‘Squid Game’ star says advances in Korean entertainment tech fuel growing ambition
Actor Lee Jung-jae stated that “a sense of lacking” in the Korean entertainment industry’s capital and technological resources can be said to have been a fierce driving force behind the rapid growth of Korean content, with technological limitations “now a thing of the past.”
At the Innovate Korea 2025 event held at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in Daejeon on Wednesday, Lee, an actor, filmmaker and executive director of the agency Artist Company, took part in a panel discussion focused on exploring the present and future of “enter-tech” -- a field that merges entertainment and technologies such as artificial intelligence to increase the value of entertainment content.
During Wednesday’s panel discussion, Lee explained that Korea’s once-limited capital and technological capabilities -- especially in comparison to Hollywood -- fueled a drive among content creators to “compete through storytelling.”
“This creative intensity, born to fill the sense of lack in capital and technologies, became a foundation of the global success behind Korean entertainment content,” Lee said.
The 52-year-old star likened the current success of Korean content to the moon jar, a traditional Korean white porcelain jar from the Joseon era (1392-1910) known for its simplicity and asymmetry.
Adding that moon jars were made due to Korea’s lack of material resources and techniques in ceramics compared to China and Japan at the time, Lee expounded that it forced artists then to create with what little they had, resulting in something uniquely valuable today.
“What truly matters is the philosophy behind the creation,” said Lee, emphasizing how important creative ideas and hard work are to success. “The ideas, firm determination and hard work resulting from a lack are what shaped K-content to be as we know of today.”
The actor added that many of the factors that contributed to the sense of lacking in Korea’s entertainment sector have now been largely overcome, with a specific focus on technological capabilities in Korean entertainment.
“Now, even the most basic form of CGI (computer-generated imagery) is used when it comes to producing low-budget films, showing how much the technological groundwork has advanced,” Lee said.
“This is what fuels my ambition to take on even bigger challenges. In the past, there were so many things we couldn’t even dream of attempting -- but now, with the right idea, it feels like almost anything is possible. That makes me even more ambitious.”
On Wednesday, Lee also surprised the audience by reenacting the famous “freeze” scene from the most recent season of Netflix’s “Squid Game,” in which Lee stars as protagonist Gi-hun.
Members of KAIST’s robotics club, MR, presented a special "Squid Game"-themed performance featuring three robots made by the students, inspired by the Netflix series. The robots included one wielding a gun that fires when it senses movement, a Young-hee robot that turns its head to track movements and a Cheol-su robot that mimics people’s motions.
At the students’ request, the "Squid Game" star came to the stage to re-create a scene from the game of Red Light, Green Light with the students, drawing cheers and loud applause from the audience. Following the performance, Lee thanked the students, saying he appreciated “the effort students put into the performance.”
Lee also voiced optimism about the future of “enter-tech” with the collaboration of KAIST students.
“I believe all solutions are found through collaboration, and I trust that the answer lies with KAIST’s students,” he said. “If KAIST’s students collaborate with people in the entertainment industry, I think they will be able to create tremendous opportunities in the market.”
Innovate Korea is an annual event that highlights the convergence of art and technology, jointly hosted by Herald Media Group, KAIST and the National Research Council of Science and Technology. This year was its third annual event, held under the theme of “Tech Up the Party!”
lee.jungjoo@heraldcorp.com
