"The Concubine" signs distribution deals with 8 overseas firms

The official poster of "The Concubine" [All That Cinema]

Korean actress Cho Yeo-jung and actor Kim Dong-wook's "The Concubine" is in great demand abroad.

All That Cinema, the pic's promoter, said in a press release Thursday that eight overseas companies purchased the distribution rights for "The Concubine" in July, after the pic was introduced at Cannes' Marche du Film, the world's most prestigious film market in Cannes, France, in May.

Directed by Kim Dae-seung of "Blood Rain" (2005), the provocative film will soon become available at theaters in New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Malaysia and Brunei.

"I'm a huge fan of director Kim Dae-seung," said an official from TWIN, the Japanese distribution firm which had also imported and promoted actor Ko Soo and Lee Je-hoon's "The Front Line" (2011).

"We're very pleased to be in charge of distributing 'The Concubine' in Japan and hope the Japanese audience will be attracted to the movie (as much as we did)."

The erotic thriller had an impressive opening in Korea by debuting at No. 1 with 522,386 tickets sold, according to data tallied by the Korea Box Office Information System (KOBIS) from June 8 to 10.

The story about a royal concubine named Hwa-yeon (Cho), who becomes the mistress of the King Sungwon Daegon to escape from poverty, had created media hype even before opening in theaters due to Yeo's provocative scenes.

Released on June 6, "The Concubine" is currently on a long run at the local box office, competing against "Deranged," "The Amazing Spider-Man" and "A letter to Momo."

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