Global transcreators and the extension of the Korean webtoon IP-engine

Abstract

Webtoons are fast cementing their place as a new sector of the digital media industries, with interest in this niche comic form increasing on a monthly basis across a range of platforms. To clarify this transformation, this article investigates the popular webtoon Cheese in the Trap, as well as its television series and film remakes, to illustrate the transmedia flows and participatory culture that underpin the extension of this new ‘IP-engine’. Next, it investigates the previously unrecognized contributions that fan translators – or what the authors call ‘transcreators’ – are making to the global spread of this format on Line Webtoon, the largest platform of its kind. The authors build on some significant previous studies – albeit with limited scope – by analyzing how webtoon series and the big data linked to them are transformed across multiple formats and platforms, how they are received by fans, and how cultural intermediaries are amplifying the impact and global spread of webtoons.