Animated film marks only Korean film invited to Cannes so far
Director Joung Yu-mi’s short animated film “Glasses” has been invited to compete in the short film category at the 78th Cannes Film Festival, making it the only South Korean work selected for this year’s prestigious event so far.
“Glasses” will be showcased in the Critics’ Week short film competition, a parallel section of the Cannes Film Festival dedicated to highlighting emerging voices in global cinema.
The 15-minute animation follows Yu-jin, who, after breaking her glasses, visits an optician. During her eye exam, she envisions a house in a field and finds herself transported inside. There, she encounters three shadow versions of herself, reconciles with them, and emerges with a new outlook on life -- symbolized by a new pair of glasses. The film is entirely without dialogue.
“Each of us has an inner child, like a little kid living inside our hearts. This inner child stays with us like a shadow, but we often fail to recognize its presence. We go through life having forgotten about this child, only to encounter it again in the darker corners of our lives," she said, via a statement released by Bucheon International Animation Festival on Friday. BIAF supported the production of the animation film.
"The inner child represents the protagonist’s unconsciousness — a space in the heart where repressed emotions, wounds and complexes gather, visualized as a shadow," she said, adding, "The story aims to portray a journey in which, after encountering three shadows one by one inside the home, the protagonist steps outside, receives a new pair of glasses, and begins to face and reconcile with her own shadows."
“Glasses” stands as the first Korean project invited to this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
Notably, no Korean films were selected for either the main competition or noncompetitive sections this year -- marking the first absence of Korean films in 26 years. This year, several Korean entries were submitted to the film festival, including “The Ugly” by "Train to Busan" director Yeon Sang-ho, “The Journey to Gyeongju” by Kim Mi-jo, and “Omniscient Reader” by Kim Byung-woo.
Oscar-winning auteur Park Chan-wook’s anticipated new film “No Other Choice” was reportedly not submitted due to incomplete postproduction.
The Cannes Film Festival will be held in Cannes, France, May 13-24.
yoonseo.3348@heraldcorp.com
