Pop Goes Korea

"The globe buzzes with the sound of Rain and BoA, Korean films clinch awards at Cannes, and manhwa gives Japanese manga a run for the money . . ." "South Korea came from nowhere in the 1990s to become one of the biggest producers of pop content in Asia - and the West. Now, the former underdog of the international pop scene sets trends in music, movies, comic books, TV dramas, and online gaming for the rest of the world to follow. Why? Who's behind it? Veteran reporter-at-large Mark James Russell tells an exciting story of rapid growth and wild success marked by an uncanny knack for moving just one step ahead of changing technologies. With first-person accounts, fresh analysis, anecdotes, and intimate profiles on the dreamers and heavyweights who made the Korean tides turn, POP Goes Korea is the book that explores hallyu - the Korean Wave - hitting the world's shores." "Included in the text is historical and cultural background plus focus chapters on media conglomerate CJ Entertainment, director Kang Je-gyu's blockbuster film Shiri, the Pusan International Film Festival, TV actor Lee Byung-hun, SM Entertainment pop stars S.E.S. and H.O.T., and the internet demon/darling Soribada. Sidebars examine Korean filmdom's biggest hits and biggest failures, the top twenty TV dramas, the golden age of Korean rock, b-boy (breakin' and breakdancin') groups, the Korean studio that animates The Simpsons, and, of course, the international megastar actor and singer Rain." "Fully indexed, with 16 color pages and 64 photographs."--book jacket.