Nami Island (Photo : english.visitkorea.or.kr)
“Descendants of the Sun” made Song Joong-ki the most popular actor in China and South Korea that he is not only seen on TV but also on fashion magazine, and print and TV ads. The 30-year-old actor is also returning to the silver screen via the movie “Battleship Island.”
Yonhap News reported that producers of “Battleship Island” picked Nami Island in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, as the location site of the movie because of Song Joong-ki. They have seen the impact of the actor on viewers that long after he had finished a movie or TV drama, the places where he shot the scenes became tourist spots.
The movie, one of the most anticipated in 2017 because of the lead actor, will have a set built in Camp Page, a former U.S. air based shuttered in 2005. The municipal government supported the construction of the set, hoping that it would become a tourist magnet similar to other Korean Hallyu’s.
Nami Island, a small half-moon shaped island, was formed because it was flooded by the rising water of the North Han River when Cheogpyeong Dam was built in 1944.
Hopefully, Nami Island would not suffer the same fate as Taebaek, also in Gangwon Province, which was denied funds by the Ministry of Tourism to restore the “Descendants of the Sun” set on an unused coal mine. The ministry justified its decision that because of the remote location of the shooting site, there is no guarantee it would draw enough number of tourists long-term to recover the 2 billion won that the mayor of Taebaek requested the ministry.
An official of the Chuncheon City Hall sees beyond the shooting of “Battleship Island” would help boost the regional economy. The movie, when viewed overseas, would hopefully further boost the Korean Wave.’
Unfortunately for Taebaek, there are other locations that “Descendants of the Sun” filmed the 16 episodes now being visited by Koreans. One of them is Greece where some of the romantic scenes between Song Joong-ki and Song Hye Kyo – such as their boat ride – were filmed in the island of Zakynthos.
Cho Il-sang, spokesman for Hana Tour Services, a leading travel agency in South Korea, confirmed that TV shows like dramas have affected the tourism industry positively. “As a drama gains popularity, we immediately come up with tour packages that cover the drama’s filming sites both at home and abroad,” Cho Il-sang said.
