The Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) and the Korean Cultural Center in Los Angeles (KCCLA) are launching the 2026 K-Comics Origin Los Angeles: Korean Webtoon Experience Exhibition from September 11 to October 17. This month-long event will celebrate the century-long history of Korean comics, highlighting the rise of webtoons—a digital storytelling form that has gained global popularity in the mobile era. The exhibition will showcase immersive installations based on three top Korean webtoons: All of Us Are Dead, Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint, and Solo Leveling, allowing visitors to engage deeply with the stories and characters in a physical space.

The exhibition will also illustrate how Korean webtoons have expanded across multiple content formats including live-action dramas, animations, and games, emphasizing the “One Source Multi-Use” (OSMU) model. This ecosystem, which characterizes Korea’s creative industry, transforms a single story and its characters across various media to generate diverse intellectual properties. Headon Lee, Director of KCCLA, described Korean webtoons as a unique cultural product born from Korea’s long tradition of comics and tailored for digital platforms, now serving as vital original content for global K-Content industries.

The Korean webtoon industry is robust and globally lucrative, generating over 2 trillion Korean won (about $1.397 billion USD) worldwide in 2024. Several webtoons have successfully transitioned to live-action series, such as True Beauty, Business Proposal, Marry My Husband, and Itaewon Class, among others. To mark the exhibition’s opening, Joo Dong-geun, creator of All of Us Are Dead, will participate in a special program to share insights about his creative process and the webtoon’s adaptation into the Netflix series that topped global charts in 2022.

The exhibition will be housed at the KCCLA art gallery with free admission, open Monday to Friday from 9 AM to 5 PM and Saturdays from 9 AM to 1 PM. It offers an opportunity for Los Angeles audiences to experience this influential cultural phenomenon beyond screens, enjoying some of Korea’s most representative works in an interactive environment. More details are accessible via the Korean Cultural Center’s website for those interested in exploring the dynamic world of Korean webtoons.