David Park is showing up. Over the years, UTA senior partners and television agents have trekked to Asia multiple times each year, building relationships in markets where American institutions traditionally do not maintain a strong presence. Now, its tenacity is rewarded with Korean content dominating the global streaming charts and K-POP restructuring the music industry. And the success of “KPOP Demon Hunter” outrageousness proves that the agency’s multimedia, local-centric approach works.
“Our Asian plans are ambitious,” says Diversity ahead of UTA’s annual Busan International Film Festival party. “We are thinking about Asia in terms of what business we can bring to the US, but we can work with the great Asian artists to expand our global footprint to support both local aspirants and global aspirations.”
The unprecedented success of animated films – breaking records worldwide, especially in Korea, while becoming a cultural phenomenon – examines UTA’s bet on supporting culturally grounded Asian storytelling across multiple platforms. “In my 30 years, I have never seen this phenomenon,” says Park. “The biggest movies and biggest TV shows ever are Korean: “Kpop Demon Hunters” and “Squid Game.” Korea does not own them, but it shows the power of authentic storytelling. ”
The Park client roster reads like anyone in Asian entertainment: director Na Hong Jin (“Lament”), “Squid Game” star Lee Byung-han, Japanese Oter Hirokazu Koa Ida, and Korean entertainment powerhouse Heebe. However, KPOP Demon Hunter, directed by client Maggie Kang, accurately exemplifies what UTA has been building.
Kang, who worked in animation for 20 years, spent seven years on the project. “She got this into this,” Park says. “The best artwork comes from authenticity. She wanted to write this love letter in Korea and Korean culture.
The film’s portrayal of Korean culture – from food to bathhouses – has created what Korean viewers truly embraced as what they found fascinating with their audiences. This is the core of UTA’s Asian strategy. Find artists with authentic voices and support them with resources to reach global audiences. Kang was extremely devoted and she was named her daughter Rumi. “Everyone thinks the character was named after her daughter, but the daughter came after the character was already established,” says Park.
UTA’s involvement included Park, which helps secure the K-Pop group twice for songs near the end of the film, demonstrating the agency’s cross-mediam approach. “I take a little pride in that small role because I can’t gain credibility in the work Maggie did,” he says. “That was her and her co-director, Chris Appelhans.”
The film’s achievement of placing four singles in Billboard’s Top 100 shows how UTA’s strategy of working beyond music, film and entertainment creates synergy by participating solely in “Saturday Night Fever” and “Exhale to Wait.” But at first, even the K-Pop industry was hesitant. “No one knew how big it would be,” Park explains. The Black Label contributed to the music, but used unknown artists rather than major stars. “Now, everyone, the biggest band on the planet, wants to be involved in all the sequels.”
This will validate long UTA games. Bet on local stories and build inclusive representation. The agency’s strategy is at the heart of Korea’s priorities, with two markets approaching that Japan has historically not collaborated with global agents. “For Asians and many international clients, when you show up and recur and build trust, it makes a huge difference,” says Park. “We’ve been coming out for years and years in a year, and the fact that it’s rewarding now is extremely rewarding.”
UTA aims to be a “true partner of multiheifen across the region,” covering music, brand partnerships and corporate consulting beyond traditional film and television representation. This comprehensive approach has already been revealed in his work with Hybe with K-Pop Idol Joshua Hong, who has consulted K-Pop about the expansion into India through local acts affected by local acts in Seventeen’s K-Pop Idol Joshua Hong, who is helping him move to acting.
The UTA’s Asian expansion exceeds Korea and Japan. Markets like the Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia are relatively inmature in terms of the film industry. “Maybe there’s a way to work with hyphenate artists,” he suggests. “If all of a sudden, great K-Pop type bands coming out of Indonesia are backed by great labels, those artists are the ones we see, not just to get into the folding of talent.”
The agency is also the sole player in Hollywood (of the “Big 3” agency) and throws a key party in Busan. This is a statement of intent that reflects UTA’s commitment. The event evolved from what the park called the “Snobby VIP Film/TV Party” to a cross-industrial networking event that brought together executives from film, television, music, fashion and brands.
As the son of a Korean immigrant, Park considers his work both business and heritage. “If my background as the son of immigrant Korean parents and not exploiting my relationship with what is important to me, who is it?” he asks. “It’s both business and personal.”
Economics is not always easy. Park admits that representing Asian talent is not an immediate advantage as it focuses solely on established North American clients. Netflix has become a “legacy studio” in markets such as Korea and Japan, and rather than reflecting global talent values, they often pay fees comparable to local broadcasters.
“It’s eye-opening to see A-Plus talent working under extremely harsh conditions in the way many middle to lower level directors work in North America in terms of costs, budgets and more,” Park said. “We’re trying to create more arenas for them too.”
The upcoming film “Hope” directed by Na Hong Jin, directed by Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Taylor Russell and Ho Yong Jung of “Squid Game,” exemplifies UTA’s comprehensive approach. The agency is working on US adaptations of NA’s previous films, supporting the cast of productions and handling international sales, while also dealing with US adaptations of NA’s previous films, including the Fox Searchlight deal for “The Wailing” as a global television series.
Looking ahead, Park advocates “hybrid” content that blends culture without necessarily requiring English, and points to successful examples of “Shogun” and “Tokyo Vice”. “The boundary between great local content and great global content is beginning to blur,” he explains.
As the park prepares for another Busan festival, the UTA Asian strategy is becoming more and more clear for the ju umpire and the enthusiastic Korean audience singing “KPOP Demon Hunter.” The success of the film proves that the model works.
“These K-Pop idols can make that happen if they commit to what they say they want to do,” Park says. “They’re going to learn new talent. I’ve never seen that level of commitment from other human artists.”
For Park and UTA, transformation is already underway. The question is not whether Asian content will continue to rise globally, but how the industry will adapt to support it, and UTA has established itself as an integral bridge between Hollywood and the creative community of Asia.
