Localization as Negotiations: Producing a Korean Format in Contemporary China

This paper analyses the processes involved in the localization, as Hurry Up, Brother, of the Korean celebrity reality game show format Running Man by the Chinese broadcaster Zhejiang Satellite TV. It is argued that localization involves the interplay of an array of complex forces, the final outcome of which is the result of a process of negotiation. Firstly, the paper details the distinctively Korean practice and Chinese television professionals’ response to these practices. It is shown that the more informal methods employed result in a transfer of decision-making power from the Korean company to the Chinese company in the course of the production. Secondly, as a television format show produced in China, the production of Hurry Up, Brother necessarily involved interaction with political forces as well as cultural differences between China and Korea. The paper concludes with a consideration of the findings for our concepts of globalization, localization and hybridization.