Hansol Kim thrilled: MuVi Prize for K-BOB STAR at Short Film Festival!

Hansol Kim thrilled: MuVi Prize for K-BOB STAR at Short Film Festival!

Hansol Kim won the 27th MuVi Prize at the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen. This prestigious award, given for the best German music video, was presented on May 3, 2025 at the Lichtburg Filmpalast, Oberhausen. The event, which ran from April 29 to May 4, 2025, attracted over 231 submissions, of which only twelve were selected.

The first prize, worth 2,000 euros, went to the music video “K-Bob Star”, created in cooperation between Germany and South Korea. The clip, created to the music of Cardi B, has a running time of 3 minutes and 1 second and explores the intersection of generations, the role of women in the K-pop industry and care work. The creative vision advocates for new visual spaces of female emancipation and connects different generations of women, especially the grandmother, to create a cross-generational narrative.

Innovative theming

“K-BOB STAR” illuminates the questions of appropriation and cultural identity at its narrative core. Director Hansol Kim uses a mixture of video and text, enriched with ironic references, such as the famous Korean national dish kimchi. This work critically examines common ideas about age and gender and thus presents new perspectives on the topic.

The MuVi Prize jury consisted of Lin Htet Aung, a filmmaker from Myanmar, the Austrian visual artist Xenia Lesniewski and the German musician Jo Zimmermann. In addition to the main prize, other notable works were also recognized. The second prize (1,000 euros) went to the poetic work “Quand le grenier aura pris feu” by Anadol & Marie Klock and Utku Önal, while the MuVi Online Audience Prize (500 euros) was awarded to the art project “looking @ ghosts” by Jeremias Heppeler.

The rise of Korean pop culture

The success of Kim's music video also reflects the growing influence of Korean pop culture worldwide. South Korea is experiencing a boom in pop culture, led by K-pop stars and hit TV series such as “Squid Game” and the Oscar-winning film “Parasite.” Historian Kwong Gi-Jun highlights that the South Korean government actively supports the cultural industry and promotes its marketing abroad. The “Korean wave,” which began in the 1990s, has attracted international viewers starting in China and expanding to Japan and Southeast Asia.

Many young South Koreans attribute K-pop's popularity to the stars' looks and talent, as well as effective marketing strategies. The diversity of genres and the increased possibilities through social media and smartphones enable global distribution. This phenomenon is used strategically by the government and companies, which can be seen, for example, in the labeling of products as “K-Beauty” or “K-Food”. The success of Korean pop culture is also the result of an interaction between government, market and cultural factors.