Korean TV dramas
“Autumn Fable” and “Winter Sonata,” the two local TV dramas which have been leading the Korean Wave in Asia, will be broadcast throughout the Middle East, including Egypt and Iraq, beginning Saturday.
[Korean Culture & Content]
by Shin Hae-in
“Autumn Fable” and “Winter Sonata,” the two local TV dramas which have been leading the Korean Wave in Asia, will be broadcast throughout the Middle East, including Egypt and Iraq, beginning Saturday.
The Egyptian Radio & TV Union (ERTU), the biggest broadcasting company in the region, will air the two dramas until the end of this year. This will be the first time that Korean TV dramas have been shown in the Middle East.
The Government Information Agency has been pushing forward the broadcasting plan in an effort to coordinate it with Korea’s dispatch of additional troops to Iraq, hoping to make Middle Easterners more familiar with Korea.
“Seeing how popular the two dramas were in other Asian countries, we expect that Middle East people will feel closer to Korea after the broadcasts,” said Kim Jung-pyo, the agency’s deputy director.
Under the agreement between KBS and ERTU, the Egyptian broadcaster received the dramas free of charge and the Government Information Agency produced the Arabic subtitles.
The two dramas were selected for a number of reasons. “First of all, they do not have any political color to them,” said Kim, emphasizing that any kind of political tone could worsen Middle East sentiment toward Koreans at a time when some Iraqis are opposed to the dispatch of Korean troops.
Also, the basic structure of a pure love story was said to match Middle East people’s tastes, according to Arab experts the agency consulted, Kim said.
“Since an inroad is being made, we hope that the Middle East region will now be included in the Korean Wave phenomenon. This will be a good opportunity for Korean TV dramas to make a firm entry into the area,” Kim said.
News Source: www.kocca.or.kr
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