South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Film Council (KOFIC) have set up a public-private consultative body to negotiate a voluntary theatrical release restraint agreement, aiming to finalize terms by August without waiting for pending legislation.
The committee, officially named the Public-Private Consultative Body for Improving the Korean Film Distribution Structure, held its first meeting in Seoul on Friday. The 22 participants included decision-makers from production, distribution, exhibition, TVOD, and SVOD departments, including Lee Eun of the Korean Film Producers Association, Lee Hwa-bae of the Distributors Alliance, Shin Han-sik of the Korean Film Industry Association, and Yoo Yong-hwa, chairman of the Korea IPTV Broadcasting Association. Minister of Culture Choi Hwi-young also attended.
The initiative comes as Congress passes a bill that would impose a six-month hold on movies before they can be moved to streaming platforms. However, the commission’s mandate is to pursue self-regulatory agreements rather than seek legislative solutions.
“We will actively lead discussions to arrive at a holdback agreement that maximizes revenue for the film industry while appropriately reflecting market realities and minimizing potential side effects,” Choi said.
The panel’s agenda extends beyond pending issues. Participants will also consider screen cap proposals that would limit the number of seats a single title can occupy. This is a measure lobbied for by domestic filmmakers to curb the concentration of multiplexes. The committee will incorporate feedback from Friday’s session into the draft framework and will hold a second meeting by a target date in August.
Friday’s launch is part of a broader government effort aimed at stabilizing the domestic industry. Earlier this year, South Korea’s National Assembly approved an emergency supplementary budget of 65.59 billion won ($47.5 million) for the film sector, the largest allocation in the country’s history, and KOFIC expanded its mid-budget production support program to strengthen the pipeline of commercially viable domestic titles.
The meeting took place as the market is tentatively showing signs of recovery. According to KOFIC data, the historical drama “The King’s Watcher” recorded the highest box office revenue in Korean film history with local box office revenue of 151.8 billion won (approximately $110 million), contributing to pushing theatrical revenue in the first quarter of 2026 to the highest level since the outbreak of the pandemic. Director Yeon Sang-ho’s zombie thriller “Colony” premiered at the Cannes Midnight Screening before its Korean release on May 21st, capturing 71.85% of the domestic market in its opening weekend and grossing $9.4 million with 1,283,343 admissions. Despite this, annual box office revenues remain well below pre-pandemic norms.
