Saemangeum is an estuarine tidal flat located on the south-west coast of the Korean peninsula. It has been the place of one the most controversial environmental issues in the recent history of Korea : the Saemangeum land reclamation project. This project led to major conflicts between the government and local people and environmentalists from 1991 to 2006. However, this conflict is being less and less well-known by the majority of the young generation who probably have heard of and/or discovered Saemangeum thanks to one of BTS's video clips, the K-pop festival that was held there in 2021 or through the 2023 Jamboree. 

Our presentation is thus an attempt to explore how Saemangeum is being used, presented and represented in the Korean cultural industry - music and cinema - and why. 

We will be focusing on BTS's clip that was shot there, the 2021 K-pop festival as well as two documentaries that have focused on Seamangeum in a more activist approach ("Sura : a love song, 2023).