Kim Eun-role hee’s in ushering South Korean drama into a new age

Kim Eun-first hee’s attempt at writing a love storey failed miserably. “I recognised that romance wasn’t for me,” she explained.

It’s hardly unexpected, given that the South Korean screenwriter best known for the historical zombie epic “Kingdom” has a negative view of love.

Kim’s goal as a television writer now, more than 15 years after her failed love film, is to provide a type of “catharsis” to her viewers. “I don’t want to convey too much false hope that occurs in plays,” she remarked.

She’s referring to the genres and clichés that many Korean TV series are known for: romantic comedies and melodramas, which critics claim involve exaggerated representations of love.

Kim’s works typically revolve around societal themes like as crime, class divisions, and politics. “I want to write about how wickedness is punished… poetic justice,” she stated.

Her Netflix series “Kingdom,” which premiered in 2019, addressed such topics with a 15th-century zombie twist. “Kingdom” depicts the epic quest of the crown prince as he hunts for the reason of a zombie outbreak in South Korea’s Joseon period.

Stories like “Kingdom,” according to its director Kim Seong-hoon, have transformed Korean dramas by introducing the thriller genre into the public.

Korean filmmaking has a long history of home success, but it has recently grown in popularity with worldwide viewers. The film “Parasite” became the first non-English language film to win best picture at the Oscars in 2020, and the advent of streaming platforms has offered a platform for Korean shows to find their way into living rooms worldwide.

Netflix hired Kim Eun-hee as one of its first South Korean creative partners, and the streaming firm claims to have committed about $500 million on Korean content in 2021 alone. “She is the point of the spear,” said Keo Lee, Netflix’s Korean original series director. “What I love the most about her is her faith in the power of a good tale.”