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A32 FEATURE
Wednesday 20 February 2019

K-pop and fancy sneakers: Kim Jong Un’s cultural revolution

By ERIC TALMADGE are among the most pop-
Associated Press ular items at the People’s
PYONGYANG, North Ko- Grand Study House, North
rea (AP) — Dancers in hot Korea’s biggest library.
pants. Factories pumping North Korea’s “approach
out Air Jordan lookalikes. to the influx of foreign me-
TV dramas that are actually dia has been to ‘modern-
fun to watch. ize’ media production to
North Korean pop culture, provide an attractive and
long dismissed by critics competitive product that
as a kitschy throwback to caters to younger gen-
the dark days of Stalinism, erations for whom older
is getting a major upgrade productions are no longer
under leader Kim Jong Un. attractive,” said Geoffrey
The changes are being See, the founder of the
seen in everything from Choson Exchange, a Sin-
television dramas and ani- gapore-based non-profit
mation programs to the that supports change in
variety and packaging of North Korea through ex-
consumer goods, which posure to knowledge and
have improved significant- information in business, en-
ly under Kim. Whether it’s a trepreneurship and law.
defensive attempt to keep “For consumer goods, it
up with South Korea or an In this Friday, Feb. 1, 2019, photo, a guide stands near a basketball shoe display in a product also ties into a state policy
indication that Kim is will- exhibition room at the Ryuwon Shoe Factory that specializes in sports footwear, in Pyongyang, to encourage more do-
ing to embrace aspects of North Korea. mestic production and im-
Western consumer culture Associated Press port substitution,” he said.
that his predecessors might — are now stopping their game was created for mo- best animation in the world. Kim’s first attempt to up-
have viewed as suspicious- routines to watch the latest bile phones. New episodes The improvements reflect date the pop culture scene
ly bourgeois isn’t clear. episodes of “The Wild Gin- are believed to be forth- awareness within Kim’s re- started almost as soon as
“The most important thing seng Gatherers of the Imjin coming. gime that the North Korean he assumed power in late
for us is to produce a prod- War,” a historical drama What the TV drama, first public is increasingly famil- 2011 with the creation of
uct that suits the people’s set in the late 16th century, aired last July, and the Boy iar with foreign pop culture the Moranbong Band, an
tastes,” Kim Kyong Hui of when Korea was struggling General animation share despite severe restrictions ensemble of female vocal-
the Ryuwon Shoe Factory against a Japanese inva- that’s new is their high pro- that make it impossible for ists and musicians who are
told The Associated Press re- sion. duction values. most to travel abroad or the “soft face” of his re-
cently in the facility’s show- The anti-Japan, national- The acting in the movie is freely experience foreign gime.
room, which is filled with istic theme is nothing new. grittier and more compel- movies, music or books. Although the members all
dozens of kinds of shoes A similar theme was used ling, the plots more engag- That familiarity is particular- belong to the Korean Peo-
for running, volleyball, soc- for Kim Jong Un’s first big ing and the sets and cos- ly true of the North Korean ple’s Army, they are known
cer — even table tennis. contribution to the televi- tumes are decidedly more elite, who are accustomed for performing in miniskirts
“The respected leader Kim sion lineup, an animated elaborate than previous to seeing brand name and wearing their hair fash-
Jong Un has instructed us series reviving a popular projects. Even the dialogue products from Dior to Sony ionably short. They have re-
to closely study shoes from comic from his father’s spoken in Japanese by the on the shelves of upscale leased dozens of songs, all
all over the world and learn era called “The Boy Gen- villains, played of course by stores in Pyongyang, the of which get lots of expo-
from their example,” she eral” that made its debut in North Korean actors, is gen- capital. Cheap knockoffs sure through concert tours,
added, pointing to a pair 2015. The animation, set in erally accurate, though from China are common in DVDs and airtime on televi-
of flame-red high-top bas- the Koguryo period when delivered with a heavy marketplaces around the sion.
ketball shoes. Korea was fighting off Chi- North Korean accent. The country. They are beginning to look
To be sure, North Korea re- nese incursions, was such a Boy General, meanwhile, Watching South Korean a bit passe, however.
mains one of the most insu- hit that people would stop makes skillful use of com- movies or listening to South In February last year, North
lar countries in the world. whatever they were doing puter effects and is visu- Korean music is illegal. But Korea sent some of its top
Change comes cautiously to watch it. A Boy General ally on par with some of the a lot makes its way over the musicians, including a
and anyone who openly border and, even for those female quintet that per-
criticizes the government who would never dream of formed in black shorts and
or leadership or is seen as taking that risk, the official- red tops, south of the De-
a threat can expect severe ly approved cultural fare militarized Zone to perform
repercussions. But there isn’t entirely void of foreign during South Korea’s Py-
appears to be more of a treats. eongchang Winter Olym-
willingness under Kim to ex- Bollywood films are popu- pics. Two months later, Kim
periment around some of lar in state-run cinemas — was in the audience as the
the edges. 2009’s “Three Idiots” with South Korean girl group
The most visible upgrades Aamir Khan, for example, Red Velvet put on what is
are on television and its nor- was recently shown in a cin- believed to be the first real
mal menu of propaganda ema just across the street K-pop show ever held in
programs and documenta- from Kim Il Sung Square. Pyongyang. The North Ko-
ries in praise of the leaders. North Korea’s educational rean act that performed in
Viewers of the main state- In this Friday, Feb. 1, 2019, photo, workers make sneakers at channel regularly features South Korea was so well re-
run TV network — the only the Ryuwon Shoe Factory that specializes in sports footwear, in long clips from foreign ceived that Kim sent them
channel that can be seen Pyongyang, North Korea. documentaries, and dog- to Beijing last month for an-
anywhere in the country Associated Press eared Harry Potter books other goodwill tour.q