May 18 (2007) - 화려한 휴가 (Hwa-ryeo-han Hyoo-ga)

Theater Series Much Closer to Audience

2008/05/25 | Source | Permalink |

By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter

In a recent television show, renowned actor Jo Jae-hyeon stressed the necessity of star-studded theater marketing in a recent to make audience turn to plays from musicals.

As if his dreams of boosting local dramas came true, a growing number of people are rushing to theaters in Daehangno, central Seoul.

This is because of "Yeongeuk Yeoljeon 2" (A Series of the Best Plays) now showing in the district. The plays started on Dec. 7 and will continue until Jan. 4 next year.

The best-play series project comes four years after the 2004 "Yeongeuk Yeoljeon 1" put 15 best picks selected from the works performed between 1980 and 2000 on stage.

The first one drew about 170,000 people over the year, contributing to boosting the theatrical drama industry in the district.

For the second series, a total of 11 plays are being staged. But this year's series are getting fresh input ― a star-studded cast with the efforts by its programmer Cho, and ...| More

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Actor Ahn Seong-gi Gets Japanese Culture Award

2008/05/15 | Source | Permalink |

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Actor Ahn Seong-gi received Wednesday the Culture prize at the13th Nikkei Asia Award in Japan. Awarded by Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Japan Economic Times), one of Japan's largest media corporations, it is given to those who contribute to enhancing the lives of Asians.

The 56-year-old was recognized for his efforts to promote and protect Korean cinema. The star of "Silmido" (2003) was also recognized for supporting joint film projects among Korea, Japan and China. One such film is "Battle of Wits" (2006), a big budget epic movie starring An and Andy Lau and directed by Julian Cheung.

Launched in 1996, the Nikkei Asia Award has three prizes: Culture, Economic Development and Scientific Technology.

Ahn is a familiar screen persona through box office smashes like "May 18" (2007). He's also a winner of multiple film awards, including Best Actor for "Radio Star" (2007 Daejong Film Festival) and a special recognition for 50 Years of Acting (2006 Daejong ...| More

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Black House and May 18 to be released in Japan

2008/04/04 | Source | Permalink |

Japanese Kadokawa announced the release dates of SIN Tae-ra's horror film "Black House" (Geomeun Jib) and KIM Ji-hoon's "May 18" (Hwaryohan Hyooga), the films will open on Japanese screens on April 5 and May 10, respectively.

"Black House", a domestic box office hit, stars HWANG Jeong-min ("You Are My Sunshine"/Neoneun Nae Woonmyeong) in an impressive psychological charged role as an insurance agent who gets drawn in a suicide case in a mysterious house. Director SIN's ("Brainwave") film is based on a Japanese novel of the popular horror writer Yûsuke Kishi.

After his "Mokpo, Gangster's Paradise", director KM Ji-hoon's next film "May 18" was highly anticipated and the film about the Gwangju civilian uprising against the military dictatorship was a box office success of 2007. The film's strong line-up includes AHN Seong-gi ("Silmido") and LEE Joon-ki ("The King and the Clown"). LEE enjoys great popularity in Japan and starred in the Korean-Japanese co-production "Virgin Snow" (C...| More

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Han Ye-seul, Lee Bo-yeong, Jeong Ryeo-won, Compete for the New Actress Award

2008/04/03 | Source | Permalink |

Lee Yeon-hee, Han Ye-seul, Lee Bo-yeong, Jeong Ryeo-won, and Lee Ha-na were nominated for the New Actress Award in a movie for the 44th Baek-sang Awards.

According to the announcement, Lee Bo-yeong of "Once Upon a Time", Lee Yeon-hee of "M", Lee Ha-na of "Le Grand Chef", Jeong Ryeo-won of "2 Faces of My Girlfriend", and Han Ye-seul of "Miss Gold Digger" were nominated.

There is great expectation for who will receive the glory of the award, for they are all beautiful great stars. Also, "The Chaser" has been nominated for six categories at this year's Baek-sang Awards, including best picture, best directing, new director, best screenplay, best actor, and popularity.

Other nominees for the best picture were "Forever the Moment", "Secret Sunshine", "Happiness", and "May 18".

The Baek-sang Awards will be on April 24.
...| More

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[THE HIGH TIDE OF THE KOREAN WAVE(28)] Ebbing tide of Hallyu slows film industry

2008/03/27 | Source | Permalink |

In the last few years, Korean films, TV dramas and pop music have become immensely popular abroad, a phenomenon known as the Korean Wave. This is the 28th in a series of essays by a select group of scholars and journalists looking at the spread of Korean pop culture in Southeast Asian countries and beyond. - Ed.

Ahn Seong-gi seems perennially calm and collected. A gentle smile on his face, he does not raise his voice even when he talks about the turbulent developments pummeling the Korean cinema in recent months. But his concerns are genuine because, in his view, the local film industry is in deep trouble and the future outlook remains gloomier than ever.

Ahn's perspective about the current state of Korean movies and filmmakers is hard to be discounted. The list of films in which he played a key role in the 1990s alone include "Two Cops" (1993), "The Taebaek Mountains" (1994), "Festival" (1996), "The Soul Guardians" (1998) and "Nowhere to Hide" (1999).

In the 2000s, he starred...| More

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