Korean movie news

2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

'You Are My Destiny', a brand new drama series on KBS 1TV has kicked off to a great start.

According to AGB Nielsen Media research, 'You Are My Destiny', which debuted on May 5 after the previous drama series 'Likeable or Not' ended, recorded 24.8 % nationwide viewer ratings. The viewer ratings in the Seoul area alone were 29.1%.

KBS explained that the viewer ratings of the new drama series is in the same range as 'Likeable or Not' on its debut date. 'Likeable or Not' maintained a stable viewer rating of 35.4% throughout the past eight months, topping the list of the most successful drama series on KBS 1TV since 2000.

Yoona, a member of the popular female vocal group Girls' Generation, stars in 'You Are My Destiny' as the heroine who finds herself happily adjusting to a new family after a life-changing corneal transplant surgery. Park Jae-jeong, Lee Ji-hoon, Kong Hyeon-joo, Lee Pil-mo and Kim Jeong-nan are the co-stars of the new drama series.

Viewers have commented on the ...

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2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

A film depicting the misery faced by North Korean defectors struck a chord with the audience gathered for a screening at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. last month. Scheduled for release on June 5 here in Korea, the movie starring actor Cha In-pyo is produced by Patrick Cheh, the Korean-American president of Unity Media, who gave a presentation about the film's genesis at the event.

In an interview with the Chosun Ilbo, Cheh said he wanted to show the reality of North Korean refugees. Perseverance, he says, allowed the work to be completed although there is little hope of box-office success. "The movie criticizes the North Korean reality, that its regime violates the clear proposition that the family should live together, and breaks it down when it even fails to meet the basic need for clothes, food and shelter for its people", he said.

It was four years ago that Cheh decided to make a movie on the subject. His father, Cheh Eung-pyo, the head of the Korean American Fre...

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2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

"Hallyu" seems to be on the wane. It is ebbing in China, Japan, and Southeast Asia, where the fascination with Korean TV dramas, pop music and films known as the Korean Wave, peaked in the last few years.

However, the Korean Wave is still flourishing in Mongolia. Several Korean TV dramas are broadcast every day at prime time. The number of people learning the Korean language is increasing remarkably, with many Mongolians rushing to Korea in search of the "Korean Dream".

"Jewel in the Palace" ("Dae Jang Geum") has been a big hit. The drama has fascinated Mongolians so much that it has been aired five times here. Other dramas such as "Autumn in My Heart" "Winter Sonata" and "Stairway to Heaven" have also been popular. These dramas have kept Mongolian viewers glued to their screens and have become daily topics of conversation.

Korean pop singers have been also immensely famous in the country. Songs by "Rain", Big Bang, Shinhwa, BoA and Jang Nara all top the charts and keep young ...

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2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

The Grand Bell Awards, Korea's major movie award ceremony, will announce this year's winners at the COEX Convention Hall in southern Seoul on June 27, organizers said at a news conference yesterday.

A total of 56 Korean movies have so far joined the competition, and the jury will whittle the list down to about 30 in the preliminary stage, with the remaining films to compete for the top prizes.

As part of the ceremony, the Grand Bell Film Festival will be held June 24-28, offering a variety of events such as free screenings, meetings with directors and actors, and concerts.

The Grand Bell Awards has 25 categories, including best director, best actor and best actress. Leading actors Ahn Seong-gi and Kim Ah-joong are the honorary ambassadors of the award ceremony. ...

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2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

Korean filmmaker Kim Moon-saeng ("Wonderful Days") will head the movie adaptation project for "Empire of the Ants", a best selling book by French author Bernard Werber.

Studio 3303, a local production house, said yesterday that it will share half of the production budget, estimated at about 10 million euros (16 billion won), while the remaining half will come from a French production partner.

About two-thirds of the movie will be three-dimensional animations, while the remainder will incorporate conventional shootings of real objects and actors.

Werber visited Korea last month and met with director Kim to finalize the movie project. The French author, who is highly popular with Korean readers, began discussing the movie adaptation with the Korean filmmaker after watching Kim's "Wonderful Days". ...

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2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

The 2008 Chungmuro International Film Festival in Seoul will introduce a competition section this year in a bid to expand its coverage and attract more foreign movies for local moviegoers, organizers said yesterday.

