Korean Film Archive

The Korean Film Archive (KOFA; Korean: 한국영상자료원), also known as the Korean Federation of Film Archives, is the sole film archive in South Korea with nationwide coverage. Founded in Seoul on 18 January 1974 as a non-profit organization, it serves as the primary institution for collecting, preserving, and providing access to Korean cinematic heritage. Its significance lies in safeguarding the majority of surviving original prints and copies of Korean films, many of which would otherwise be lost to time. The archive operates under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and maintains its main center in Sangam-dong, Seoul, with additional facilities in Busan, Bucheon, and Seongnam.

The archive began as the Korean Film Storage Center in 1974 in Namsan-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul. It moved to Seocho-dong in 1990, and in 1991 foundations renamed it the Korea Media Center. The institution gained observer status in the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) in 1976 and achieved full membership in 1985. A major reorganization came in 2002 when it became a special corporation under the Motion Picture Promotion Act. In May 2007, KOFA constructed its own building in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, formally reopening in 2008. The archive hosted the FIAF General Meeting in Seoul in 2002. In 2006, it launched the Korean Movie Database (KMDb), modeled after IMDb. The Korean Film Museum, opened in 2008, achieved national museum status in 2015. The archive opened a YouTube channel, Korean Classic Film Theater, in 2012, and signed cooperation agreements with the Shanghai Film Museum in 2013, as well as with Columbia University's East Asian Library and Korea University's Center for Korean History for preserving Korean War films from the Theodore Richard Conant Collection. In 2015, KOFA recovered 94 titles from between 1940 and 1980 and began 4K restoration. The Paju Preservation Center opened to the public in 2016.

KOFA's core mission encompasses film collection and categorization, preservation, restoration, and digitization. The archive holds most of the remaining originals and copies of Korean films, though survival rates are stark: only 22 percent of South Korean films from the 1950s and 44 percent from the 1960s are extant, with numerous works considered lost. Since 1996, the South Korean government has mandated domestic film preservation under Article 35 of the Motion Picture Promotion Act, with KOFA entrusted with enforcement. The archive actively searches for missing masterpieces including Arirang (1926) by Na Woon-gyu and Late Autumn (1966) by Lee Man-hee. In 2007, the oldest surviving Korean film, the 1934 silent Crossroads of Youth, was discovered and subsequently restored under director Kim Tae-yong, premiering in 2008. KOFA has concentrated on digitization, publishing Classic Korean Cinema DVD Collections and releasing restored classics on Blu-ray starting in 2014 for its 40th anniversary. The archive also operates the most reliable online database of Korean films and provides an online streaming service.

KOFA has published several iterations of a top 100 Korean films list, with editions in 2006, 2014, and 2024. The 2024 list, determined by 240 experts, places The Housemaid (Kim Ki-young, 1960) first, followed by Memories of Murder (Bong Joon-ho, 2003), Parasite (Bong Joon-ho, 2019), Aimless Bullet (Yu Hyun-mok, 1961), and Oldboy (Park Chan-wook, 2003). Other ranked works include The March of Fools (Ha Gil-jong, 1975), Poetry (Lee Chang-dong, 2010), Christmas in August (Hur Jin-ho, 1998), Decision to Leave (Park Chan-wook, 2022), and The Day a Pig Fell into the Well (Hong Sang-soo, 1996). The archive's Blu-ray releases prioritize films from this canonical list. KOFA makes approximately 200 pre-2000 films available through YouTube and Naver, including notable works such as The Housemaid (1960), Sopyonje (1993) and Chunhyang (2000) by Im Kwon-taek, and Hong Sang-soo's debut.

The main center in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, opened in 2007-2008 as a purpose-built facility equipped with anti-air and photo-related preservation infrastructure, auxiliary and restoration facilities, and public amenities. The complex houses Cinematheque KOFA, which hosts regular screenings, exhibitions, and director appearances; the Korean Film Museum, which illuminates Korean film history through material exhibitions; and a reference library stocked with Blu-rays, DVDs, books, and film soundtracks. The third KOFA cinema opened in Sangam-dong in 2010. A secondary preservation center operates in Seongnam, while the Paju Preservation Center, opened to the public in 2016, serves as an additional storage site to reduce the risk of material loss. Branch centers are also maintained in Busan and Bucheon.

The Korean Film Archive operates as a public cultural organization under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Its main center is located in Sangam-dong, Seoul, within the Digital Media City district, having relocated from Seocho-dong in 2007. Visitors can access Cinematheque KOFA for screenings and current affairs services, browse the reference library, and explore the Korean Film Museum's exhibitions. The archive's online presence includes its official website, the Korean Movie Database, and streaming services, with pre-2000 films available through its YouTube and Naver channels. KOFA continues to serve as the central hub for Korean film preservation, research, and public engagement, both through its physical facilities and digital platforms.