From movies to dramas and musicals.
Behind ‘K Content’, which has now become a major product in Korea, there are many minor actors who play ‘licorice roles’ in addition to the main actors.
However, in reality, they are forced to be exploited to the extent that they earn less than 1 million won per month.
The reason for this is a structure that neglects the thousands-fold wage gap and does not properly recognize working hours.
Reporters Kang Min-kyung and Kwon Jun-su report exclusively on the in-depth report on the status of minor actors.
[Reporter]
Mr. A, in his 30s, is active as a theater and musical actor.
I’ve been an actor for 8 years already, but it’s hard to even pay the 400,000 won monthly rent with just my day job.
[Mr. A / Actor in his 30s: I think I earned about 300,000 to 600,000 won for a month and a half when I wasn’t making enough money (from acting).] A side
job is essential to earn living expenses.
However, since I don’t know when casting will come in, I have no choice but to take on short-term part-time jobs.
[Mr. A / 30s, actor: (After working part-time at a warehouse in the early morning) I slept for about 3 hours and went to practice right away. From then on, it’s a vicious cycle. After practice, I have to go to work in a few hours… .]
Mr. B, who has 20 years of acting experience and has appeared in several major dramas and movies, also makes a living by working as a day laborer at a construction site.
I only work on dramas once or twice a month, receiving about 500,000 won per episode.
Even if he does film, there are many cases where he doesn’t get paid if it’s edited or not broadcast.
[Mr. B / 40s, actor: It ends up being just a (edited) minor role, both in terms of amount and role. Difficulties with living expenses are always an issue… .]
The minor actors of ‘Licorice in the Pharmacy’ who make K content shine are getting tired of being underpaid.
It is pointed out that while production costs are rising and the salaries of leading actors are soaring, the treatment of minor actors is plummeting without even the slightest relief.
In fact, when we looked at 9 dramas that were aired over the past two years, we
found that the highest and lowest appearance fees for each episode in the same work were 200 million won and 100,000 won, respectively, a difference of 2,000 times.
In one drama out of three, the main actor was paid more than 100 million won per episode, but minor actors were paid less than 200,000 won.
Actors point out that the current production environment, in which even the minimum wage is not observed, is effectively exploitation in the name of ‘passion pay’.
[Joo Woo / Korea Broadcasting Actors’ Union Talent Branch Director: From the production company’s perspective, even if they offer a very low appearance fee to reduce costs, they think it is an opportunity for new actors, so I think it is opportunity cost and passion pay.] Then, the current wage for minor actors
. Are there any structural problems with the calculation?
The actors that YTN met cited the practice of so-called ‘barrel contracts’ as the biggest problem.
[Mr. A / 30s, actor: In some cases, you receive a certain amount in total, including the practice period or performance period… .]
‘Total contract’ is a comprehensive practice of calculating acting메이저놀이터 fees where money is paid based on one episode of a drama or one play.
Since there is no set contract period or working hours, there are many cases where you have to be on set for several days for one episode.
[Song Chang-gon / Secretary General of the Korean Broadcasting Actors’ Union: I was cast, but the contract date is not clear. If they say it’s until the end of filming, you have to keep waiting.] It’s
not easy to protest against unreasonable treatment and the method of calculating appearance fees.
If you rebel against a casting director who is a top performer, you must be prepared to risk losing your job.
In fact, the in-depth report on 420 actors obtained by YTN reporters contains an unfiltered picture of their poor working conditions.
Six out of 10 people answered that their average annual broadcasting income is less than 20 million won, that is, less than the annual income they earn at minimum wage.
Less than 2% of respondents received support for props or travel costs needed for filming.
The percentage of non-payment of appearance fees and experiencing verbal abuse and insults on set also exceeded 30%.
However, a whopping 63% of respondents said they endured it out of fear of casting retaliation.
[Mr. C / Actor in his 30s: (If you object, there is a greater chance that you will not be able to contact me in the future). Just a mayfly, like a mayfly, really… .]
Differential payments based on star quality are acknowledged, but as minor actors are also essential to the work,
their request is that the current unreasonable disparity in performance fees and cost calculation methods be changed.
[Mr. B / Actor in his 40s: Even if 1% of people decide to reduce their salary by only 1/10th, I think the remaining 100 or more people will receive a decent salary on the site.] Like the US or UK, production of
work It is also pointed out that a collective agreement should be established that sets the working conditions for all actors hired and then paid according to the number of days of filming.
[Lee Sang-heon / Representative of the Democratic Party of Korea: I believe that institutional discussions should be held to protect the labor and survival rights of minor actors whose livelihoods are threatened by poor performance fees.]
K content has just begun to spread its wings around the world.
For the sake of future industrial development and sustainability, as well as the quality of work,
improving the treatment of minor actors is an issue that must be addressed.
YTN Kang Min-kyung and Kwon Jun-su.
