Korean stories that were able to receive global attention

The life questions we ask are all the same. Who are we to each other? What do I mean to the people around me? What tests our morals, and what decisions do we make because of it? Ethical decisions, family, and sacrifice are all universal themes, and many Korean plot lines explore these ethical questions.

When When Life Gives You Tangerines came out, I was surprised by the international recognition. The story moves from the 1960s, a couple of years after the Korean War, to the present time. But there are a lot of historical references to Korean culture that only Koreans would recognize and relate to. The same is true of Kingdom. It is set in the Joseon Dynasty, with historical Korean words and phrases that are difficult to translate and challenging for an international audience to grasp. Even with Squid Game, all the games played in it are traditional Korean games that no one would really know. And yet When Life Gives You Tangerines tells a woman’s journey through life, Kingdom brings in zombies, and Squid Game brings in the dark consequences of capitalism. At the center of all of this is a character’s attempt to make the best decision with what they know and what they have.

Stories that resonate bring in lived human experiences with questions that make the audience put themselves in the character’s position. Cultural references, and especially humor that can only be fully appreciated in context, get translated into the audience’s local language. For example, “When Life Gives You Tangerines” is not a direct translation of “폭싹 속았수다,” which is a Jeju dialect way of praising someone for a job well done. But the meaning behind the phrase is not just praise. It holds deep respect and appreciation for the lives of those who came before. Tangerines are Jeju Island’s most famous crop, and Jeju is the setting of the show. Adapted to echo the English phrase “when life gives you lemons,” it shows how we can make sweet moments out of the bitter challenges life throws at us.

Beyond the barrier of captions lies a whole new level of content and emotional depth, now accessible across the world. Instead of adding elements designed to appeal to a Western audience, Korean content focuses on storytelling that pulls the viewer in as part of the plot. It reminds us that human experiences transcend cultural and contextual barriers once we’re able to see ourselves in the story.