“We already had positive results after the broadcast of previous TV series, since all of our most well-known destinations saw an increase in the number of South Korean guests in 2017. South Koreans were even the most numerous visitors to Bled Castle,” explains Janez Bertoncelj from the Miceurope agency. He had worked with a group of South Koreans who were shooting scenes for the series Black Knight in late October and early November.
As he explained in a short interview with MMC, the South Koreans spent two weeks in Slovenia, and filmed in “Kranj, Ljubljana, Škofja Loka, Bled, Bohinj, Vogel, Brnik Airport, Predjama Castle, Piran, Otočec Castle, Mokrice Castle, the Krško Wine Cellar, and in the Logar Valley.”
How did the production representatives get in touch with you? Had they already decided to shoot in Slovenia beforehand or did you introduce the country to them?
Representatives form the KBS television network are personal friends with our business partner, Mr. Sung Sinouk, who has lived in Slovenia for five years. Mr. Sinouk is a very good ambassador of Slovenia in South Korea and was responsible for the decision to film Dear My Friends in Slovenia and Croatia in association with the cable network TVN back in 2016. Probably because of the ratings success of that drama, the producers of the national KBS network decided to shoot a large part of Black Knight in Slovenia. They got in touch with Mr. Sinouk and the organization process began.
How were the filming locations selected?
We at the Miceurope Agency suggested the filming locations. We selected them because we wanted to expand the range of destinations we plan to offer to our tourists. Until recently, we had Bled, Ljubljana, and the Postojna Caves in our itinerary and our guests stayed in Slovenia one night. We saw an increased interest in Piran after the last series, Dear My Friends, which was shot in Piran, so we added that town to our itinerary. Since the broadcast of Black Knight, we have seen a growth in interest for other locations. For instance, Bohinj is becoming ever more popular and is almost always a part of our itinerary.
Did they tour the locations beforehand or did they make the decisions on the spot?
We suggested the filming locations. In mid-September, a delegation came from South Korea, and they toured all the locations. Mostly, they judged our suggested locations as interesting; we just had to make a few adjustments.
When the filming was over, did you get the feeling that the South Koreans were pleased with their choice of Slovenia?
They were thrilled with Slovenia, of course! Their good impressions were helped by the weather, since it only rained two days out of the two weeks they were here. They had sunny weather on all other days. They were thrilled not just with the landscape, but also our cuisine, our hospitality, and our flawless organization. I can say that Slovenia and the people who live here impressed our guests very much.
