Bucheon, Okayama to collaborate on literature-webtoon content as UNESCO creative cities

Bucheon, a UNESCO Creative City of Literature in Gyeonggi Province, and Okayama, Japan, are moving toward substantive cultural cooperation, with plans to jointly produce creative content.

The fiscal and culture committee of the Bucheon City Council visited the Okayama City Council on Tuesday, holding a three-hour policy forum with 10 local lawmakers, including Sports, Culture and Industry Committee Chairman Eda Atsushi.

At the meeting, the Bucheon delegation formally proposed a literature and comics/webtoon re-creation content exchange project that would combine the cultural strengths of both cities.

The proposal moves away from one-off international exchanges — such as author invitation events or standalone exhibitions — and centers instead on co-creation, with the two cities directly producing works that reflect their distinct identities.

Specifically, the model envisions Bucheon's comics and webtoon artists reinterpreting Okayama's literary works and local folklore, or artists from both countries engaging in cross-creation based on each other city's narratives.

Finished works would be unveiled at each city's flagship festivals and exhibitions, and are expected to serve as tourism and city-promotion resources going forward.

Okayama was designated a UNESCO Creative City of Literature in 2023 and has since actively pursued genre-fusion projects that blend local literature with performance, animation and gaming.

Eda expressed strong interest in Bucheon's proposal, saying he hoped to develop the project by leveraging the shared foundation of both cities' UNESCO literary city status.

Fiscal and Culture Committee Chairwoman Yoon Dan-bi of the Bucheon City Council said the initiative goes beyond simply introducing culture. "This is a challenge to bring together the strengths of both cities and create new value," she said. "It will become a sustainable cultural asset that gives creators a global stage and offers citizens a distinctive cultural experience."