SF8
Korean sci-fi anthology with eight directors exploring a perfect society.
SF8 (Korean: 에스 에프 에잇) is a South Korean science fiction anthology television series, created as a movie-drama crossover involving MBC, the Directors Guild of Korea, the OTT platform Wavve, and the production company Soo Film. The director's cuts of all episodes debuted on Wavve on July 10, 2020, while MBC TV aired one episode weekly from August 14 to October 9, 2020. Often called the Korean equivalent of the British series *Black Mirror* due to its format and themes, creator Min Kyu-dong argues that SF8 is more varied because eight different filmmakers contributed to the project. The series was also screened at the 24th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival.
The show centers on people striving for a perfect society, exploring topics such as artificial intelligence, augmented reality, virtual reality, robots, games, fantasy, horror, superpowers, and disasters.
Min Kyu-dong, the series creator, noted that sci-fi movies have long inspired directors, but high budgets and a narrow market have limited production. He spent two years developing the project before partnering with Wavve and MBC, and he handled casting over the course of a year. At a press conference on July 8, 2020, Min stated that each episode received the same budget, and the overall budget was lower than that of a small commercial film. Roh Deok, co-writer and director of the "Manxin" episode, explained that while commercial productions often restrict a director's creative freedom, the team here had more independence, and despite physical limitations, they discovered what they could achieve within those constraints.
Eight directors from the Directors Guild of Korea each helmed one episode. Filming started on February 21, 2020, with Jang Cheol-soo's "White Crow," and concluded on May 7 with Kim Ui-seok's "Empty Body." Each episode was completed within ten filming sessions.
- field
- Television / Science Fiction
- nationality
- South Korean
- known_for
- Anthology series tackling AI, VR, robots, and dystopian themes
- creator
- Min Kyu-dong
- release
- Director's cuts on Wavve July 10, 2020; MBC TV August 14 – October 9, 2020
Lore & Background
Min Kyu-dong, creator of SF8, noted that sci-fi movies were a driving force for many directors' dreams, but high budgets and narrow market limitations prevented diverse works. He worked on the project for two years before partnering with Wavve and MBC, and spent a year casting actors. During a press conference on July 8, 2020, Min stated that all episodes were produced with equal budgets, and the overall budget was lower than that of a small commercial film. Director Roh Deok, who co-wrote and directed the 'Manxin' episode, said that while commercial productions limit directors' freedom, the team had more independence and discovered what they could do within physical boundaries.
Reader's Guide
SF8 stands as a notable entry in Korean science fiction television, directly compared to Black Mirror for its format and themes. Its significance lies in its collaborative structure: eight directors from the Directors Guild of Korea each helmed an episode, with filming completed within ten sessions per episode from February 21 to May 7, 2020. The series was screened at the 24th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, and its director's cuts were released on Wavve before the broadcast on MBC TV. By tackling artificial intelligence, augmented reality, virtual reality, robots, games, fantasy, horror, superpowers, and disasters, SF8 offered a broad exploration of a perfect society's pitfalls. Its legacy includes demonstrating how a low-budget, director-driven anthology can achieve thematic diversity and international recognition.
Did You Know?
- SF8 is a movie-drama crossover project between MBC, the Directors Guild of Korea, Wavve, and Soo Film.
- The director's cuts of all episodes were released on Wavve on July 10, 2020, while MBC TV aired one episode weekly from August 14 to October 9, 2020.
- Filming began on February 21, 2020 with Jang Cheol-soo's 'White Crow' and ended on May 7 with Kim Ui-seok's 'Empty Body'.
- The series was screened at the 24th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival.
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