It was made into a Netflix series and is popular around the world... “I want to see each country’s version of ‘Jiwoohak’”
Participated in the K-Comics Origin experiential exhibition at the LA Cultural Center
(Los Angeles = Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Kyung-yoon = "I think America is a country that loves zombies and is proud of them. I am grateful to be invited to the 'country of zombies,' and I am curious to see how people will enjoy my webtoon."
Joo Dong-geun, creator of the webtoon 'Now Our School' (hereinafter referred to as Ji-Hak), met with Yonhap News prior to the opening event of 'K-Comics Origin LA - Korean Webtoon Exhibition' held at the Korean Cultural Center in Los Angeles (LA), California, USA on the 11th (local time) and said this.
The United States has been showing a variety of zombie-themed movies and series for decades, to the extent that writer Joo describes it as ‘the home of zombies.’
On the other hand, until the 2000s, Korea was considered a 'zombie wasteland' and was one of the countries with low understanding of the genre.
He wanted to see a zombie work set in Korea, but since there were few related works, Joo decided to create one himself.
He said, "I fell in love with zombies after watching 'Dawn of the Dead' when I was a college student. I thought it would be really interesting to see a work like this that added scientific elements and the Korean situation, so I waited for 5-6 years, but no one made it. In the end, I, a 'zombie fanatic,' decided to make it and ended up drawing 'Jiwoohak.'"
He then explained the process of creating a Korean-style zombie film, saying, “Guns always appear in American zombie films, but I wanted to show students struggling (against zombies) with objects found at school.”
The webtoon 'Jiwoohak' (2009-2011), which was created in this way, attracted attention among readers despite the unfamiliar zombie genre containing cruel depictions compared to other webtoon productions at the time.
Reactions continued not only domestically but also overseas.
The author reported that fans in the Greater China region sent videos recreating scenes from 'Jiwoohak', and fans in Japan and India uploaded 'Japanese version of Jiwoohak' and 'Indian version of Jiwoohak' with their own interpretations and added scenes.
After many twists and turns, it was reborn as a series on Netflix and the number of overseas fans increased significantly.
Writer Joo added, "I opened an Instagram account just as the 'Jiwoohak' series was coming out on Netflix, and many of the people who sent me DMs (messages) were Indian fans," and added, "Indian fans loved it so much that I would like to see a Bollywood version come out."
The stories in the webtoon 'Jiwoohak' ended in season 1, which was released on Netflix in 2022, but as its popularity grew so much, season 2 based on the worldview is now being produced.
Writer Joo said, "Even if I don't participate, I hope that Season 3 and Season 4 will come out. If Season 2 is successful, I think it will naturally follow," and expressed his wish, "I would like to see 'Jiwoohak' come out in each country's version."
The book is also being released in Italian and Spanish, and the intellectual property (IP) of 'Jiwoohak' is being expanded to include not only series but also games, musicals, and amusement park rides.
Starting today, LA will meet local visitors as part of the 'K-Comics Origin LA - Korean Webtoon Exhibition'.
Writer Joo said, “I’m sure many people know it through Netflix, but I hope (through the exhibition) people can know that the original work was a webtoon,” adding, “Once you enjoy the original work, you will be able to enjoy Season 2 of ‘Jiwoohak’ even more.”
This exhibition will feature three popular works representing Korean webtoons, including 'Jiwoohak', 'Omniscient Reader's Perspective', and 'Only I Level Up'. The exhibition runs until the 17th of next month.
