CJ Entertainment and Merchandising (CJ E&M), based in Seoul, South Korea, functions as an entertainment and retail company, specializing in film production, distribution, financing, licensing and a plethora of other media and entertainment-based services.
Established in 1995, CJ E&M was born from CJ Group, a sugar manufacturing branch of Samsung. CJ E&M became an early investor in Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks studio, gaining the rights to distribute its films throughout most Asian countries. Behind this groundbreaking decision was founder of CJ’s media and entertainment division, Miky Lee, granddaughter of Samsung’s founder, Byung-chul Lee. Following the DreamWorks’ agreement, Lee and CJ E&M would go on to revolutionize the Korean entertainment industry, and solidify its significance and influence around the world.
After graduating from Korea’s renowned Seoul National University, Miky Lee studied Japanese and Chinese linguistics before earning her master’s degree in Asian Studies from Harvard University. Lee was selected as a Global Leader for Tomorrow community member by the World Economic Forum, was the first Asian woman to win a World Business Award at the Women’s World Awards and was presented with the CEO of the Year Award by the Korean Management Association, to list only a few of the innovative entrepreneur’s achievements and accolades.
Of its many lauded accomplishments, CJ E&M built the first multiplexes in Korea in 1998 to support film distribution and exhibition within the country, and would later create the world’s first 4D cinema. In addition to the film industry, CJ E&M also supports Korea’s music industry, providing music schools for hopeful K-pop stars, as well as Mnet, the South Korean music channel.
Over the past several decades, CJ E&M has become a benchmark for both the Korean and international film industry, and continues to work in the forefront of the promotion of Korean media, entertainment, and culture throughout the world. – Alexandra Vasile
About the collection
With the assistance of the Korea Institute at Harvard, a collection of fifteen newly struck 35mm exhibition prints produced by CJ E&M between 1999 and 2009 was donated to the HFA in 2014. The collection contains works by noteworthy South Korean directors including Lee Chang-dong (Secret Sunshine, 2007), Park Chan-wook (Thirst, 2009), Bong Joon-ho (Mother, 2009), Lee Joon-ik (King and the Clown, 2005), Jang Joon-hwan (Save the Green Planet!, 2003), Hong Sang-soo (On the Occasion of Remembering the Turning Gate, 2002) and more. A full list of titles in the Harvard Library catalog can be found here.
For information regarding borrowing prints from this collection for public exhibition, please refer to the HFA's Lending Policies. Access to prints for individual research viewing is limited to titles that are not available on video or streaming online, with exceptions granted at the discretion of HFA staff. For more information, please refer to the HFA's Research Policies.
