In 2025, Korea's independent and art film market expands audience base, carving out new path forward

CGV Art House (provided by CGV)

The Korean film market experienced an unprecedented downturn in 2025. Not a single film crossed the 10-million admissions mark, and even the year's top performers struggled to surpass 5 million viewers. Yet beneath these figures, a different current was emerging: the independent and art film sector showed clear signs of growth. CGV Art House screened approximately 360 films throughout 2025, continuing a multi-year trend of rising attendance.

Korean independent cinema achieved notable results. Director Yoon Ga-eun's The Owner of the World drew 180,000 viewers, an exceptional figure for an independent film. Berlin International Film Festival winner It's Okay, It's Okay, It's Okay! attracted 110,000, while Humans and Beef brought in 40,000. Films depicting the lives of teenagers, young adults, and marginalized communities with distinctive voices resonated with audiences, challenging the assumption that independent cinema is repetitive in theme and tone.

International art films also performed strongly. The Substance reached 560,000 admissions, Conclave drew 330,000, and Japanese film Happy End attracted 130,000. Exhibition infrastructure played a key role, with CGV Art House operating diverse programming and the short film program "Shorts House" marking its first anniversary.

Significance and Outlook

The growth of independent and art cinema amid declining overall attendance is not simply a matter of benefiting from commercial cinema's struggles. Filmmakers transformed the constraints of low budgets into creative opportunities, and the year demonstrated that experimental works can translate into measurable results. Korean independent films continue to attract attention at international festivals, with works centering the socially marginalized earning universal resonance.

The challenge for 2026 lies in sustaining this momentum. The key question is whether to integrate the independent and art film markets to grow the overall pie, or to further segment targeting. Regardless of whether commercial cinema recovers, the sustainability of this ecosystem will serve as a measure of the Korean film industry's diversity and health.

참고 자료

• Cine21, "The Expansion and Evolution of Independent and Art Cinema", 2026.01.02

https://cine21.com/news/view/?mag_id=109136

• Korea Post, "CGV Art House Expands Independent and Art Film Audience Base", 2026.01.03

https://www.koreapost.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=84334