Gyeonggi Content Agency - Leading Korea's Creative Industry

Korean culture has been rapidly introduced and influencing throughout the world. Amid this phenomenon, Gyeonggi content agency works hard

From the moment we wake up to the moment we put our phones down and go to bed, we are constantly consuming content; it mediates our understanding of everyday-life interactions and events. Now that we are experiencing the 4th Industrial Revolution, and as the line between physical and digital begins to blur, creative content industries are becoming a valuable sector in the global economy.

Since the early 2000s, Korea has focused on growing its culture sector and expanding cultural content exports. While many are already familiar with Korean movies, dramas, and music, it’s worth noting that areas such as comics and games have proven to be highly lucrative.

Gyeonggi-do, in-line with Korea’s creative goals, is fostering its creative content sector and has become a content powerhouse. In 2017, according to Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA), Gyeonggi-do had the second-highest content industry turnovers in the country (20.4%) after Seoul (64.1%). 

Hopes for the creative economy are high. Korea's content industry saw 3.1% growth in the first half of 2019 compared to the same time frame last year. With proper planning and support for creative businesses and individuals, Gyeonggi-do has taken the initiative to lead the creative content industry of Korea and spread K-culture.

The Rise of Korean Creative Content

Starting in 1999, Korean cultural products, namely dramas and music, began gaining attention in Asia and, soon after that, worldwide. The Korean content industry has been enjoying constant growth ever since. While K-pop and K-dramas are the types of content that are in the limelight, the scope of the Korean creative content industry is much wider.

Media contents in Korea expands widely

In 2009, the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) was established to oversee and promote the Korean content industry and follow up on the government’s goals for the future of the sector.

The government’s aim is to switch the current economic paradigm to one that is anchored in creativity; to achieve this goal, ‘creative economy’ policy was formulated in 2013. The creative economy policy outlines strategies that help generate new industries and markets by merging creativity, imagination, science, and technology. The upside of this strategy is that it allows the preservation of traditional industries while creating an updated, hybrid, and diverse workforce. 

As for the nature of the creative content, the aim is not to just promote currently popular forms but to improve technologies, content formats, incubate related businesses, and support creative talents. Next-generation contents, including VR & and AR, are receiving special attention because they provide new opportunities and challenges in both creative and technological fields.

Gyeonggi Content Agency (GCA)

The Gyeonggi Content Agency(GCA) was established in 2001 in line with Gyeonggi-do’s policies to promote creative culture industries. GCA supports game, video, music, VR/AR, and multi-channel networks, as well as other sectors related to content and the 4th Industrial Revolution.

GCA states that its mission is to grow the local economy through promotion and support for the local content industry. It plays a central role in planning, supporting, funding, and promoting local creative content by aiding both individual creators and businesses.

Some of GCA’s main business and services include:

l      Creative hubs: GCA has established and maintains Gyeonggi Culture And Creativity Hubs. It currently runs 7 such hubs in different cities to support content creators throughout the province.

l      Game industry: 2020 PlayX4 (a game exposition attended by local and global businesses), support for Gyeonggi’s eSports industry, and the establishment of the Gyeonggi Global Game Center (a center which provides expert support for various game industry needs)

l      Music industry: INDIESTANCE (a program which provides support and promotes local musicians), Gyeonggi Music Conference, support for local music performance events, the Gyeonggi Music Festival, and Music Platform (providing support for musicians, music businesses, and local residents; offers services such as education, production, marketing, etc.)

l      Visual industry: Promoting locations and studios in Gyeonggi-do for domestic and foreign film productions, support for production of diverse low-budget films, support for screenwriters, providing incentives for commercial projects to be filmed in the province, support for the screening of local productions at international film festivals, a mobile 3D film screening project which brings movies to areas without access to theaters, subtitled screening of outstanding films for foreign residents and multicultural families, the Gyeonggi Film School Festival (a film festival supporting the works of students in Gyeonggi-do), support for solo video creators, support for operation of local media centers

l      Publishing industry: Gift vouchers for use at local offline bookstores, programs to promote reading culture

l      Professional training: Training professionals with a focus on the growth of the creative content sector

l      Funding: Security funds for Gyeonggi-do content companies, NEXSEED (an accelerator program to draw investment for related startups)

The Creative Content Industry of Gyeonggi-do 

Gyeonggi-do has become a hub for creative content industries. The provincial government has put special focus on achieving Korea’s ‘creative economy’ goals and so far has been successful: more than 20% of the South Korean creative content industry’s turnover can be attributed to Gyeonggi Province. 

In 2018, among Gyeonggi’s creative businesses, those related to music were the most numerous, followed by publishing, game, and knowledge information/content solution companies. However, the publishing sector took the lead in 2018 sales turnover followed by the game industry and knowledge information/content solution businesses.

Gyeonggi-do has also provided filming locations for numerous movies and dramas produced in Korea. A recent well-known example is the Oscar-winning Korean movie Parasite. The Kim family’s half-basement house and its neighborhood, including flooding scenes, were filmed on set in Goyang Aqua Studio -- the only studio in South Korea where underwater scenes and water battles scenes can be filmed.

Film [The Admiral Roaring Currents - 명량] Shooting at Goyang Aqua Studio

Gyeonggi Media Creators Program

In the age of social media and online platforms, individual content creators have become valuable and indispensable. Gyeonggi-do has created a program to encourage and support individuals making videos in and about Gyeonggi Province. 

The Gyeonggi Media Creators, launched in 2017, targets students, producers, singers, songwriters, rappers, and other creators who make videos for online platforms such as YouTube, Naver TV, etc.

The program enables participants to work on videos of their choice with creative freedom, join monthly meetings and network with other creators, receive education, go on group tours, and to engage in other opportunities. Content created by the participants is promoted via online platforms run by Gyeonggi-do. 

Gyeonggi Multicultural Creators Program

Diversity brings depth to creative content. Aside from various Global Social Media Supporters programs, Gyeonggi-do also runs a Multicultural Creators program that extends provincial support for content creators to multicultural families, marriage immigrants, naturalized Koreans, and Goryeo-in.

Teams selected for this program receive a monthly stipend of KRW 800,000 as well as other benefits including access to professional lectures, mentoring with professional creators, and support for the promotion of created content.

Creators who have participated in this program have managed to produce meaningful videos that introduce Korean culture and food to global audiences, explore subjects that are helpful for multicultural families, and more. The program aims to promote the global exchange of cultures and ideas with the belief that creators from diverse backgrounds add depth and nuance to the content created in Gyeonggi-do.