부산 경남지역 극장과 영화배급의 역사

Abstract

This study aims to describe the history of local film distribution with the theater of Busan Gyeongnam area, which was constructed centering on the oral history of the elderly film industry people at that times. Between Korean War and 1990’s, the Korean film industry was based on the 'indirect distribution structure', which managed the production, investment, and distribution of the nation into six 'gwon-yeog'. In this study, Busan Gyeongnam province played a role as a capital in the Korean War but gradually became a local region and accounted for about 20% of the national market. Theaters have been formed along the commercial areas of cities and re-release theaters have built in the industrial complex and the flooded area. The local distributors could be divided into distributors operated by regional first-run theaters, branches of production companies in Seoul, and independent distributors of the region. The local distributor received the films from the Seoul production company and organized the order and network of distribution in the regional theaters. The Busan Gyeongnam area had more theaters but smaller first-run theaters than other regions, and a screening days and the circulation period of films were shorter. On the other hand, there was a characteristic that the revenue share ratio between theater and local distributor was uniformly set regardless of the theater grade and regional differences. Since the 1990s, the spread of direct distribution across the country and the introduction of multiplex have reduced the role of local independent theaters and distributors.