Love in the Moonlight


Love in the Moonlight is a South Korean television series starring Park Bo-gum and Kim Yoo-jung with Jinyoung, Chae Soo-bin and Kwak Dong-yeon. It is a coming-of-age story and youth romance set during 19th-century Joseon Dynasty based on the novel :ko:구르미 그린 달빛|Moonlight Drawn by Clouds which was first serialized on Naver in 2013 and consequently published as a five-part series of books in 2015. It aired on KBS2 at 22:00 every Monday and Tuesday for 18 episodes from August 22, 2016, until October 18, 2016.
A domestic hit, Moonlight achieved peak audience rating of 23.3% in South Korea and was praised for its production, performances and music. It won Best Drama Series at the 22nd Asian Television Awards, and received six nominations at the 53rd Baeksang Arts Awards where it won Popularity Awards for leads Park and Kim. The press referred to its influence as "Moonlight Syndrome" as it topped topicality, content and brand reputation charts in and beyond its run.

Synopsis

A coming of age story about Crown Prince Lee Yeong 's growth from a boy to revered monarch, and his unlikely relationship with eunuch Hong Ra-on.

Cast

Main

Royals

On December 2015, KBS Media announced that they will be adapting and producing the popular novel :ko:구르미 그린 달빛|Moonlight Drawn by Clouds written by Yoon Yi-soo. Park Bo-gum joined the project in February 2016 and Kim Yoo-jung boarded in April. The first script reading was held in Yeoido, Seoul on May 26, 2016 and filming began in early June.
The drama's first teaser, with lead actor Park dressed in dragon robe dancing to Jessy Matador's French pop-song "Bomba" in front of Gwanghwamun, was released on July 2016 and became a viral hit.
In a press conference held in August 18, 2016, director Kim Sung-yoon indicated that despite the series being set in the 19th century, the production aimed to show a more contemporary message adding: "Our focus was on creating a romance that's pretty and charming but also sad. We'd like viewers to be able to identify with the emotions displayed. There's no grand metaphor. Rather than unveiling a political message, we focused on telling a story that's easy to identify with."
Due to high audience ratings, KBS negotiated for the production to extend its original 18 episodes to 20. Chief producer Kang Byung-taek declined saying that the framework of the story had already been laid out and it would only yield complications with the cast and crew's respective schedules.
Love in the Moonlight is the second collaboration between director Kim Sung-yoon and writers Kim Min-jung and Im Ye-jin after working on and director Baek Sang-hoon, cinematographer Kim Si-hyeong and music director Gaemi after working on Descendants of the Sun.

Original soundtrack

In August 2016, OU Entertainment's Gaemi, real name Kang Dong-yoon, joined the project as music director. Jinyoung, who plays Yoon-sung, composed and produced "Misty Road" sung by Ben. "My Person", which lead actor Park finished recording in October 2016 was co-written by composer Kim Se-jin. It topped Melon, Mnet, Bugs, olleh, Soribada, Genie, Naver and Monkey3 charts upon its release.
The two-disc soundtrack album was released on October 27, 2016 and consists of 13 tracks including a humming version of "Because I Miss You", 13 instrumentals and three special background music created by folk-fusion band Second Moon.
The drama marked the comeback of acclaimed balladeers Sung Si-kyung and Baek Ji-young after two years.

Track listing

Chart performance

TitleAlbum detailsPeak chart positionsSales
TitleAlbum detailsKOR
Sales
Love in the Moonlight
Original Soundtrack
  • Released: October 27, 2016
  • Label: OU Entertainment
Bugs
Universal Music Group
5
  • KOR: 18,467+

    • Press

    Reception

    The series was met with praise by critics and audiences for its production, performances and music. It doubled its premiere ratings on its third episode and remained the undisputed #1 against 3 public broadcasting dramas in the same timeslot. In addition, it became KBS's highest-rated Monday/Tuesday drama since 2010. It also dominated topicality, content and brand reputation charts in and beyond its run which led the media to call its popularity "Moonlight Syndrome". Moreover, it topped viewership ratings in the Philippines where it premiered in March 2017, dubbed in Filipino on ABS-CBN.
    Costume designer Lee Jin-hee was also commended for her work on the production's Joseon-era clothes. Lead actor Park's hanbok were put on exhibit at Tokyo International Forum during his Japan fan meeting the following year.
    Sales of the novel experienced a 56% increase upon the drama's airing. The overseas demand consequently led to its translation in Mandarin and plans on Japanese and Thai translations, among others. Both KakaoTalk and LINE released Moonlight digital stickers and three of Raon's outfits were made available for purchase in mobile game "I Love Nicky". The eternal bracelets of Yeong and Raon went on sale as official merchandise and the drama's 336-page official photo essay book became a best-seller. Moonlight has also been parodied in shows like Saturday Night Live Korea and The Return of Superman, among others. In September 2016, KBS Media acquired the rights to adapt Moonlight into a musical production.
    On October 19, 2016, Park, Kim, Jinyoung and Kwak held a fan-signing event, wearing their drama costumes, at the historic Gyeongbokgung Palace where scenes of the drama were filmed. More than 5,000 fans gathered to see the cast and the event was also live-streamed on Facebook. A gesture of gratitude for the drama's success, it was a collaborative effort between KBS and the Korea Creative Content Agency.
    In partnership with Viki, the series screened at University of California, Berkeley on October 2016 as a joint project of the campus' Korea-centric organizations, KUNA and K-Popular.

    Ratings

    In this table, represent the lowest ratings and represent the highest ratings.

    • Awards and nominations

    International broadcast

    The series aired worldwide, with English subtitles, starting August 23, 2016 every Tuesday and Wednesday at 21:50 on KBS World. It also streams internationally, on DramaFever, Viki and Hulu.