K-Content News
- February 24, 2021
Adults get hooked while watching it with their nephew
Jihwan Jung, CEO of Monster Studio
Q. What kind of company is Monster Studio?
A. It is an animation company. While other companies are run with a classic format of focusing on children, we target a wider audience ranging from infants to adults. Also, we don’t distinguish between TV content and web content; rather, we concentrate on making content that people would like to watch.
Q. How did you come to found Monster Studio?
A. Before coming to Korea, I worked as an animator at global enterprises such as Riot Games and Zynga. I returned to Korea because working as an animator there didn’t suit me. I only worked as an animator to get employed, but I always wanted to create and direct stories. In 2015, I started a one-person company in Gwangju to create Bread Barbershop. It became a corporation in 2016 and has been operating as one ever since.
Q. Please introduce Bread Barbershop.
A. It’s an animation about the genius bread barber Bread and his assistant Wilk wonderfully decorating bread and desserts in a bakery. The first floor is where bread is baked and displayed, and in the storage on the second floor, there is a village for the bread. The concerns about our looks are solved with humor with the bread.
Q. Where did you get the idea?
A. At first, I thought about making an animation with fruits and vegetables, but I was inspired in a bakery, which I frequented after I came back to Korea, and changed my idea. Unlike the bread in the US, the bread and desserts in Korea are so colorful and cute that I thought they would make a good story. Once I came up with the idea, I was able to create the characters and the worldview in the blink of an eye.
Q. What process did it take?
A. Now we have many employees, but I had to come up with the characters, story, design, worldview, and plan for Bread Barbershop all alone. However, I paid attention to the opinions of others in the process. I think a planner is not someone who realizes what is in his head, but someone who learns from the world and summarizes in a way that looks good. I don’t think about a special audience group. I just like to think about what people would be interested in and would like to talk about.
Q. Tell us about the achievements of Bread Barbershop.
A. It’s won the grand prize in the animation sector in many film festivals including Sapporo International Short Film Festival and Web Animation Festival. It was awarded by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, SMEs and Startups, and Education at startup competitions in Korea such as K-Startup League and K-Startup Challenge. With the investment from Daekyo Investment and the city of Gwangju, the first TV series season of Bread Barbershop was aired successfully in 2019. Season 2 is currently on air on KBS 1TV. It also has recorded the highest TV ratings among cable TV animations and TV animations offered on the IPTV service by KT Olleh TV and SK Broadband.
Q. What do you think were the keys to success?
A. I think it was focusing on the actual world rather than on the stereotypes. I don’t pay attention to people’s prejudice – I only think about what I’ve seen, heard, and experienced in person. Secondly, I paid attention to detail as best as I could as a CEO and as a director. Thirdly, it was efficiency. I didn’t follow the conventional way. Instead, I reduced the cost by maximizing efficiency.
Q. The business performance must have improved.
A. The sales continue to rise – about 3 to 4 times compared to last year. We’ve been operating businesses regarding video content, ads, licenses, and even manufacturing of toys like action figures, stuffed dolls, paper toys, and clay toys. We are also publishing books with 6 different publishers. There have been many investment proposals for things to come after Bread Barbershop season 2.
Q. Season 2 is currently on air. How is it different from season 1?
A. Season 1 was our first work, so it cost a lot. For season 2, we eliminated everything unnecessary and focused on things that people wanted to see. That way, we got to cut down the cost. Season 1 included a lot of black comedy and social satire, which I prefer. But some people said they were a bit aggressive, and some episodes were not as popular. So we made up for those opinions. Perhaps that has made our content more commercial.
Q. It’s available on Netflix, which means it’s aired all over the world. What’s the reaction like in other countries?
A. It was only for a short time, but it was on Netflix Top 10. It’s meaningful that it was out of all TV shows, not only kids’ shows. Adults who thought Bread Barbershop was for kids get hooked. We get a lot of feedback from abroad through social media, and it has convinced me that our content will be successful in the global market.
Q. How do you feel to have selected for the 2020 Outstanding Animation Level-Up Production Support Program by Korea Creative Content Agency?
A. We have enough stories to make up to 5 seasons. As a small company, we are grateful to be getting the production money for the next season. The entire aid was spent to make season 2, and thanks to the aid, we were able to focus on our production.
Q. What is your plan for the future?
A. We are planning to have a new generation in our company to take the lead in creating new content. This means we will have to discover and train new talents. We hope to continuously create content that people demand, make our existing shows Bread Barbershop and Cherry Toon number one in Korea, and have Bread Barbershop grow in the global market.
