[Herald Interview] For young people today, life is ‘Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster’

JEONJU, North Jeolla Province – "Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster" is a "film about unhappy people, but not in a dark way," Turkish director Umut Subasi told the audience at its Asian premiere at the Jeonju International Film Festival in North Jeolla Province on April 28. The festival had described it as a “depression comedy.” "Humor is a survival tool," Subasi explained. Set in Istanbul, "Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster" revolves arou

May 9, 2023

[News Analysis] Star filmmakers flock to streaming

Movie directors including star filmmakers Lee Byeong-heon and Jason Lee will release their next projects soon after the release of movies “Dream” and “My Heart Puppy,” respectively, earlier this year, but this time as Netflix drama series. Lee Byeong-heon, known for the hit comedy “Extreme Job” (2019), is expected to release “Chicken Nugget,” starring Kim Yoo-jung and Ryu Seung-ryong, as a Netflix original series sometime toward the year-end. Kim a

May 9, 2023

Taiwanese company creates new BIFF award for Korean indie films

A new award aimed at discovering new Korean indie films has been created by Busan International Film Festival in conjunction with Rising Films International, a Taiwanese production company. Taiwan’s Rising Films International will fund the award, which carries up to 1 billion won ($758,000) in prize money to cover the film's production costs, according to Asia Contents & Film Market, BIFF's platform supporting content trading and international sales of local content. The aw

May 8, 2023

[Herald Interview] Director Davy Chou does away with cliches about adoptees in ‘Return to Seoul’

“Return to Seoul” is a melancholy drama film revolving around Freddie (Park Ji-min), 25, who is on a search for her biological parents after returning to Seoul for the first time -- similar to other films about Korean adoptees. But that’s where the similarity ends, as the film then takes a surprising turn. Freddie’s arrival in Seoul is also spontaneous. She arrives after her trip to Tokyo is cancelled. Davy Chou, the Cambodian French filmmaker of “Return to Seoul,&r

May 7, 2023

'Guardians of Galaxy Vol. 3' surpasses 1m admissions on 4th day

Marvel Studios' new film "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" has surpassed 1 million admissions at the fastest pace among this year's releases in South Korea, its local distributor said Saturday. The film had garnered a cumulative audience of 1.02 million as of midnight Friday, the fourth day of its release, according to Walt Disney Company Korea. It became the fastest film to surpass 1 million admissions this year, outpacing the year's top-grossing films, which include the

May 6, 2023

'The Story of Dreams: Picture Brides' wins award at Houston Film Fest

The documentary “The Story of Dreams: Picture Brides” received an award at the 56th-edition of Worldfest-Houston International Film Festival. The South Korean documentary won the Silver Remi at the film festival, founded in 1968 and the third-oldest film festival in the US. Past winners of the annual festival include Steven Spielberg. The film festival ran from April 25 to 30 in Houston. Created by filmmakers Song Ji-hwan, Lee Jeong-tae and Jo Hyun-woo, “The Story of Dreams: Pi

May 5, 2023

[Box office] Movies in theaters this week

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3” (US) Opened May 3 Action Directed by James Gunn The American superhero franchise concludes its trilogy by looking deeper into the story of Rocket, and showing how Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, gathers his team to defend the universe and complete the last mission to protect the Guardians. “Dream” (South Korea) Opened April 26 Drama Directed by Lee Byeong-heon Yoon Hong-dae (Park Seo-joon), a professional football play

May 5, 2023

Japanese film 'There is a Stone' wins grand prize at Jeonju IFF

The 24th Jeonju International Film Festival announced its award winners on Wednesday evening during a ceremony that took place at Jeonbuk National University's Samsung Cultural Center in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province. A total of 17 awards in four categories -- international competition, Korean competition, Korean competition for shorts and special award -- were given out. Under the international competition category, Ota Tatsunari won the grand prize with his film, "There is a Stone.&q

May 3, 2023

Among Korean films at Jeonju IFF, queer films stand out

This year’s Jeonju International Film Festival, which opened on April 27, has nominated films of various genres and topics to the Korean competition, but what really stood out were the queer films that were nominated. “Of 111 Korean films that were submitted for the Korean competition section, we chose 8 feature films, two documentaries and one experimental documentary as finalists. A total of 11 films are nominated and they are either the first or second project of the filmmakers. I

May 3, 2023

[Herald Interview] Malene Choi’s ‘The Quiet Migration’ looks into adoptee’s process of individuation

Malene Choi’s “The Quiet Migration,” which is running in the international competition section at this year's Jeonju International Film Festival, along with nine other films, is the 49-year-old filmmaker’s sequel to her 2018 film “The Return.” A Danish Korean herself, Malene went to Denmark in 1974. In “The Quiet Migration,” Choi presents the story of a 19-year-old boy, Carl, who lives a quiet life in the Danish countryside with his adoptive p

