‘Art of Cinema’ North Korean Movie Posters depicting iconic & famous North Korean movie stars. Is the art of hand-painted movie posters a lost one? (or were they never that good to begin with?)

This collection is called the 'Art of Cinema' (by Koryo Studio).

These posters are usually hand-painted. However, these posters were originally designed as temporary promotional materials for local screenings, resulting in their original versions having poor condition and quality.

To address this, artists in the DPRK were commissioned by Korfilm, the DPRK film corporation responsible for promoting international film exchanges and the Pyongyang International Film Festival. These commissioned posters were initially showcased in Beijing during a promotional screening event for North Korean films in 2002.

Subsequently, Koryo Studio successfully acquired these posters.
The commissioned artists drew inspiration from printed promotional posters that originally accompanied the films. These printed posters featured film stills of the various stars set against relevant backgrounds.

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This poster is from the film 'Nameless Heroes', a lengthy (20 hours!!!) North Korean war film that revolves around a spy's activities in Seoul during the Korean War. The show was filmed and released in several instalments between 1978 and 1981. Notably, it received the Kim Il-sung Medal as an award.

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From the film 'Miss Barber'; looks like a terrifying horror film BUT it's actually your typical North Korean Feature Film about a girl who commits herself to her job despite her family's wishes… There's a synopsis and analysis here – https://koryogroup.com/blog/manse-for-chollywood-a-girl-barber-1965

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Original Source & full collection: https://koryostudio.com/purchase/original/art-of-cinema/