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#BTSMeal: Be inspired by ARMY this World Environment Day

Friday, June 04, 2021

This year's World Environment Day is themed around Ecosystem Restoration - the process of preventing, halting, and reversing the damage we have done collectively on our planet's ecosystems. Restoration and other natural solutions can deliver one third of the mitigation needed by 2030 to keep global warming below 2°C while also helping societies and economies adapt to climate change. Reclaiming forest and swamp land is a large part of this battle, which can be helped by reducing the amount of rubbish that goes into our landfills.

TikTok, the leading destination for short-form mobile videos, saw user FYPs flooded with #BTSMeal videos following the launch of the collaboration between McDonald's and superstar group, BTS. The hashtag, which has been used 359.2M times to date, has been populated with a slew of user content celebrating their meal experience and finding creative ways to preserve the iconic packaging.

Ahead of World Environment Day 2021, we have highlighted some of the best projects that crossed our feeds, to inspire you to upcycle, reduce waste and promote ecosystem restoration - just like the theme for this year's campaign.

1. Customised Tumblers

When you're grabbing your morning coffee drinks or a caramel macchiato from your favourite cafe, be sure to bring along a reusable cup to reduce the amount of single use containers.

TikTok user @Arizaaaaa went the extra mile by customising a tumbler with her BTS meal cup packaging, for a fandom piece she could reuse for many, many drinks to come.

2. Customised Phone Cases

TikTok user @adwulan made a piece that the world could see, by upcycling her own unique phone case using her BTS Meal packaging – no need to buy new!

Is there any doubt that she is a loud and proud ARMY? Not at all. Does this project sidestep, right left to reduce packaging waste in landfills? Absolutely.

3. Decorative Cut-outs

TikTok user @hisyamabidin took to the platform to show his creativity by cutting out little sections of the packaging to use as decorative patches. He added them to his phone case, but these would look good anywhere! Notebooks, laptops...The possibilities are endless.

You can do the same with old magazines, brochures, or newspapers. Get creative and give your old materials a new lease of life!

4. Upcycled Key-Chains

We end up with many items holding our precious memories, whether movie tickets or doodles from friends, that often end up getting lost or thrown away. Upcycle and preserve those memories in a little DIY project!

TikTok user @TashJannCreations went the extra mile to immortalise the limited-edition nugget sauce-lid packaging that came with the collaboration. These laminated key rings are perfect for showing love to your IDOLs and keeping extra waste out of landfills. Win-win!

5. Creative Collages

TikTok user @Aina created an ultimate collage with her packaging, creating a piece of art she could admire for ages to come. This is a great way to add some colour to your walls and can be replicated with any materials that have an interesting print or texture, such as old clothes or bags. Customized work-from-home spaces? We dig it.

Celebrate World Environment Day and get inspired by more upcycling hacks like these when you download or open the TikTok app today. Whether you are a nature-lover, a dedicated ARMY, or someone who just loves DIY projects, there are ways for everyone to show some love to mother earth and make peace with nature.

TikTok is available for free on iOS and Android via the Apple Store, Google Play Store and Huawei AppGallery.

Gianna Jun

'Kingdom: Ashin of the North' Starring Gianna Jun, Park Byung-eun, Kim Sia Confirmed for 23 July Release

Friday, June 04, 2021

Chae Soo Bin

Jang Ki-yong, Chae Soo-bin & Krystal Shows 'Sweet & Sour' Love Story this 4 June

Tuesday, June 01, 2021

Coming to Netflix this 4 June is Sweet & Sour, a realistic love story that chronicles the changing flavors of love from its tangy beginning and sweet culmination to the bitter aftertaste. Earlier today, the main cast Jang Ki Yong, Chae Soo-bin, Krystal Jung Soo-jung and director Lee Kae Byeok met the press virtually and talked about their characters.

Jang Ki-yong played typically charming roles in various romantic dramas such as Search WWW and Go Back Couple. This time, he transforms into Jang Hyeok, a boyfriend who is heavy on realistic qualities and lacking in imaginary, idealistic ones. He makes believable to anyone who has been in love the image of a smitten lover whose eyes over time glaze over with disinterest. In him, viewers can identify former lovers or even their past selves.

Chae Soo-bin, who never fails to charm the viewers with every role she undertakes, plays Da-eun, an overworked nurse who still tries to give her best to the one she loves. She will portray her character in a wide spectrum, from one-sided love seen from human and imperfect perspectives that give rise to misunderstandings and delusions to a realistic image of a young person.

Krystal however, plays Bo-yeong, who begins to develop a work relationship with Jang Hyeok. Her flawless depiction of Bo-yeong as a woman who is bold and proactive when it comes to both work and love will breathe new life into her character.

The cast further talked about their chemistry working with one another.

Q. What was it like acting with your co-stars?

Krystal: We’re all similar in age and we got along great. Most of the scenes Bo-yeong was in were with Jang Ki-yong, and we had fun filming together. Chae Soo-bin and I are the same age. I wish that we had scenes together. But whenever we got together during meals and chatted about the film, we really clicked.

Chae Soo-bin: Many of the scenes I shared with Jang Ki-yong felt so real that I could easily relate to them. It was so easy to immerse myself and act out of real emotions. I never had the opportunity to be in the same scene with Jung Soo-jung, but we talked about how we would have liked that.

Jang Ki-yong: I met them both for the first time on this project. They were exactly how I imagined Da-eun and Bo-yeong to be when I first read the scenario. They are actresses with such good energy, and their acting skills helped me to immerse myself in my role.

Q: Not only romance, but also the hardships of the current generation are reflected very realistically in this film. What resonated with you most?

