Demon Hunters, Soft Power and the Asia-Pacific’s Next Growth Frontier

Culture and creativity are no longer sidelines of economic life. From K-pop to gaming and film, the Asia-Pacific’s creative industries are emerging as a trillion-dollar growth engine, and APEC is taking steps to unlock their full potential.

The film is a product of regional cooperation: Korean culture and music as the soul, Japanese corporate muscle in production, Canadian and Mexican artists lending voices, Chinese and Filipino animators contributing their craft, American distribution taking it global. What emerges is not just entertainment, but a seamless web of creativity, commerce and cooperation that crosses borders with ease. I may not have seen it yet, but after hearing so much, it’s certainly on my list.

This is the promise of the cultural and creative industries (CCIs). They are not an abstract idea tucked away in economic forecasts. They are tangible examples of regional cooperation already shaping how the Asia-Pacific engages with each other and the world.

Last week, APEC convened its first-ever High-Level Dialogue on Culture and Creative Industries. For an institution better known for trade policy, tariffs and supply chains, it was a deliberate signal: the future of growth will not only be built in factories and ports, but also in studios, design labs, and the imaginations of creators.

From Screenplays to GDP

Globally, CCIs generated nearly USD2.3 trillion in revenue in 2022, about 3.1 percent of world GDP. Within APEC, the numbers are even more striking. Before the pandemic, creative sectors across our economies were already producing over USD8 trillion in output and employing more than 25 million people.

Revenue growth is now bigger than many traditional industries. Yet, despite its scale, policy thinking has lagged behind. APEC forums have looked at CCIs in relation to tourism, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), women’s economic empowerment, and post-COVID recovery. But too often the insights remain siloed, without a unifying path forward.

The Gyeongju dialogue is meant to change that.

Korea’s Playbook: The Hallyu Effect

Few economies illustrate the power of culture like Korea. In two decades, it transformed from a cultural importer to a global cultural powerhouse. Exports of intellectual property, including music, film, games, more than tripled over the past decade, reaching USD9.85 billion in 2024.

One of the pioneers of the K-Pop phenomenon JY Park was a special guest at the dialogue. He shared the vivid story of K-pop’s growth, from his own journey as a singer to becoming a creator and entrepreneur steering JYP Entertainment, the company behind acts like TWICE and Stray Kids. What struck me most was not only how he described the artistry, but how he framed it as an economic ecosystem: talent development, production, global touring, digital distribution, and fan engagement, all woven into a powerful growth model.

In this photo from left to right: JY Park Founder of JYP Entertainment, Lee Jae-sang CEO of Hybe,  Yang Min-suk CEO of YG Entertainment, Jang Cheol-hyuk CEO of SM Entertainment.

Other leaders of the industry, including the CEOs of HYBE, home to BTS and NewJeans; SM Entertainment, known for Girls’ Generation, EXO, and NCT; YG Entertainment, the force behind BLACKPINK and BIGBANG; and CJ ENM, producer of the hit film Parasite and the drama Crash Landing on You, joined the conversation. Their reflections underscored how Korean content has become both a serious business proposition and a cultural force. Together, they highlighted how deliberate investment, supportive policy, and relentless innovation turned “Hallyu” from a local wave into a global tide.

The results are visible everywhere: K-pop concerts selling out across continents, dramas breaking streaming records, and cultural products inspiring tourism and spinoff industries. The Korean story is no longer just about music, it is about building a growth engine that connects culture, commerce, and creativity.

Why APEC Must Lead

Long before K-pop swept stadiums, J-pop was already filling charts across Asia, influencing fashion, animation and even technology trends. The truth is, every APEC economy has its own cultural assets, and together, these form an unparalleled reservoir of talent and ideas.

The challenge is not whether creativity exists in our region, it clearly does. The challenge is policy. CCIs cut across trade, tourism, intellectual property, MSME development, digital governance, and gender equity. Too often, governments treat them as siloed cultural affairs, rather than a real driver of growth embedded in economic strategy.

Creative industries do more than entertain; they engage economies, empower individuals, and export identity. Within APEC, the challenge is to scale these benefits region-wide. A film or K-pop release can spark cross-border tourism, spur MSME opportunities, and foster the next generation of creative entrepreneurs. Yet, to fully harness that potential, we must remove policy silos.

Regional cooperation should focus on:

• Digital platforms and IP frameworks that facilitate cross-border creative commerce.
• Access to finance and markets for women-led and micro-creative enterprises.
• Building digital and physical creative infrastructure, connecting creators and consumers across the region.
• Supporting cultural tourism, leveraging the fan-driven travels inspired by creative works.

These are not isolated tasks. They demand collaboration between ministries of culture, trade, tourism, digital economy, MSME development, and beyond. This is where APEC’s comparative advantage lies, connecting the dots and integrating policy in ways no single economy could achieve on its own.

Creativity as Sustainable Strategy

The creative industries provide both hard economic returns and softer, but equally vital, dividends: resilience, inclusion and identity.

Korea’s rise in cultural exports is proof of what is possible when government policy, private innovation, and global demand align. Scaling this across APEC’s 21 economies, which together account for nearly 60 percent of global GDP isn’t a zero-sum game providing net gains and employment for all sectors of the economy.

As digital transformation accelerates, CCIs are uniquely positioned to thrive. But they also need thoughtful governance, on intellectual property, competition policy, and equitable access, so that creativity does not deepen divides but bridges them.

The Future is Creative

The story of K-Pop Demon Hunter may seem like light entertainment, but it offers a powerful metaphor for our region’s future. It shows how collaboration across borders, cultures, and industries can produce something greater than the sum of its parts.

The evidence is there. An APEC Policy Support Unit study found that exports of creative goods and services from APEC economies each reached around USD 415–416 billion in 2022, with creative services overtaking goods since 2016. It also highlighted how digital technologies, from artificial intelligence to extended realities, are transforming the way we produce, distribute, and consume culture, while warning that gaps in digital literacy, infrastructure, and intellectual property rules could hold the sector back. The message is clear: the creative economy is already here, but its future depends on how boldly we frame the policies around it.

APEC’s inaugural High-Level Dialogue on Culture and Creative Industries is more than symbolic. It is a recognition that growth in the 21st century must be inclusive, sustainable, and creative.