Shim Eun-kyung, Han Hyo-joo's Global Journey "Increasing Trend of International Co-productions"

[Financial News] “During my school days, I was captivated by the unique charm of Japanese films. I dreamed of freely traveling between Korea and Japan someday.”
This year, actress Shim Eun-kyung, who was invited to the newly established competition section of the Busan International Film Festival, recalled her middle school dream.
Shim Eun-kyung made her official entry into the local film industry with 'The Journalist' in 2019. At a press conference held at the Busan Haeundae-gu Cinema Center on the 20th, she said, “Recently, there are more cases of Korean actors appearing in Japanese films or Japanese actors joining Korean films, and the number of Korea-Japan international co-productions is steadily increasing. It seems like the era I dreamed of has arrived. I hope for more co-productions to be realized.”
Actress Han Hyo-joo has entered the Japanese drama industry. She collaborates with Oguri Shun in the Japanese Netflix drama 'Romantic Anonymous'. Most of her lines were delivered in Japanese, and she stayed in Tokyo for about a year to shoot the project. Han Hyo-joo previously appeared in the Korea-Japan joint film 'Postman to Heaven' (2009), the Japanese film 'The Sun Does Not Move' (2021), and 'Miracle: Debikuro's Love and Magic' (2014).
As global OTTs break down the borders of content consumption, and the Korean film market shrinks due to the OTT boom, leading to investment stagnation, interest in international co-productions as a breakthrough for risk diversification is growing.
Japanese film producer Eiko Mizuno said at the '2025 Forum BIFF' held at the Busan Haeundae-gu Video Industry Center on the 18th, "After 'Plan 75' achieved success both critically and commercially, collaboration proposals from various studios followed," and "Recently, large studios like Toei are joining hands with indie producers to pursue co-productions." She produced 'Plan 75' (2024) and 'Renoir' (2025), which were noted by the Cannes Film Festival.
She said, “In Japan, 600-700 films are produced and released annually, but only 20-30 are international co-productions,” adding, “Nevertheless, some works are making a mark at international film festivals.”
Director Chie, who completed two films by participating in various international programs, advised, “Participating in creative support programs from various countries not only provides direct support but also helps mentally during the long journey of completing a work.”
In Korea, director Jang Kun-jae shared his experience with international co-productions. He showed collaboration results through the Korea-Japan joint films 'A Midsummer's Fantasia' (2014) and 'I Hate Korea' (2023). He stated, “The next project will be centered on Korean and Japanese actors, establishing a Japan-Taiwan-France co-production system for filming, with post-production to be conducted in Europe.”

jashin@fnnews.com Shin Jin-a Reporter