Show of the week: Korea – The Never Ending War

French producer-distributor ZED is distributing Korea – The Never Ending War, a US$1.6 million two-hour coproduction between US public broadcaster WETA and ARK Media.

Due to air in late 2018, the film will bring critical context to the current crisis on the Korean peninsula between the Communist North and democratised South. It will also present new evidence from recently opened archives in Russia, the US, China and South Korea that could change the history books.

The Korean War of 1950-1953 is a conflict that has never really ended, influencing international relations to this day. Despite this, and the horrors it has led to, it has been largely forgotten.

However, with historical material now available, including colour films and hundreds of photographs, WETA’s doc aims to challenge the knowledge gap.

John Maggio, director and writer for ARK, and whose credits has produced films for PBS’s flagship factual series Frontline, is making the programme for Washington DC network WETA.

Manuel Catteau, president of ZED, says: “Being on the brink of a major nuclear conflict, Korea has become the most dangerous place on Earth. The series will reveal how we got here, because the current battle lines are the same as they were in 1953.”

The show: Korea – The Never Ending War
The producers: ARK Media, WETA
The distributor: ZED
The broadcaster: WETA (US)
The concept: A look at the historic conflict between North and South Korea