A contest for creating AI movies using actor Ko Jun's intellectual property (IP) has been announced.
AI content studio MCA, in collaboration with KT, is hosting a special category - the "Ko Jun Actor Section" - at the '2025 KT AI P.A.N' AI video contest. This category focuses on creative AI movie production using Ko Jun's IP. The "It's Me, Ko Jun" contest aims to popularize AI content and inspire AI creators.
"It's Me, Ko Jun" is the second season of the world's first star-based AI movie contest, "It's Me, Moon-hee," which sparked significant interest both domestically and internationally last year.
Participants can cast Ko Jun as the lead in their own movies by using AI to replicate his face and voice. Using image and voice data provided by MCA, participants can create short AI films starring Ko Jun as the protagonist with generative AI tools.
Additionally, Na Moon-hee, the lead of the previous season and MCA's first AI celebrity, can also be freely cast as a supporting character. This marks the first instance of AI celebrities co-starring, carrying symbolic significance.
Three years ago, MCA launched star actress Na Moon-hee as its first AI celebrity and established the first AI celebrity management system in Korea. MCA leads in producing various forms of AI content, including movies, animations, music videos, and advertisements, by incorporating generative AI technology into the content creation process and driving the AI-based creative ecosystem.
This season's slogan is "Freedom of Creation." AI technology enables stars to participate in multiple works simultaneously, something impossible in reality, and creators can craft entirely new stories based on their imagination. Submissions can be in the form of live-action movies or animations, with no restrictions on genre, including comedy, romance, horror, historical, fantasy, and sci-fi.
With a total prize pool of 200 million won, the grand prize winner (including the Ko Jun actor category) will receive 50 million won, and the special IP Ko Jun actor category winner will receive a total of 38 million won, including a 15 million won grand prize. Winning works will be released in theaters and screened on global OTT and IPTV platforms in collaboration with MCA.
This marks an important milestone, showing that AI movies are moving beyond mere technical demonstrations to become substantial industry content. MCA has also secured the rights to Ko Jun's likeness and voice through a formal contract, allowing participants to engage in creative activities without worrying about copyright issues. This is being highlighted as a model example of ethical AI content production.
The contest is co-hosted by KT and the Directors Guild of Korea (DGK), with MCA participating as the co-project operator for the special IP Ko Jun actor category. MCA's AI studio, key partner Studio Tina, and Content Park Entertainment, which played a crucial role in contract negotiations and AI rights management with actress Na Moon-hee, are also involved.
The contest is open to anyone, both domestically and internationally, with no restrictions on participation format, including individuals, teams, and companies. Submissions will be accepted from August 1 (Fri) to August 15 (Fri), 2025, for about two weeks. Detailed information about the contest can be found in the announcements section on KT.com.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kim Ji-hye)