Drama
Overview
Drama is an artistic genre that expresses human life, conflict, and emotions in a dramatic structure. Originating from ancient Greek tragedy and comedy, it has expanded today into various media including television dramas, web dramas, radio dramas, and theater. Drama unfolds stories through the dialogue and actions of characters, establishing itself as a powerful cultural tool that conveys emotional empathy and social messages to the audience.
Main Content
Historical Origins and Development
The origins of drama trace back to the tragedies and comedies of ancient Greek festivals of Dionysus. Aristotle, in his Poetics, defined the six elements of drama (plot, character, thought, diction, music, and spectacle). It later evolved through the Shakespearean era into 19th-century realism and naturalism, and then into 20th-century modernism and postmodernism. In Korea, TV dramas began in earnest in the 1960s and grew into a central genre of the Korean Wave (Hallyu) from the 1990s onward.
Genres and Formats
Drama is broadly classified by genre. Melodrama focuses on love and emotion, thrillers on tension and twists, comedies on humor and wit, historical dramas (sageuk) on historical settings, and family dramas on familial conflict and reconciliation. It is also divided by broadcast format into mini-series (16–24 episodes), weekend dramas (50+ episodes), and daily dramas (aired every day). Recently, with the rise of OTT (Over-The-Top) platforms, season-based dramas and formats of around 60 minutes per episode have become common.
Production Process
Drama production goes through stages of planning, scriptwriting, casting, filming, editing, post-production, and broadcasting. In the planning stage, target audiences and trends are analyzed, and scriptwriting typically takes six months to over a year. Filming methods include pre-production (filming entirely before broadcast) and live broadcast (real-time airing). Korea mostly uses a "pre-production, post-broadcast" system that combines pre-production with partial live broadcasting. Production costs range from 300 million to over 1 billion won per episode, with large-scale blockbuster dramas exceeding 2 billion won.
Sociocultural Impact
Drama goes beyond mere entertainment to shape social discourse. For example, the Korean drama SKY Castle addressed educational fervor and class conflict, The World of the Married explored marriage and infidelity, and Itaewon Class tackled the challenges of the socially disadvantaged, all sparking significant reactions. Drama also directly influences consumer culture, including fashion, food, and travel destinations, and Korean Wave dramas contribute to Korea's national image and tourism industry. In 2020, the Netflix original Squid Game was watched by over 140 million households worldwide, becoming a cultural phenomenon.
Global Market and Korean Wave (Hallyu)
Korean dramas ignited the Korean Wave across Asia starting in the early 2000s with Winter Sonata and Dae Jang Geum. Later, My Love from the Star, Descendants of the Sun, and Crash Landing on You gained immense popularity in China, Japan, and Southeast Asia. In the 2020s, global OTT platforms like Netflix, Disney+, and Apple TV+ made large-scale investments in Korean dramas, leading to global hits such as Squid Game, The Glory, and Extraordinary Attorney Woo. As of 2024, the global market size for Korean dramas is estimated at approximately 5 trillion won, growing at an average annual rate of over 10%.
Latest Trends
The drama industry in 2024–2025 is undergoing the following changes. First, the influence of OTT platforms is expanding further, with viewership ratings for traditional terrestrial and cable channels declining, while production costs for original series exclusively released on Netflix, Coupang Play, Tving, and Wavve are increasing. Second, short-form dramas (10–15 minutes per episode) and interactive dramas (where viewers choose options) are making new attempts. Third, AI technology is being introduced for script analysis, virtual actor (digital human) casting, and automated dubbing. Fourth, global co-productions are becoming more active, with an increase in joint dramas between Korea, the United States, Japan, and Europe. Fifth, dramas addressing minority stories such as LGBTQ+, people with disabilities, and multicultural families, reflecting social diversity and inclusion, are on the rise. In 2025, discussions on the boundary between AI-generated content and human creation are expected to intensify.
Related Topics
- [[Television program]]
- [[Korean Wave]]
- [[OTT service]]
- [[Screenwriter]]
- [[Acting]]
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