"The Chungmuro festival will feature the international feature film category as a competition section so that local fans can enjoy watching more quality foreign films", festival planning chief Cha Seung-jae said at a press conference at the Daehan Cinema in Chungmuro, Seoul, yesterday. "All the foreign films in the section will be Korean premieres, and four awards, including the Grand Award, will be presented".

The second edition of the fledgling film festival will be held Sept. 3-11, during which time about 170 films from 40 countries will be screened.

But a string of pre-festival events will start from June in Chungmuro, the symbolic center for Korean filmmakers and actors, and Myeong-dong, with an emphasis on participation by Seoul citizens, Cha said.

The Jun...

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2008/05/07 | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter

Top Korean singer "Rain" met his match during his visit to Los Angeles for the promotion of his movie, "Speed Racer". The 25-year-old singer appeared on top comedian Stephen Colbert's show "The Colbert Report".

Many Korean fans are familiar with the 43-year-old host who once imitated "Rain" on one of his shows.

In 2007, "Rain" topped the "Time 100 Poll", the Time magazine's online poll of the 100 most influential people of the year, with Stephen Colbert tailing him as runner up. Colbert mentioned his defeat by the Korean pop sensation and imitated a scene from "Rain"'s music videos as well as singing a Korean song.

This year saw yet another defeat for Colbert, who was placed number three with "Rain" taking second place. Colbert once again mentioned the results during his show, saying that ""Rain" keeps on knocking me down".

"Rain" actually had a moment to defend himself during an interview with Time.com.

"I have to say you almost look ...

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This has been a fun "feud," if one-sided at the beginning. The dance-off was pretty fun. ~Sudsy Sudsy 2008-05-07 16:19:08

2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

French science fiction writer Bernard Werber recently visited Korea to participate in an international science forum and has again made headlines with the announcement of a film adaptation of his book. Korea and France will co-produce a movie based on "Empire of the Ants", production company Studio3303 announced Tuesday. Korean director Kim Moon-saeng will be in charge of the mise-en-scene.

The estimated 10 million euro (16 billion won) project will be funded by domestic and French producers, half each. "We're still looking for a French partner and are speaking with five major companies", producer An Ho-wan from Studio3303 told The Korea Times. About 60 percent of the film will be animated while the rest will feature real-life images.

Werber saw Kim's 2003 animation piece "Wonderful Days", which was screened in France, and asked him to direct "Ants", said Studio3303. The two have been organizing the project together for the past year and a half....

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2008/05/07 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

The Daejong (Grand Bell) Film Festival ― Korea's equivalent of the Academy Awards ― holds its 45th edition with small film festivals May 24-28 in Seoul and Tokyo before the big award ceremony here June 27. Organizers announced the lineup of movies including 56 works that will enter the competition round in a press conference Tuesday.

This year a total of 56 works were submitted of which 30 will be selected for preliminary judgment beginning today through May 28. The final judgment will take place starting June 12 at Seoul Theater, Jongno-3ga, inviting ordinary citizens as jury members.

The jury will include nine film specialists and 50 civilians who will choose prizewinners for Best Film, Best Actors, Best Supporting Actors and Best New Actors. Anyone can apply for a spot in the jury through the Web site www.daejongsang.com. The award ceremony will take place June 27 at COEX, southern Seoul.

Unrelated to the awards, the Daejong Fil...

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2008/05/06 | Source | Permalink |  Digg |  del.icio.us | Stumble It! | Share this news

The 9th annual Jeongju International Film Festival kicked off its nine-day run with an opening ceremony on May 1. Once again this year, the film festival has invited independent films from all around the world.

Actors Ahn Seong-gi and Choi Jeong-won hosted the opening ceremony, which was attended by 2,000 guests and visitors. Song Ha-jin, the chairman of the organizing committee, declared the opening of this year's film festival and Min Byeong-rok, the chief of the organization, delivered a congratulatory speech.

Ahead of the opening ceremony, Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Yoo In-chon, head of the United Democratic Party Son Hak-kyu, U.S. Ambassador to Korea Alexander Vershbow, film directors Im Kwon-taek and Lee Myeong-se, actors Jeon Do-yeon and Park Hae-il and other celebrities and dignitaries greeted the local and foreign press members as well as their fans on the red carpet.

This year's film festival will screen 1,204 films, the largest number in the history of the...

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