From red carpet rizz to backstage banter: Sneak peek inside Baeksang’s most memorable moments

It seems everybody has something to say about this year’s roster of Baeksang Arts Awards winners, announced Monday evening amid much anticipation in a glittering spectacle.

Although Netflix’s “When Life Gives You Tangerines” claimed the most trophies — winning four out of eight nominations for Best Drama Series, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Screenplay of Drama Series — lead actors IU and Park Bo-gum left empty-handed, missing out on two of the biggest individual awards: the Best Lead Actor and the Best Lead Actress.

Meanwhile, tvN’s beloved drama series “Lovely Runner” (2024) failed to bag any statuettes except for the popularity awards won by its two lead actors — Byeon Woo-seok and Kim Hye-yoon — despite its five nominations.

Perhaps the night’s biggest jolt came when the Grand Prize in the broadcasting category went to “Culinary Class Wars” (2024) — which marked the very first time in the ceremony’s 61-year history for an entertainment program to earn a top honor, except for a handful of occasions where individual entertainers such as Yu Jae-seok were named the honorees.

Still, few could deny the wildly popular cooking survival series’ sweeping cultural impact, marked by a number of viral moments.

Here’s a closer look at some of the night’s most memorable moments — from the frenetic behind-the-scenes hustle to the emotional tributes for unsung heroes, and not least, “The Handmaiden” (2016) and “Decision to Leave” (2023) director Park Chan-wook’s pointed political remarks — that had many nodding in recognition, some shedding tears and others raising their eyebrows in surprise.

Stars mingle before the show

What do A-listers look like when they mingle off camera? Do they elegantly hold champagne in one hand, naturally saying hello to each other with jazzy music drifting in the background?

The answer is yes, but perhaps with a bit more chaos and laughter than you might imagine. The Korea JoongAng Daily got a rare glimpse into an hour and a half of star-studded mingling between the red carpet and the main ceremony.

In a spacious reception room — connected by a green neon-lit tunnel to the backstage of the main ceremony hall — movie stars, television actors and industry insiders gathered to exchange greetings, catch up and share a few laughs.

And, as you might imagine, boy, the room was packed.

Stars in glittering gowns drifted across the room with stylists trailing behind to lift delicate hems, while others slipped to the sidelines for last-minute makeup touch-ups or suit adjustments. Attendees, whether big-name stars, corporate executives or staff members, mingled together easily, sharing jokes and, at times, displaying casual camaraderie that must have come from long hours working side by side. Some interactions, on the other hand, appeared professional, much like any other amicable business meeting.

Near the center of the room, actor Ju Ji-hoon, who later that night won the Best Lead Actor award in drama series for his role as a maverick surgeon in Netflix series “The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call,” was standing together alongside his co-stars of the medical drama including Choo Young-woo, exchanging jokes and laughs for the majority of the reception.

Choo — a rising actor who turned out to be the winner of the Best Rookie Actor for his role in “The Tale of Lady Ok” — was busy that evening, as he also met up with Lim Ji-yeon, who was adorned in a stunning red dress, his co-star for JTBC’s period drama.

In the other corner of the room stood stars of “Harbin” (2024), the historic film centered on Korean independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun (1879-1910), including actor Hyun Bin. Nearby, actor Kim Go-eun — last year’s Best Actress winner and also a nominee this year — greeted her fellow actor and “Hidden Face” (2024) star Park Ji-hyun with a radiant smile, exchanging friendly hugs and gushing over each other.

New history and overdue honors

It’d be safe to say this year’s Baeksang Arts Awards, in its 61st edition, caught many off guard with its winner selections, at least in the moments of the announcements. The honorees themselves appeared visibly surprised — as captured in “Culinary Class Wars” producer Kim Hak-min’s acceptance speech for the Grand Prize.

“I was here at the Baeksang Arts Awards 10 years ago, watching producer Na Young-seok win the Grand Prize from backstage,” Kim recalled.

“I imagined what it’d be like winning the Grand Prize as a producer, thinking that it would never happen to me,” he said.

A decade later from that moment, Kim said, “Baeksang is really crazy — something unimaginable happened,” expressing gratitude for his colleagues, friends and family.

Meanwhile, YouTube channel Dden Dden’s win for Best Scripted Variety & Reality Series for its “Punghyanggo” series highlighted the shifting media landscape, as online platforms continue to rise in prominence, which led the Baeksang to rename its previous television category to broadcasting starting this year.

This is the second time a YouTube series claimed the honor, after “Psick Show” won the title back in 2023.

This year’s Baeksang Arts Awards was also marked by its long-overdue recognition of staff, who often go left unseen or are pushed out of the spotlight.

One of the most significant nods went to Hong Kyung-pyo, the cinematographer of “Harbin,” who won the Grand Prize in movies. In a speech read on his behalf, Hong dedicated the award to his “comrades” who weathered a harsh winter together while filming in Mongolia, Latvia and Korea.

During a special tribute, actor Yeom Hye-ran — who won the Best Supporting Actress in broadcasting — shed light to the tireless efforts of staff members who “devote themselves like blacksmiths in the middle of flames” to craft the art seen on screens, which was followed by a performance by actual crew members, who stepped out of backstage to transform into singers under spotlight.

Another unforgettable moment came when director Park Chan-wook took to the stage to accept the Best Screenplay award for his work in “Uprising” alongside his co-writer Shin Chul.

Park, one of Korea’s two most globally acclaimed directors alongside Bong Joon-ho, drew parallels between the film “Uprising” and the nation’s current political situation of Korea across a 400-year time gap, saying that “brave and wise people have saved the nation at moments of risk” in both cases.

Addressing the upcoming presidential election, he said, “The time is coming for us to vote for a leader that meets the people’s standard,” adding, “Let’s vote for someone who is capable of being afraid of the people.”

Fans laugh, cheer and cry

The top honor for a female actor in the broadcasting category went to Kim Tae-ri, who earned the Best Lead Actress for her role in tvN period drama “Jeongnyeon: The Star is Born” (2024), which many lauded as well-deserved.

As her name was announced, cheers erupted across the auditorium with fans shouting her name.

Such moments of excited outbursts repeated throughout the night, especially whenever IU, Byeon or actor Jeong Hae-in appeared on screen.

Yet not every fan left the venue satisfied, as some appeared to be visibly disappointed when beloved stars went home empty-handed despite heightened anticipation, with one fan seen quietly crying with her friend.

As Korean content continues to gain global traction, the scrutiny of dedicated fans toward the Baeksang Arts Awards has also grown, both at home and abroad. During the voting period for the Prizm Most Popular Artist Award, Prizm, the fan platform, had to issue a statement denying any foul play in the online popularity poll against allegations of macro voting schemes, vowing stricter oversight of the process.

Nevertheless, the crowd appeared more excited than anything to see their idols up to the very last minute of the show, as they all ran toward the actors’ section to get a glimpse of their favorite screen stars during the photo session after the livestream ended. Holding out light sticks and signs, they celebrated their beloved stars regardless of whether they won a trophy or not.

And just like that, the night has ended, similar to how it started — with cheers, joy and budding expectations for what’s to come next.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]