For whom the Grand Bell tolls?

How many award ceremonies does Korea need to bolster its film industry? For many disillusioned movie fans, the answer might be "the fewer, the better," particularly when a major award is embroiled in a dispute of fairness and a not-so-major one has been cancelled abruptly.

The 46th Grand Bell Awards, Korea`s top movie award ceremony, was originally scheduled to take place in June, but its schedule got pushed back to November due to the dearth of entries. Worse, it confronts heated criticism about its selection of nominees.



MBC, a local TV station which organizes the Korea Film Award, said it has decided to cancel the ceremony this year, citing problems in funding. The Korea Film Award had touched off debates about the glut of similar, overlapping film ceremonies in 2002 when MBC went ahead with the project.



But it is not the first time that film awards in Korea suffered criticism. The Grand Bell Awards, known as "Daejong" here, have long been mired in controversy over their selection criteria. The ceremony will be held on Nov. 6 this year, but it remains uncertain whether the selection of awardees will convince skeptical local movie fans.

Last Wednesday, the Grand Bell Awards organizers unveiled the nominees. It was hardly surprising that "Haeundae," a tsunami blockbuster that smashed the box office record this summer, was nominated in nine categories including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor. But "Thirst," directed by Park Chan-wook, is strangely absent from the Best Picture nomination list despite its high-profile credentials; instead, "The Sky and the Sea," a film to be released this Thursday, has made it to the list.

Also in dispute is the Best Actress category. Ha Ji-won starred in two notable films this year -- "Haeundae," the highest-grossing film this year, and "Closer to Heaven," a melodrama flick that received critical acclaim -- but she failed to make it to the Best Actress list. Another missing name on the list is Kim Ha-neul, a popular actress who played a title character for the surprise box office hit, "My Girlfriend is an Agent."

In contrast, Jang Na-ra, a singer-turned-actress who has a strong presence in China, came to the unexpected spotlight because of her nomination in the Best Actress category for her role as an autistic musician in "The Sky and the Sea."

The Grand Bell Awards organizers issued a press release last week in response to the growing criticism, defending their decisions. "There is no problem in the nomination process because the movies made between May 1, 2008 and Sept. 4, 2009 are eligible for the awards," the organizers said.

The exclusion of Ha Ji-won was also due to split votes among jury members, the organizers said, adding that Ha`s roles in the two films lowered her chance to get nominated despite her impressive performances in both.

Online film communities, however, continue to pour critical postings about the awards, particularly with the nomination of "The Sky and the Sea" in four categories, even though the public reaction is yet to be made about the film`s artistic and commercial appeal.

Mindful of the controversy, Jang Na-ra expressed her feelings on Monday in an interview with a local press. "I feel deeply sorry about the incident," she said. "But there was no problem in the application procedure, and I didn`t expect this kind of dispute."

Jang said she is willing to accept any criticism from viewers when the movie gets released in Korea, but there is nothing she can do about the public controversy over the nomination. Jang makes a silver-screen comeback with "The Sky and the Sea" after a six-year hiatus.

Ha Ji-won issued a public statement via her production firm Wellmade Star M on Thursday, expressing her confidence in the Grand Bell Awards` nomination process. "I fully respect the fairness of the Grand Bell Awards," she said. "I believe the nomination has gone through a strict process, and I do not have any doubt about the fairness in that process."

Back in 1999, the Grand Bell Awards fell into a similar public controversy, giving awards to a film that was yet to hit local theaters. The next year, a bribery scandal hit the awards ceremony.

(insight@heraldm.com)









By Yang Sung-jin