A list of this year’s 2021 Baeksang Award winners has been released! All the nominated Korean dramas are currently available to stream in many regions but the films are not yet available as of this writing. Here are this year’s Film & Television winner and nominee highlights with links for where to watch the ones that are currently streaming.
The annual Korean Baeksang Awards (also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards) are the most popular and prestigious awards for film and television in South Korea. The event took place on Thursday, May 13, 2021, at the Korea International Exhibition Center. While there were no in-person attendees, the program was broadcast live in Korea.
Nominations
To be qualified for nominations, the work must have been released between May 1, 2020, and April 11, 2021. Here are the nominations and winners for Best Film and Best Drama:
2021 Film
Samjin Company English Class -WINNER-
Director: Jong-pil Lee
Starring: Ko Asung, Hyeon-jin Baek, Hyun-Chul Cho
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Summary: In mid ’90s, 3 female high school-grad office workers take up English classes together to get promotions and they team up to uncover corruption within their company.
Moving On
Screenwriter and Director: Dan-bi Yoon
Starring: Choi Jung-un, Heung-ju Yang, Hyun-young Park
Genre: Drama
Summary: Two kids are moving to their grandfather’s house, but everything is going to change when the aunt moves there too.
Deliver Us From Evil
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoDI4vGGSFY
Writer and Director: Won-Chan Hong
Starring: Jung-min Hwang, Jung-jae Lee, Jeong Min Park
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Summary: An assassin goes to Thailand in order to solve a kidnapping case linked to him, and finds himself chased by a man whose sibling he killed.
Voice of Silence
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjPqL51jgEE&ab_channel=EonTalk
Writer and Director: EuiJeong Hong
Starring: Ah-in Yoo, Yoo Jae-Myung, Seung-ah Moon
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Summary: Two men work for a criminal organization to clean up the after-math messes. One day, they receive an unexpected order.
The Book of Fish
Director: Joon-ik Lee
Starring: Kyung-gu Sol, Yo-Han Byun, Lee Jeong-eun
Genre: Drama
Summary: A scholar and bureaucrat is exiled to the remote island Heuksando where he becomes fascinated with fish and decides to write about them.
2021 TV Series
Beyond Evil -WINNER-
Where to Stream: Free on Viki
Starring: Shin Ha-kyun, Yeo Jin-gu, Sung-eun Choi
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Summary: The story of two fearless men who are willing to go through extreme lengths in their pursuit of a returning serial killer. To uncover the murderer’s identity, the two are forced to look deeper than what the evidence seems to suggest.
It’s Okay to Not Be Okay
Where to Stream: Free with Netflix subscription
Starring: Kim Soo-Hyun, Seo Ye-Ji, Oh Jeong-Se
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Summary: An extraordinary road to emotional healing opens up for a selfish antisocial children’s book writer and a selfless psych ward caretaker when they cross paths.
Flower of Evil
Where to Stream: Free on Viki
Starring: Lee Joon-Gi, Moon Chae-Won, Seo Hyun-woo
Genre: Crime, Mystery, Romance
Summary: “Flower of Evil” is a suspense melodrama about a man who hides his cruel past and changes his identity, while his detective wife tracks down his past.
My Unfamiliar Family
Where to Stream: Free on Viki
Starring: Jin-young Jung, Mi-Kyung Won, Ja-Hyeon Chu
Genre: Drama
Summary: This drama tells the story of a family that is slowly starting to drift apart.
Extracurricular
Where to Stream: Free with Netflix subscription
Starring: Kim Dong-Hee, Park Joo-Hyun, Da-bin Jung
Genre: Crime, Drama
Summary: A model high school student who’s steeped in a world of serious crime finds his double life upended when a classmate takes an interest in his secret.
Additional 2021 Baeksang Award nomination categories can be found here.
Click to see the last 3 years of Baeksang Film and TV Drama Series Award winners!
