[HanCinema Korea's Diary] Eatyourkimchi.com: Korea through the eyes of Simon and Martina

Meet Simon and Martina. This young Canadian couple started making videos about Korea back in May 2008 and since then, their website (www.eatyourkimchi.com) has gathered serious momentum. Their videos were originally made for putting their friends and families at ease with their decision to travel to Korea, but now their aims for their site have skyrocketed as viewers from around the world log on to catch up on their weekly dose of hilarity and Korean culture.

Simon and Martina have been in Korea for a little over three years now and, like many foreigners traveling to Korea, they came to teach English. They admit, however, that they originally decided to only stay a year and then travel to Japan (eatyoursushi.com anyone?) and possibly other Southeast Asian countries, too. But their love for Korea and its vibrant culture caused them to reconsider and they have been enthusiastically sharing their experiences online ever since.

Korean culture was not to be a complete surprise for them. Back in Canada they both familiarized themselves with the culture in Canada's "K-Town". Not many foreigners can claim to have the cultural pre-emergence that Simon and Martina have had and their palatable passion for the country is both inspiring and contagious.

Eatyourkimchi.com is their lovechild in which they share their experiences of Korea and its culture through video blogging. It's informative, quirky, fresh, and there is always a good laugh to be had as this comical duo share not only their exploits but a piece of themselves, too.

Simon and Martina have a strong fan base and a loyal group of followers that have given the site the success that it is now currently enjoying. They said that when they had their first subscriber, Steve, on YouTube, they were honestly surprised. Steve, like many other foreigners, was looking to visit Korea and found their site informative and painted an attractive picture of Korea and its culture. But Steve was not just a number next to their "subscriber" tab, the couple made contact and Steve eventually came to Korea and is still friends with the couple today.

This kind of relationship is important to Simon and Martina. Creating dialogue and open communication with their followers is high on their list of the responsibilities they enjoy. The comment section on their videos resembles more a conversation than just one-way communication. "Web 2.0", as Simon says, is about creating a synergy between themselves as content creators and their followers. They have made many contacts and friends through their site and frequently meet up with subscribers and followers. The couple is definitely putting themselves out there and enjoys the chance to put faces to their supporters' screen names.

Although their focus has been on Korea and its culture, Simon and Martina's infectious personalities have shaped the nature of their content as more and more requests and comments come in asking about their personal lives. Recently on their site, they posted videos on both how the couple met and how Simon proposed. They are, however, cautious about the balance between their site's content and how personal that content becomes. Their personalities are stamped onto all their posts and as such, their image as bloggers needs to be managed.

When I shared a coffee with the couple, I felt like I was in a special screening of one of their videos. Although I was not surprised that their online personalities transferred to the real world, what did strike me was how they still maintained a critical eye on Korea. Their site is very positive and they strive to provide a positive image of, not only Korea, but of themselves as a young married couple. When I asked them if they always see Korea with such positivity they responded rather philosophically, commenting on societies' need for conflict as a pull factor for narratives and story telling. "People tend to forget all the good moments that happen daily and focus on the negative. The daily joys tend to be left unsaid".

Park Chan-wook's "Oldboy" and "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance" are among their favourite Korean films and the couple also enjoys their fair share of K-pop too. Although the K-pop scene didn't initially blow them away, they came to appreciate it and its talent. Their weekly "K-pop Music Mondays" are very popular and their light and fun commentary on some of the Korean pop idols sometimes causes unnecessary backlash from Korean netizens. "Koreans can be very defensive if we say anything even slightly negative or even critical". It's very light-hearted though and watching their comedy skits each week is always worthwhile just to see the kind of fun they have with it all.

I think my favourite segment they do is the "WTF" section, where they review (or more like try to understand) some of the quirky and crazy things they find in Korea. And after each video, they give viewers the chance to win whatever they are currently playing with. People have even started mailing them items to review and the amount of fan art of the couple that keeps popping up is a testament to their likability and charisma. Their latest video in this series is on "Training Chopsticks". Be sure to check it out: http://www.eatyourkimchi.com/training-chopsticks/

Don't take my word about Simon and Martina, be sure to visit their site and see some of their hilarious videos for yourself! You can find out more on Simon and Martina by visiting their website at www.eatyourkimchi.com and if you are already sold, follow them on Twitter "eatyourkimchi" to catch their latest updates.

 

-Christopher James Wheeler (chriscjw@gmail.com)

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