Lee Byung Hun 30th Debut Anniversary Bus Ad in Seoul (2020)

In June 2020, fans congratulated actor Lee Byung Hun (이병헌) on 30 years since his debut with an ad on a Seoul city bus. The headline, "배우 이병헌의 데뷔 30주년을 축하합니다", runs along both sides and across the back, and a small credit line names fan clubs in China and Japan. Here is what the Lee Byung Hun debut anniversary ad looked like and how fans abroad can arrange a similar one.

Where was the ad displayed?

The ad was on the outside of a blue Seoul city bus. The number 271A can be seen above the door and in the rear window in our photos. Artwork was applied to the road side, the door side and the rear.

We have no note of the stops served or of the dates the ad went up and came down, so we have not filled them in.

What did the ad look like?

The design is calm and simple: a pale blue-grey background with large, faint triangles, white lettering, and two portraits, one in a dark suit and one in a red sweater.

Road side. The main banner places the headline in two lines on the left, "배우 이병헌의 / 데뷔 30주년을 축하합니다", which means "Congratulations on actor Lee Byung Hun's 30th debut anniversary". The portrait in the dark suit is on the right, with the credit line in small type beneath it. A second, smaller panel on the same side shows the portrait in red with the years "1991·2020" and the words "우리가 함께 지나온 흔적 30년": roughly, "30 years of footprints we have left together".

Door side. A narrow banner near the back carries the "1991·2020" line on its own, with the red-sweater portrait at the end. Next to the door, a taller panel repeats the headline over the dark-suit portrait.

Rear. The strip under the back window gives the headline in a single line, in the largest lettering on the bus, with a small portrait and the credit line at the right.

When did it run?

Our photos were taken on 25 June 2020. The ad itself gives only the years 1991 and 2020, not a day, so all we can say is that it was on the road in late June of the anniversary year. We do not know its start or end date.

Who organized it?

The credit line has three parts separated by slashes. The second and third read "China Fan Club" and "LBH TEAM JPN". The first part is in Korean and is too small in our photos to read with confidence, so we have not copied it.

It is a nice example of fans in more than one country putting their names to a single message in Seoul.

What is a Seoul bus exterior ad?

A Seoul bus exterior ad is printed artwork fixed to the body of a city bus: a long panel on each side, smaller panels near the wheels or doors, and a strip across the back. The bus runs its route as usual, and the ad goes with it.

Here, one sentence does almost all of the work. It is long on the side banner, stacked on the door panel and stretched into one line at the rear, so people see the same words whichever side of the bus they meet. For an anniversary with a round number, that kind of repetition is an easy way to make the point clearly.

How can fans overseas place a similar ad in Korea?

Fans outside Korea can arrange this kind of ad too, including several groups working together. The steps are usually:

1. Agree on the occasion and its date.
2. Choose the setting for the ad: a city bus, a subway station or another place.
3. Put together the message and the photos, and confirm that you have the right to use them.
4. Write to us with the plan. We will reply with the choices available for your dates.

If more than one fan club is taking part, decide early how each name should be written. Credit lines are small, and spelling is hard to fix once the sheets are printed.

See How It Works for the full process. Ready to start? Request a quote and tell us about your project. Costs depend on the ad type and dates, so please contact us for a quote.

We share past fan ads as examples of what fans have done. If you would like this page changed or removed, please use our removal request form.