‘코아아트홀’을 중심으로 보는 1990년대 영화문화의 비공식적 열정 = The unofficial passion of 1990s film culture, centered around the ‘Coa Art Hall’

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This paper examines the history and characteristics of “Coa Art Hall”(1989– 2004), Korea's first commercial arthouse cinema. The 1990s was a period of rapid change and expansion for the Korean film industry, leading to discussions about diverse avenues for film culture. Concerns about alternative culture were broadly divided into independent and arthouse films, which encapsulated discourses on building consensus around the socially critical and artistic value of film and institutionalizing that value. However, Coa Art Hall differed from these trends. Modeled after Japan's mini-theater “Iwanami Hall,” Coa Art Hall was less concerned with the public nature of culture and institutional support than with the success of alternative markets that could connect with potential audiences. It focused on creating a unique cinematic image, known as “Coa culture,” and building upon this image to develop a planning strategy that would reach a wider audience. Coa Art Hall is particularly notable for its community activities, emphasizing dialogue as both an extension and a completion of the cinematic experience. Dedicated to maintaining cinema as a venue that appeals to audiences, Coa Art Hall reveals the energy of the 1990s, a period that cannot be entirely attributed to the achievements of alternative film culture, which gained established identities and official titles, such as arthouse theaters, the Korean Independent Film Association, and the Cinematheque Council, in the mid- to late-1990s and early-2000s. This energy stemmed from the desires and passions of individuals without formal labels or established identities, and Coa Art Hall served as a hideout and hub for this energy. While this theater is comparable to the “community cinema” movement that has gained significant attention in Korea since the 2010s, it also reflects the unique conditions of the Korean film industry in the 1990s, which allowed for industry expansion and optimism, as evidenced by the opening of “Cinecore,” a theater aimed at screening more commercial and large-scale films. Under the motto of “making money while doing good,” Coa Art Hall has demonstrated a unique sense of problem-solving in its pursuit of market competitiveness as a cultural space that enables continuous interaction with audiences. Its history can be meaningfully referenced in exploring the film culture that can emerge from the encounter between 21st-century movie theaters and moviegoers.