Sexual Violence Sexual Harassment in the Korean Film Industry
Based on the 2019 Korean Film Industry Sexual Violence/Sexual Harassment Research Summary, published by The Center for Gender Equality in Korean Film, “DeunDeun”, here is a detailed breakdown of the prevalence, types, context, and gender-specific statistics related to sexual harassment and sexual violence against women in the industry:
🔢 Prevalence of Sexual Harassment / Sexual Violence (Females)
Lifetime prevalence (entire period working in the industry):
- 74.6% of women reported experiencing sexual harassment or violence.
- 37.9% of men reported similar experiences.
- Overall average across genders: 58.3%.
In the last two years (2018–2020):
- 50.0% of women experienced sexual harassment or violence.
- 18.5% of men.
- Overall: 36.0%.
💬 Types of Sexual Violence Experienced by Women (last 2 years unless otherwise stated):
| Type of Harassment | Women (%) | Men (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Sexual comparison / comments on appearance | 40.2 | 14.5 |
| Obscene comments and sexual jokes | Higher rate in women (exact not broken down) | – |
| Forced alcohol pouring / unwanted party attendance | 20.0 | 5.9 |
| Persistent questioning about sex life / orientation | Higher rate in women (exact not broken down) | – |
| Unwanted physical contact / coercion | 5.8 | – |
| Stalking or continuous harassment | Lower than above, but still present | – |
Women consistently experienced higher rates across all categories of sexual harassment and violence compared to men.
👨💼 Profile of Perpetrators
- Gender: 81.7% male perpetrators overall.
- 88.7% of female victims were harassed/assaulted by men.
- Position:
- 65.3% were superiors.
- 28.3% were peers.
- Age: Most common age groups were 40s (52%) and 30s (37.3%).
- Job group of perpetrators:
- Shooting/lighting (47.3%),
- Producers (31.0%),
- Directors (30.3%),
- Actors (10.3%).
🧭 Where and When It Occurred
- Location:
- Drinking parties (hoesik): 48.3%
- Filming sites: 22.7%
- Offices / collaboration spaces: 13.3%
- Stage:
- Production stage: 47.7%
- Pre-production: 22.0%
- Female victims reported high incidence during active production and in informal settings like drinking parties.
🧑🎓 Correlations with Position and Employment Type
- Women in non-regular employment and lower-ranking positions were disproportionately affected.
- Film workers in art/props (42.3%) and makeup/costume (44.0%) occupations reported the highest rates among job categories.
- Women in male-dominated roles (e.g., shooting/lighting) were also highly exposed.
⚠️ Reporting Behavior and Psychological Impact
- 51.0% of respondents chose to “endure it and let it pass.”
- More men (68.3%) than women (47.4%) chose this route.
- Reasons for non-reporting:
- “Didn’t think it was a big problem” – 57.4% men, 33.7% women.
- Fear of career damage, industry rumors, lack of trust in organizational response.
- Aftereffects for women:
- 30.4%: Felt pathetic.
- 28.3%: Wanted to leave the film industry.
- 22.6%: Decreased motivation or concentration.
- 17.3%: Anxiety, depression, fear.
Download link:
2019-Sexual-Violence·Sexual-Harassment-in-the-korean-film-industry-Research-summary