Director Hong Kyung-pyo of the variety show "Culinary Class Wars" and the film "Harbin" became the recipient of the grand award at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards.
During the awards ceremony of the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards held on the afternoon of the 5th at COEX in Gangnam, Seoul, Director Hong received the grand award in the film sector, while "Culinary Class Wars" received the grand award in the TV sector.
The film "Harbin," which depicts the 1909 incident by Ahn Jung-geun, won both the grand award and the best picture award on that day, achieving two victories. Director Woo Min-ho was unable to attend the ceremony due to the shooting schedule for the next film.
In his acceptance speech, Director Hong noted, "'Harbin' is a film that was shot during the cold winter with strong winds and harsh cold in Mongolia, Latvia, and Korea," adding, "I would like to share the glory and joy of this award with all the comrades on set who dedicated their passion and commitment for artistic completion."
"Culinary Class Wars," a Netflix cooking survival series, became the first variety show to receive a grand award. While individuals in the entertainment industry, such as Kang Ho-dong, Yoo Jae-suk, and Director Na Young-seok, have previously won grand awards, this is the first time a variety program has been nominated as a grand award winner.
Yoon Hyun-joon, the CEO of the production company Studio Slam that created "Culinary Class Wars," stated, "It is quite an emotional moment to receive a grand award for a variety show," adding, "The status of Korean variety shows is rising."
Director Kim Hak-min, who directed "Culinary Class Wars," expressed, "I want to thank the two judges, Baek Jong-won and Anh Sung-jae, who helped keep us centered, and all the chefs who poured their hearts and souls into this." He also shared his emotions, recalling, "Ten years ago, I saw Senior Na Young-seok receive a grand award backstage at the Baeksang Arts Awards and wondered, 'What does it feel like to receive a grand award as a PD?'. It feels like something unbelievable has happened."
The drama best picture award went to "When Life Gives You Tangerines." The Netflix series "When Life Gives You Tangerines" won the best picture award, as well as the script award in the broadcasting sector and both supporting actress and actor awards, achieving a total of four wins.
Director Kim Won-seok, who directed the drama, stated, "These days are referred to as an era of hatred, and after watching this drama, I thought, 'Let’s try to live well together instead of hating each other.' This award acknowledges that sentiment."
The fierce competition for the best female performance award in the broadcasting sector was won by Kim Tae-ri, while the nominees included Jang Na-ra from "Good Partner," IU from "When Life Gives You Tangerines," Kim Hye-yoon from "Jumping with Seon-jae," and Go Min-si from "In a Forest with No One."
The best male performance award in the broadcasting sector went to Ju Ji-hoon for the Netflix series "The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call." The best female performance award in the film sector was awarded to Jeon Do-yeon for "Revolver," and the best male performance award was given to Jo Jung-suk for "Pilot."
The best director award in the film sector went to Director Oh Seung-wook for "Revolver," while the screenplay award was jointly awarded to Director Park Chan-wook and writer Shin Cheol for "Jeon, Ran."
The best variety show award in the broadcasting sector went to the web variety program "Wind Direction GO." Produced by the YouTube channel "Tteun Tteun," the program featured Yoo Jae-suk, Hwang Jung-min, Ji Seok-jin, and Yang Se-chan and followed the process of traveling without a mobile application. The variety award in the broadcasting sector was awarded to Shin Dong-yup and Lee Soo-ji.