Why Is Director Jang Hang-jun’s Next Film So Low-Budget?

“The Man Who Lives with the King” surpassed 1,500 million admissions 50 days after its release.

The director who made that film has chosen an ultra-low-budget independent film for his next project.

It may seem strange, but this is how filmmaking in Korea is actually dividing right now.

3-Line Summary
1. Director Jang Hang-jun’s next project is an ultra-low-budget independent film.
2. This year’s lineup includes both a 550억 won film and a 5억 won film.
3. What has disappeared is not big films, but the middle.

What Comes After the 100억-Won Range

“The Man Who Lives with the King” opened on February 4, surpassed 1,000 million admissions on March 6, and exceeded 1,500 million on March 25. It is the 25th Korean film to reach 10 million admissions. In the Korean Film Council web magazine’s analysis of this year’s lineup, the film’s production budget is listed as being in the 100억-won range.

Then, on March 23, the director unveiled his next project on the web variety show “Castle of Acting.” Its title is “International Lawyer,” and it stars actor Lee Joon-hyuk. He said there that he is planning the project as an ultra-low-budget independent film.

One story from the same program gives a clearer sense of the film’s character. According to a TenAsia report, when proposing roles to actors Kim Eui-sung and Im Hyung-joon, he discussed having them participate in the form of investment instead of appearance fees.

What It Means to Invest Instead of Receiving an Appearance Fee

The actors do not receive appearance fees. Instead, they are treated as having put that amount into the film and receive a share of the revenue the film earns.

For the production side, this reduces the cash that must be paid out immediately. Labor costs are the largest expense for a small film, so reducing them creates room for additional shooting days or post-production.

The risk, however, shifts to the actors. If the film succeeds, they receive more than their original appearance fees; if it does not, they receive nothing.

It is not an unfamiliar arrangement. But it is rarely seen in commercial films in the 100억-won range. That is because the structure—where investment companies provide financing and actors receive contracted appearance fees—is already established. The very fact that this arrangement is being discussed indicates where the film stands.

550억 and 5억 Exist in the Same Year

The production budgets for this year’s Korean film lineup, as compiled by the Korean Film Council web magazine, are as follows.

“Hope” 550억 won — among the highest in Korean film history
“The Swarm” approximately 200억 won
“Ode to My Father 2” 170억 won
“The Man Who Lives with the King” in the 100억-won range
“Paradise Lost” 5억 won

The difference between the top and bottom is 110 times. These are films opening in the same industry, in the same year.

But What Do These Amounts Cover?

All the figures here are net production costs. They refer to the money required to shoot and complete a film. Planning, filming, post-production, actor appearance fees, and staff labor costs are included.

The cost of informing audiences is not included. The costs of producing trailers, buying advertising, and placing promotional materials in theaters are counted separately; adding these to net production costs produces the total production cost.

This is where small films face their real difficulty. It is possible to shoot a film for 5억 won. But the cost of letting people know that the film is playing in theaters does not decline in proportion to the production budget. Even if the cost of making it is 1/100, the cost of promoting it does not become 1/100.

What Has Disappeared Is the Middle

The Korean Film Council classifies films with net production costs exceeding 30억 won as commercial films. But in the list above, there is nothing near 30억 won. Films are concentrated above 100억 won, or they fall far below that level.

The same diagnosis emerges when looking at where the Korean Film Council increased its budget this year.

According to a NewsPim report, the mid-budget Korean film production-support budget increased to 200억 won. That is double last year’s 100억 won. Eligible films have net production costs of at least 20억 won and less than 100억 won, and the cap per film is the lower of 40% of net production costs and 25억 won.

The projects selected in April numbered 16, seven more than last year’s 9. By range, there were 7 projects in the 20억–30억-won range, 6 in the 30억–60억-won range, and 3 in the 60억–100억-won range. The lower the range, the more projects there were.

Support for independent films is separate. According to this year’s support guidelines compiled by Cine21, feature-length independent art-film production support covers 18 films with 59억 3천만 won, while short films cover 25 projects with 4억 1,700만 won. That amounts to a little over 3억 won per feature on average. A category supporting films made with artificial intelligence was also newly introduced this year.

So What Does This Choice Mean?

It can be read in 2 ways.

One is flexibility. A director with a box-office hit gains bargaining power when choosing a next project. Even if they choose a film that costs less, they can still make it, and they can put the story they want to tell first.

The other is the opposite. If there is no clear path to making a film at a middle scale, only 2 choices remain: exceed 100억 won, or go very small.

What stands out to me is that nearly half of the 16 selected projects are concentrated in the smallest range. The program was created to revive mid-budget films, but the projects actually selected cluster at the bottom of that range. Its name is mid-budget, but its substance is closer to low-budget.

“International Lawyer” has not yet disclosed either a shooting schedule or a release date.

More than when this film will be released, it will be worth watching what production budget is listed when it does arrive. That will show whether a director whose film surpassed 10 million admissions making an ultra-low-budget film ends as a one-off, or whether the next person follows.