Facts about Director Hanung Bramantyo Remaking Korean Drama DESCENDANTS OF THE SUN, Surprising, Initially Viral and Finally Taken Seriously!

Kapanlagi.com - Hanung Bramantyo with his production house named Dapur Films is ready to remake the South Korean drama DESCENDANTS OF THE SUN into a film for cinema consumption. Currently, the process of the remake is in the scriptwriting stage by Haqi Achmad.

Many are curious about how Hanung obtained the rights to remake the successful Korean drama into a film. Here are some facts from the filmmaker himself through an interview with KapanLagi.com!

1. Learning the South Korean Film Industry

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The film and television industry in South Korea has been so successful worldwide. Because of this, Hanung Bramantyo wanted to study it. Assisted by a friend named Deo Mahameru, in 2022 Hanung finally got acquainted with Korean filmmaker Jeff Kim and was invited to visit various film companies.

"I told Deo that I wanted to study in South Korea to see what the entertainment industry is like there. Then I was introduced to a Korean named Jeff Kim. I went to Korea, and he took me to several companies from Lotte to Barunson. Just networking," Hanung said when met at the Dapur Films office in Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, on Friday (19/4).

2. Suddenly Offered

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While at the Barunson C&C company office, Hanung Bramantyo was suddenly offered to remake Descendants of the Sun. Hanung didn't immediately accept because he hadn't watched all the episodes yet.

"When I was invited to Barunson, I was offered, 'Do you want to remake Descendants of the Sun?'. Honestly, at that time I had only watched the first four episodes. So when I was offered, I went back to my hotel and immediately started watching from the beginning. I found something interesting and relatable to Indonesian viewers, which is the love story between a soldier and a doctor," Hanung said.

3. Watching All Episodes

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After watching all episodes of DESCENDANTS OF THE SUN, Hanung Bramantyo received an offer from Barunson C&C to develop it further. However, at that time there was no written agreement and Hanung did not expect much whether the offer would continue or not.

"After that, I agreed, but I haven't determined whether this is a series or a movie. I brought it back to Jakarta to be developed because I thought it was just empty offers, not serious. When I returned to Jakarta, there was nothing to lose. We made various synopses and sent them (to Barunson)," explained Zaskia Adya Mecca's husband.

4. Long Time No Response

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Months later, a response from Barunson C&C came. They intended to visit Indonesia for discussions. In a panic, Hanung Bramantyo and the Dapur Films team welcomed the arrival of Seo Woo Sik as the CEO with the best they could offer.

"They gave a late response. When we didn't expect anything, suddenly they informed us that they would come to Indonesia and visit the Dapur Films office. I was surprised, we were in a frenzy but finally we welcomed them. When they came, they presented a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in the form of a film," said Hanung.

5. Viral Posts

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Although there is an MOU, the remake project is not certain to be carried out depending on the future process. However, this remake project was finally taken seriously after Seo Woo Sik posted his visit to Indonesia and it went viral in the mass media.

"They said why bring an MOU, because there needs to be progress when we meet. I have already come there, if they come here just to talk without any continuation, what's the point. And this MOU can be canceled or not depending on the future process. Suddenly it went viral from Barunson's post," said Hanung.

6. Becoming a Serious Project

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Because it went viral, Hanung Bramantyo finally came to South Korea to meet with Barunson C&C to sign a remake agreement for the film. Since then, they have started talking about investment and script readiness.

"Because it went viral, well, it became something serious whether we like it or not. Then we tidy up the synopsis and everything. Regarding the investment, we have already determined how it will be. Which production houses can and cannot be involved, what's certain is that this is a production of Dapur Film in collaboration with South Korea," said Hanung.

(kpl/abs/sry)