Refer Report
Sejong University (President Um Jong-hwa) Media Communications Department Professor Lim Jong-su has published
This book was published by Professor Lim, who became the main editor, inviting experts on OTT drama reception culture, content, and political economy. In this book, he argues that the pleasure of watching OTT is qualitatively different from the pleasure of watching existing TV. He says, “If TV depicts the dominant emotional structure of our society, OTT depicts a universal emotional structure that transcends the time and space of a specific country.”
As an example, he compares the Japanese police officers in existing TV dramas and ‘Pachinko’. According to the analysis, the Japanese police officers in TV dramas are not only vicious but also mean, whereas in ‘Pachinko’ they are portrayed as dominating but sometimes even kind. According to Professor Lim, this is because ‘Pachinko’ took its story material from a local country called South Korea but was produced from a global perspective. This is why the Rising Sun Flag, which is not a symbol of sadism, frequently appears in OTT dramas and why the East Sea is referred to as the Sea of Japan several times.
This is because, while existing TVs were serviced within national borders and showed the dominant emotions of the nation-state, OTT ignores national borders and is produced and serviced, focusing on universal human emotions. Although it uses the concept of ‘affect’, which can be somewhat difficult, all chapters are written in an easy-to-read manner for the general public. Professor Lim says, “Readers can find the answer to the question of what the joy of OTT dramas they enjoy watching, in addition to ‘pachinko’, is in this book.”
Starting with ‘Pachinko’ Season 2, ‘Squid Game’ Season 2 is scheduled to be released at the end of the year, and Season 3 is scheduled to be released early next year, etc. The editor hints that this book will be a good guide to understanding the position of K-dramas that are receiving attention worldwide. Professor Lim Jong-su translated and published the OTT guidebook ‘The Era of Netflix’ for the first time in Korea in 2019, and co-authored ‘Squid Game and Content Revolution’ in 2022.
Data provided by: Sejong University
Source: Korean