''SF8'' () is a South Korean

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

. It is a movie-drama crossover project between MBC, the Directors Guild of Korea, the OTT platform and the production company Soo Film. The director's cuts of all episodes were released on Wavve on July 10, 2020 while MBC TV aired one episode a week from August 14 to October 9, 2020. The series has been regarded as a Korean equivalent of the British series ''

Black Mirror ''Black Mirror'' is a British anthology television series created by Charlie Brooker. Individual episodes explore a diversity of genres, but most are set in near-future dystopias with science fiction technology—a type of speculative fictio ...

'' as they have the same format and similar themes, though

Min Kyu-dong Min Kyu-dong (born September 12, 1970) is a South Korean film director, screenwriter and film producer, producer. He made his feature directorial debut in horror film ''Memento Mori (film), Memento Mori'' (1999), followed by romantic comedy, roma ...

believes that ''SF8'' is more diversified since eight different filmmakers were involved in the project. ''SF8'' was screened at the 24th

Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival The Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (), or BiFan, is an international film festival held annually in July in Bucheon, South Korea. Prior to 2015, it was known as the Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival or PiFan. Inaugurated ...

Synopsis

''SF8'' revolves around people who dream of a perfect society. It tackles the themes of artificial intelligence, augmented reality, virtual reality, robots, games, fantasy, horror, superpowers and disasters.

Episodes

Short summaries adapted from BiFan.

Production

Development

, creator of the series, said that "sci-fi movies were the driving force behind many movie directors' dreams. Unfortunately, due to the relatively high budget and narrow market limitations, various works were not able to be produced." He had been working on this project for two years before he partnered with and MBC. He also took charge of casting the actors, which lasted for a year. During a press conference held at CGV Yongsan I'Park Mall in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

on July 8, 2020,

said that all the episodes were produced with an equal amount of budget and that the overall budget was lower than one of a small commercial film. Roh Deok, who co-wrote and directed the "Manxin" episode, mentioned that "while commercial film productions ..inevitably limit the directors' freedom as a creator,

hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...

had more independence in production" and "although there were physical limits, ethinks

went through the process of discovering what

can do inside those boundaries."

Filming

Eight directors from the Directors Guild of Korea (DGK) each directed an episode from the series. Filming began on February 21, 2020 with

Jang Cheol-soo Jang Cheol-soo (born 1974) is a South Korean film director. Filmography *'' The Coast Guard'' (2002) - assistant director *'' Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring'' (2003) - 1st assistant director, assistant editor *''Samaritan Girl'' ...

's "White Crow" and ended on May 7 with Kim Ui-seok's "Empty Body". Filming was completed within 10 filming sessions for each episode.

Credits

Credits adapted from BiFan.

Release

The

director's cut A director's cut is an edited version of a film (or video game, television episode, music video, or commercial) that is supposed to represent the director's own approved edit in contrast to the theatrical release. "Cut" explicitly refers to the ...

was released on the OTT platform on July 10, 2020 and the original episodes were aired on MBC TV from August 14 to October 9.

Notes

References

External links

* * *
SF8
at BiFan {{Min Kyu-dong Korean-language television shows MBC TV television dramas 2020 South Korean television series debuts 2020 South Korean television series endings South Korean science fiction television series South Korean anthology television series Science fiction anthology television series South Korean pre-produced television series Wavve original programming