May 1, 2023

Jeonju festival subverts cinematic expectations, seeks to surprise

JEONJU, North Jeolla Province -- For those who enjoy the cinematic experience without such stringent requirements as a discernible plot, for those who relish artful ambiguity and tightly framed shots awash in rising natural sounds, the ongoing film festival in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, beckons once again as a reprieve in a moviegoing world defined by blockbusters and safe formulas. Jeonju International Film Festival opened its 24th iteration on Thursday and runs through May 6. The film fest

May 1, 2023

Park Eun-bin, "Decision to Leave" win top honors at Baeksang Arts Awards

Park Chan-wook's romantic thriller movie "Decision to Leave" and Park Eun-bin, who starred in the drama series "Extraordinary Attorney Woo," have taken top honors at this year's Baeksang Arts Awards. "Decision to Leave" won the grand prize in the movie category at the 59th awards ceremony on Friday night. Park Chan-wook clinched best director and Chinese actress Tang Wei received best actress for her role in the movie. The period thriller "The Night O

April 29, 2023

Five films including ‘Decision to Leave’ and ‘Hunt’ to vie for Baeksang Arts Awards

South Korean hit films including the Cannes-winning “Decision to Leave” and star actor Lee Jung-jae’s directorial debut film, “Hunt,” will vie for the best film award at the 59th Baeksang Arts Awards to be held on Friday. Along with the Blue Dragon Film Awards and Daejong International Film Awards, the Baeksang Awards is one of the most prestigious ceremonies here honoring the past year’s films, TV dramas and plays. This year’s award will be led by act

April 28, 2023

24th Jeonju IFF kicks off for 10 days of indie films

One of South Korea's main indie film events, the Jeonju International Film Festival, officially kicked off Thursday evening with a star-studded list of actors and directors visiting the city for the red carpet event and opening ceremony prior to the 10-day film festival. Actors Park Hae-il, Lee Dong-hui, Lee Soo-hyuk, Shin Hyeon-joon, Ok Ja-yeon and some 170 other actors and directors appeared on the red carpet, meeting with fans. Actors Jin Goo and Gong Seung-yeon were the hosts of the ope

April 28, 2023

[Video] Park Hae-soo on life after "Squid Game"

One of the most familiar faces from a Netflix Korean original, Park Hae-soo spoke with Asia 101 about his life after "Squid Game," his journey from being a small theater actor to getting nominated for an Emmy and more. Watch until the end for an impromptu dance performance! Park Seo-hee and Park Ju-min contributed to this report.

April 28, 2023

[Box office] Movies in theaters this week

“Ghost Station” (South Korea) Opened April 19 Mystery Directed by Jeong Yong-ki Based on 2011 webtoon “Oksu Station Ghost,” the film tells the story of a news reporter, Na-young, working an exclusive investigative story about a series of mysterious deaths happening at a subway station. She finds out that her source is already dead at the time of the scheduled interview. “John Wick: Chapter 4” (US) Opened April 12 Action Directed by Charles F. Stahelski Leg

April 28, 2023

Jeonju IFF opens with Cannes-winning ‘Tori and Lokita’

The 24th Jeonju International Film Festival kicked off on Thursday, opening the 10-day event with the Korea premiere of award-winning Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne’s tight, gripping moral thriller, “Tori and Lokita.” The Dardenne brothers tell the story of two underage African migrants, Tori and Lokita, who struggle to settle in Belgium. Staying at a temporary shelter for young new settlers, they work as drug dealers by night under the direction of the owner of a local pizza s

April 27, 2023

Disney Korea to hold Star Wars Day events at Jeonju IFF

Walt Disney Co. Korea will celebrate the annual Star Wars Day during the 24th edition of the Jeonju International Film Festival on May 4 in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province. The US media giant fetes its beloved franchise on May the Fourth, referencing the popular “Star Wars” phrase “May the force be with you.” Following the Jeonju IFF opening ceremony on Friday, “Star Wars: A New Hope” (1977), “Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi” (1983), “Star Wars:

April 27, 2023

[Herald Interview] IU learns to let go for ‘Dream’

Though singer and actor IU made her silver screen debut in Hirokazu Kore-eda’s award-winning “Broker” last year, she said she considers Lee Byeong-heon’s sports comedy “Dream,” which opened in local theaters this week, to be her long feature film debut. “It was so fortunate for me to debut in a long feature film with such a kind cast and nice fellow actors. It was so meaningful for me, allowing me to work with a beginner’s mindset on the movie set,

April 26, 2023

Korean film 'Project Silence' additionally invited to Cannes

South Korean director Kim Tae-gon's "Project Silence" has been officially invited to this year's Cannes Film Festival. The festival on Monday announced that the Korean horror "Project Silence" will be shown at the Midnight Screening section as it released a raft of new additions to the Official Selection of its 76th edition on its homepage. Starring Lee Sun-kyun and Ju Ji-hoon, the flick tells the story of people struggling to survive on a collapsing bridge shrouded

April 25, 2023