[Stage Voices]How the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund Can Become a Respected Public Resource

Declining Since 2004... Facing Depletion Crisis
To Become a "Cultural Powerhouse," Korea Must Confront the Problem

Is the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund a respected public resource? This was the question posed by Kim Jingak, Professor of Arts and Cultural Management at Sungshin Women's University, during a National Assembly forum on December 18. While highlighting the looming depletion crisis of the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund, he also called for a fundamental reflection on our society's attitude and perception toward culture and the arts. The paradox is evident: global interest in Korean culture and arts is surging, with phenomena such as 'K-Pop Demon Hunters' and 'Maybe Happy Ending' gaining worldwide attention and boosting national pride, yet the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund faces a depletion crisis.

Han Kang, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2024, received support from the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund in 1998, which enabled her to participate in an overseas residency at the University of Warsaw in Poland. During this time, she was inspired to write the novel 'The White Book.' The original musical 'Maybe Happy Ending,' which won the Tony Award for Best Musical last year, also benefited from the fund through programs such as the 2017 Overseas Co-Production Support for Original Musicals.

Launched in 1973, the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund is the only national resource dedicated to supporting fine arts, but it is now facing a depletion crisis. The fund's reserves, which stood at 527.3 billion won in 2004, had shrunk to 55.1 billion won by the end of 2024. This decline began after the Constitutional Court ruled in 2004 that the method of raising funds by imposing a certain percentage on movie theater and performance hall tickets was unconstitutional, effectively cutting off its financial resources. Some predict that the fund could be exhausted within one or two years.

Concerns about the fund's depletion are not new. Since 2004, the reserves have steadily declined, reaching a low of 54.6 billion won in 2017. Temporary increases occurred through transfers from the National Sports Promotion Fund and the Tourism Promotion Fund, pushing the reserves up to 167.3 billion won in 2020. However, as transfers from the Tourism Promotion Fund ceased, the reserves began to fall again. Currently, only ad hoc measures such as transfers from the National Sports Promotion Fund and the Lottery Fund are being used to fill the gap. Both of these funds have designated purposes and could be cut off at any time.

This approach undermines the stability of support for fine arts. Fine arts is a field where results are not easily visible in the short term, making long-term support essential. Many point out that, under such unstable conditions, miracles like 'Maybe Happy Ending' winning the Tony Award are unlikely to be repeated.

The current administration has declared its ambition to become a cultural powerhouse, aiming to double the size of the K-Culture industry to 300 trillion won by 2030. However, it is contradictory to speak of becoming a cultural powerhouse while neglecting the depletion of the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund. This amounts to ignoring a foundational problem that threatens the very roots of K-Culture.

In its 2004 ruling, the Constitutional Court recognized the public interest in promoting culture and the arts but made it clear that the financial burden could not be shifted to specific consumers. The government must clearly recognize that supporting fine arts is a national responsibility and establish legal and institutional mechanisms to secure stable funding for the Culture and Arts Promotion Fund. Efforts to improve societal perceptions of culture and the arts must also be pursued in parallel.

It is also important to consider that Korea's public funding for culture and the arts lags behind that of advanced countries. Public expenditure as a percentage of GDP stands at 0.6%, falling short of the OECD average of 1%. Annual per capita public spending on culture and the arts is only 80 to 100 euros, about half the OECD average of 200 euros.