The Korean Film Council (KOFIC) has put out a report for 2011 stating South Korea had a record year at the box office. Total box office receipts came to a record KW1.23 trillion (US$1.1 billion) last year, up 7.4% from 2010. Admissions also rose to 159 million, up 8.7% compared to the year before.

 

Korean films took 52% market share, making it the first time in four years that they took more than half the market. KOFIC’s research department credits domestic films such as <War of theArrows>, <Sunny>, <Punch>, and <Silenced> for creating word-of-mouth not just at the cinema but in wider society. Several Korean films brought up social issues and created waves, even prompting new legislature as in the case of <Silenced>, which is based on a true story of child abuse at a school for the hearing impaired.

 

Export figures also went up for the first time in five years, with completed films making a total ofUS$15.8m, which is up 16.5% compared to 2010. A record 366 films were sold last year. The last record was in 2008 with 361 films. Asia was the biggest buyer, accounting for 56.9% of Korean film sales, while Europe accounted for 22.2% and North America 10.5%

 

On average, South Koreans saw 3.15 films last year, up from 2.92 in 2010.

 

Top 10 Foreign & Local Films in 2011
(Title/ Distributor/ Admissions/ Gross)
*Rankings are by number of admissions.
       
1. Transformers: The Dark Side of the Moon (CJ E&M) 7,784,944/ KW74.8 billion (US$66.3million)
2. War of the Arrows (a.k.a. Arrow, The Ultimate Weapon) (Lotte Entertainment) 7,470,633/ KW55.8 billion(US$49.4 million)
3. Sunny (CJ E&M) 7,362,657/ KW54 billion(US$47.8m)
4. Punch (CJ E&M) 5,309,928/ KW38.5 billion (US$34million)
5. Kung Fu Panda2 (CJ E&M) 5,062,722/ KW44.3 billion (US$39million)
6. Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol (CJ E&M) 5,042,164/ KW38.2 billion(US$33.9million)
7. Detective K: Secret of Virtuous Widow (Showbox / Mediaplex) 4,786,259/ KW35.8 billion(US$31.7million)
8. Silenced (CJ E&M) 4,662,822/ KW35.5 billion(US$31.5million)
9. Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (Warner Brothers Korea) 4,400,298/ KW34.5 billion (US$30.5million)
10. Real Steel (Sony Pictures Releasing Buena Vista International Korea) 3,579,666/ KW26.5 billion(US$23.5m)