Jang Ki-yong: The film well reflects mentally exhausted workers, especially temporary employees. It may seem like you can never win approval no matter how hard you try, and you put in so much effort without an idea what it is you’re working for. Regardless of the career field, so many people suffer from this anxiety and restlessness. I’m sure the characters’ stories will resonate with a lot of the audience.

Chae Soo-bin: For Da-eun, love and career cannot easily be separated. Today’s younger generation is living such hectic lives, so it’s a challenge to cram romance in that schedule. That itself was distressing and relatable. In one memorable scene, Jang Hyeok and Da-eun are on a date and talking in a car. The

ennui of this longtime couple could be felt, as well as Da-eun’s fear that her boyfriend no longer enjoys spending time with her. The scene was disheartening and relatable at the same time.

Q. How do you feel about interacting with worldwide audiences through Netflix?

Krystal: The actors and crew participating in this movie all really enjoyed filming it. I’m so happy that not only the viewers in Korea but those from all over the world would be watching our film through Netflix. I’m so curious to see their reactions! I’m also curious whether Netflix viewers overseas would find our content relatable. As an actress who played Bo-yeong in Sweet & Sour, I’d like to tell the world, “Love to your heart’s content!”

Sweet & Sour is a far cry from a rosy romantic fantasy tale. Viewers can relate to this film because it presents not only the essence of love but also reality in the way that they experience it in their own environment. Watch Sweet & Sour on Netflix, June 4 at 3PM!

Sweet & Sour Trailer:

*All photos courtesy of Netflix

Jang Ki Yong

Jang Ki-yong Appreciates Lee Hye-ri Supports Him to Overcome Challenges iQiyi’s first K-drama series My Roommate Is a Gumiho!

Monday, May 31, 2021

'My Roommate Is a Gumiho' starring Jang Ki-yong, Lee Hye-ri, Kang Han-na, Kim Do-wan and Bae In-hyuk is now available to watch on iQiyi, every Wednesday and Thursday at 21:40 (MYT).

In the long-awaited iQiyi’s first K-drama series My Roommate Is a Gumiho, a “Gumiho” (Nine-tailed Fox) Shin Woo-yeo (played by Jang Ki-yong) has been discreetly living in the human world for centuries. Waiting for the time to become human permanently, his fox beads are swallowed by Lee Dam (played by Lee Hye-ri).

Forced to live together for a solution, they set many rules for cohabitation to live their lives. It becomes a new romance between human and non-human. On the other hand, another Gumiho Yang Hye-sun (played by Kang Han-na) has become human for the fifth year. She is about to embrace a new romantic and unconventional relationship with Do Jae-jin (played by Kim Do-wan). Gye Sun-woo (played by Bae In-hyuk), a handsome and wealthy man, has a crush on Lee Dam after pretending to like her in the first place, and Shin Woo-yeo feels anxious for the first time after more than 900 years!

Director Nam Sung-Woo and five leading actors participated in the press event in Seoul Asked if there was any pressure to adapt a popular webtoon, Nam responded that appearance and personality were major considerations during the casting process. For example, for the 999-year-old Shin Woo-yeo, the character needed to look restrained but extremely handsome, and Nam believed Jang fit really well. He also heard the original webtoon creator envisioned the leading female character with Lee Hye-ri in mind. Therefore, after reading the script, he was further convinced that Lee was the ideal choice. Kang Han-na was aggressive but silly sometimes, and Kim Do-wan was pure and adorable. Both were similar to those characters. However, Nam said, Bae In-hyuk initially looked too nice to him, compared to the character. Since his character Gye Sun-Woo repented later in the story, though, Nam was satisfied with the cast in the end.

There have been quite a few K-drama series about “Gumiho” (Nine-tailed Fox). When asked about how this series was different, Lee answered that the story was a romance between a Gumiho male and human female, starting from a cohabitation. Her role, Lee Dam, had never been in love before, but she expressed emotions directly, and pretended to feel comfortable about the relationship. After she encountered Shin Woo-yeo (played by Jang Ki-yong), she felt intimidated at first. Later, she found out he was considerate, polite, and gentle. Therefore, their interactions gained traction. To play this role well, Lee gave up several opportunities in variety shows to stay committed to the series. Her poster with Jang also received positive reviews from the public. “I am pleasantly surprised and grateful to the positive feedback just with the poster,” Lee said. As this series finished production before promotional materials, unlike typical production processes, they were already familiar to each other during photo shoots. As the role was five years younger than she was, Lee pointed out, she studied a lot about younger people, and asked them about their reactions. Even though there was no generation gap, she needed to learn more. During the process, she also realized similarities and differences between Lee Dam and herself. It also motivated her to play this role well.

Jang said the chemistry between the two characters went well from the very beginning. Lee was very positive all the time, and also very helpt on site. He once felt lost during the production and felt challenged sometimes. He was grateful to Lee to finish this series. In the first romance fantasy/comedy of his, Jang encountered some obstacles at the beginning. As things got better, later on, he was happy to deliver what he attempted to do.

Kang Han-na and Kim Do-wan and their characters had a lot of tension. While there were prior collaborations, Kang said she had limited interactions with Kim in the past. She was happy to know about this collaboration this time, and messaged Kim to discuss it. Kang considered herself lucky to develop this relationship with Kim in the story, and it showed in their performances. The emerging actor Bae In-hyuk was tasked to play a popular role in the webtoon, and he felt pressured to interpret it well. Bae and his appearance were popular among fans, said Lee, and he had a resemblance with the character. Lee also looked forward to Bae and his performance

With simulcast streaming with Korea, users around the world can witness the romance between Jang and Lee across centuries. Starting from today, iQiyi’s first K-drama series My Roommate Is a Gumiho will update every Wednesday and Thursday at 21:40.

Image courtesy of iQiyi