencies to support the production of mid budget Korean movies.
BH Entertainment, Management SOOP, and J Wide Company were among the agencies that attended the signing ceremony. Representatives from the Korean Film Producers Association and the Producers Guild of Korea also participated.
Under the agreement, the agencies and production companies will cooperate to keep the combined fees of leading and supporting actors below 10 percent of a movie’s net production budget.
The rule will apply to movies selected for the Korean Film Council’s Mid Budget Film Production Support Program.
However, the agreement is voluntary and does not have legal force. It is intended to encourage cooperation between actors, agencies, producers, investors, and distributors rather than impose a mandatory fee limit.
The participating organizations also plan to create a private council that will continue discussing ways to improve working conditions and support sustainable film production.
Minister Choi Hwi Young praised the decision, saying, “The promise to voluntarily participate in setting a limit on actors’ fees goes beyond reducing production costs”.
He described it as “a warm act of unity” and a responsible decision by industry members who want to help Korean films recover.
Korean Film Council Chairman Han Sang Jun also expressed hope that the program would protect the diversity of Korean cinema and support long term growth as production costs rise and investments decline.
The South Korean government launched the mid budget movie support program last year with 10 billion won in funding. The budget was increased to 46 billion won this year as part of efforts to support the struggling Korean film industry.
Attention is now focused on whether the voluntary actor fee limit will successfully reduce financial pressure and encourage the production of more Korean movies.
