Drama Filming Locations in Jeonju: A K-Content Filming Tour from the Oscar-Winning ‘PARASITE’ to the Netflix Drama ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’!

City of Film Festivals? City of Film!

Jeonju Filming Location Tour Course: <27 Record> <Paldal-ro and the Jeonbuk Arts Center> <Lee’s Watch Shop> <Chunggyeong-ro> <Café Fleur> <Heungkuk Life Insurance Building>

Do you know that a set built at the <Jeonju Film Studio Complex> was used for Mr. Park’s luxurious mansion, which was the main setting of the movie ‘PARASITE’ the first Korean film to win the Palme d’Or at the Cannes and four Oscars at the Academy Awards?

With its infrastructure that accommodates both inner studios and outside filming locations, Jeonju is gaining popularity as a location-friendly city for film and drama making.

Jeonju’s appearances are also depicted in one of this year’s hottest Netflix dramas, ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines,’ starring IU and Park Bo-gum. This drama portrays the adventurous lives of ‘rebellious Aesoon’ and ‘devoted Gwansik,’ both born in Jeju, in terms of four seasons.

Today, I’ve arranged a half-day itinerary featuring dramas and movie shooting area that you might want to visit during your trip to Jeonju.

Our first stop on this tour is <27 Record> located in Seohak-dong Art Village, one of Jeonju’s popular drama filming locations.

<27 Record> serves as an important setting in the Korean remake titled ‘A Time Called You’ of the hit Taiwanese drama ‘Someday or One Day’. It’s also where the main character ‘Min-ju’ works.

It seems this place was operated as both an art shop and a space rental until 2023, but now it’s under construction, so I couldn’t see the inner space.

Even the house right next door with blooming flowers spilling over the walls created an even more atmospheric scene.

The next stop for Jeonju’s drama filming locations is <Paldal-ro and the Jeonbuk Arts Center>.

I suggest taking the bus if the weather feels too hot for walking. It’s only about three-stop ride by bus.

<Paldal-ro> was the shooting location for the Netflix drama, ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’.

The scenes where ‘Chungseop’ chases after the bus carrying ‘Geummyeong’ with a group of Seo Taiji fans and where middle-aged ‘Gwansik’ and ‘Aesoon’ walk hand-in-hand were both filmed right here.

Although the season with lush spring scenery as well as time were different from the winter on the scene, the image captured on camera looks like a completely distinctive space even with a film camera filter applied.

This effect may be because the shop signs were produced by art and prop work and then enhanced with CG effects to represent the street look of 1990s Seoul.

The front area of <The Jeonbuk Arts Center> was the film set for the bus stop where ‘Geummyeong’ was waiting, which made this place I pass by every day feel somehow special.

If you move to Wedding Street behind the Arts Center, there’s one more famous spot.

You can find <Lee’s Watch Shop>, the actual location of the clock shop where actors Lee Byung-hun and Kim Kang-hoon played Go in the movie ‘The Match,’ which captures the rivalry between Korea’s Go legends and master-disciple duo, Cho Hun-hyun and Lee Chang-ho.

They say that this place is where Go master Lee Chang-ho was born and his father actually made a living.

With popularity of the movie ‘The Match,’ this site are being renovated to turn into a tourist attraction aiming to provide visitors to Jeonju with a more enriched cultural experience.

I’m really looking forward to seeing it in the future.

<Chunggyeong-ro> was the film location for the scene from the drama ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ where the freshly discharged ‘Chungseop’ who determined not to miss his second chance ran all the way down the alley pushing through a crowd of H.O.T fans to finally catch ‘Geummyeong’.

This scene was accompanied by the memorable line, “it was only then that he realized. Three strikes and you’re out! If there are no goals in overtime, it would go to penalty shootout”.

At first, I couldn’t figure out where the filming took place, but then I saw the <Myeongseong Music Store> sign was still up and I knew.

In this moment, I felt again that the world of film and drama is the art of crafting a whole different world.

All that walking around really made me crave a refreshing drink. Just then, I remembered hearing about a cafe located in the Jeonju Drama Filming Site nearby, so I paid it a visit.

<Café Fleur> is an atmospheric spot where the main character Lim Soo-jung and Jang Ki-yong first met and shared a drink in the drama ‘Search WWW’ it’s situated right behind Jeonil Gap-o beer bar.

Perhaps because the young owners of Café Fleur majored in art, this place boasts adorable, fairy-talelike interior. They also run the adjacent <Ogam Roni Art Museum>.

Unfortunately, the interior of the café was unavailable for photos due to preparations for an upcoming exhibition. However, I found out that hold one-day classes are often held for children.

For those traveling in Jeonju and looking for a spot that caters to both your daytime coffee and your evening wine or beer with delicious snacks and a lovely ambiance, this is definitely worth checking out.

The final stop on our itinerary is <Heungkuk Life Insurance Building and Bus Stop>.

The drama ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ starkly describes the hardships of youth during the IMF crisis as even the elite character ‘Geummyeong’ had to face the pain of layoffs and the anxieties of finding work.

I heard that even <Jeonbuk National University Hospital and Wonkwang University Hospital> served as brief filming locations for the drama.

How was it spending half a day searching for Jeonju’s appearances that remain in dramas and movies almost like a hidden picture game?

It was a such an interesting and delightful time for me almost like being a location manager for a day.

For both Jeonju residents and tourists, how about planning a travel itinerary centered around popular K-content filming sites like this at least once?

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