LOTTE Corporation to Exhibit at 250th Anniversary of Goethe's Werther Museum: Featuring Original 'The Sorrows of Young Werther,' Lotte Goods, and Lotte World Tower Miniature.
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| Young Man Kang with the Kulturfonds Awards a special collaboration prize to the cities of Gießen and Wetzlar. © USAjournalist |
(July 14, 2024. Los Angeles) It is the 250th anniversary of the first publication of Goethe's epistolary novel "The Sorrows of Young Werther" (1774). In the summer of 1772, at the age of 23, Johann Wolfgang Goethe came to Wetzlar as a trainee. He wrote his epistolary novel within four weeks, which quickly became the first bestseller in literary history.
The city of Wetzlar is celebrating this important anniversary with an extensive series of events. These events in Wetzlar appeal to various target groups, tourists, and make the young Goethe "memorable" for everyone around the world.
Meanwhile, Korean company LOTTE Corporation will have a booth to exhibit its founder Shin Kyuk Ho's copy of the book "The Sorrows of Young Werther," which he read when he was young. This original book will be displayed, along with LOTTE food products, goods, a Lotte World Tower miniature, and more at the 250th Anniversary of Goethe’s Werther Museum.
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| the 250th anniversary of the first publication of Goethe's epistolary novel "The Sorrows of Young Werther" (1774) ©USAjournalist |
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| Lotte Corporation founder Shin Kyuk Ho and the book "The Sorrows of Young Werther," which he read when he was young. © USAjournalist |
Founder Shin was so inspired by Goethe's "The Sorrows of Young Werther" that he named his company after Lotte, a character from the novel. His company, Lotte Corporation, became a big success, and his lifelong dream was to build a second version of Lotte Haus in Seoul. The Lotte Haus in Wetzlar is a museum celebrating the life of the real Lotte, who inspired the character in Goethe's book. After visiting Lotte Haus, Shin decided to build a similar landmark in Seoul. This dream eventually came true with the construction of Lotte World Tower, the tallest building in Korea at 123 stories, attracting tourists from around the world.
The event team decided to invite Lotte Corporation to set up a booth to honor Founder Shin's legacy. The Lotte Haus Museum and Lotte Corporation were unaware of each other until 2017 when filmmaker Young Man Kang visited Lotte Haus and discovered this historical connection. Kang introduced both parties and planned the web series "Lotte Haus," a German and Korean co-production. Filmed at Lotte World Tower in Seoul and Lotte Haus in Wetzlar, the series received 15 awards and was selected by over 40 international web festivals and film festivals.
Now it's available on YouTube. Search for 'Lotte Haus English' to watch the full movie.
Young Man Kang is now preparing the sequel project "Lotte Italian," a co-production between Germany, Italy, and Korea.
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The film "Lotte Haus" created by Young Man Kang & Csongor Dobrotka © USAjournalist |
LOTTE Corporation Received Special Award from Two German Cities in 2023
On June 14, 2023, at the Die Seriale 2023 International Web Film Festival held in Lottehaus Square, Wetzlar, Germany, Lotte Corporation (Lotte Properties) received a special contribution award from the mayors of the two German cities of Gießen and Wetzlar.
The trophy, engraved with the portrait of the real-life Lotte, was accepted on behalf of the company by Director Young Man Kang, who attended the festival. Director Kang directed the web series "Lotte House" in 2019 and finally held an outdoor screening in Lottehaus Square after the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, the "Lotte House" web series has been invited to 40 international film festivals and has won awards at 15 festivals, including the Rome Digital Media Fest.
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| Kulturfonds (Cultural Fund) awards a special collaboration prize to the cities of Gießen and Wetzlar for Lotte Corporation (Lotte Properties) © USAjournalist |
The event was attended by officials from Gießen and Wetzlar, and a special evening event was held for filmmakers from Hesse. Since 2017, the two cities have participated as cooperative partners through the Die Seriale web film festival, fostering excellent mutual cooperation and cultural tourism exchanges. The starting point for the cooperation between the two cities was a guided tour of the Wetzlar Lottehaus during the Die Seriale web film festival.
Wetzlar is a beautiful small town, like a place out of a fairy tale. It is where Goethe, at the age of 23, came to work as a trainee lawyer and fell in love at first sight with the beautiful woman Lotte. Goethe also visited Lotte's birthplace. This birthplace, the Lottehaus, is designated as a tourist museum and is loved by many visitors. It is where Goethe's timeless masterpiece "The Sorrows of Young Werther" was inspired. During a tour group, German filmmaker Csongor Dobrotka and Director Young Man Kang met and planned the Korean-German co-production "Lotte House." After seeing the scenario, German cities and Lotte World Tower in Seoul sponsored it as a branded series, and the first Korean-German co-production series "Lotte Haus" was born. Thanks to this work, cultural exchanges between Germany and Korea have been fostered, proving that cooperation between the two countries through cultural content and branded series is possible.
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| Young Man Kang receives Kulturfonds Award trophy from the City of Wetzlar and Giessen. © USAjournalist |
During the evening event, a representative from Gießen city said:
"Tonight's special highlight is the first public presentation of the web series 'Lotte Haus' by Director Young Man Kang from Korea. Kulturfonds (Cultural Fund) awards a special collaboration prize to the cities of Gießen and Wetzlar. The honor of this award goes to the Korean company Lotte Properties in Seoul. Lotte Properties sponsored the first German-Korean joint production project 'Lotte Haus.' The first episode of the web series connects two important locations, the Lottehaus and Lotte World Tower, which are motifs of Goethe's literary history and novel."
Next, Wetzlar city representatives made their remarks:
"The focus of tonight's event is the special award given to our Korean sponsor. The certificate and trophy combine the logos of Gießen and Wetzlar with the historical and authentic portrait of Charlotte Buff, the real-life Lotte. This novel is still referred to as the first bestseller in literary history today, ultimately highlighting the importance of Goethe's memorial site in Wetzlar. The award-winning film 'Lotte Haus' is a modern example of the reception of Werther and shows how the novel continues to be adapted internationally. In this context, we plan to hold a large-scale exhibition on the reception of Werther since the 1800s at the Wetzlar City Museum next year to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Werther's birth.
I am greatly honored to introduce Lotte Corporation (Lotte Properties), the Korean company sponsoring this excellent adaptation of Werther, represented by Director Young Man Kang, at the awards ceremony. The ceremony is jointly and collaboratively hosted by the cities of Gießen and Wetzlar.
We hope the beautiful cultural connections and regional cooperation through Lotte and Werther will continue and expand with Korea.”
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| "Lotte Haus" Screening at Die Seriale 2023 International Web Film Festival held in Lottehaus Square, Wetzlar, Germany © USAjournalist |
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