Cha Seung-jae (차승재)

'Investment has been too hasty in the past and that has caused problems. But the problem now is a lack of creativity'.

BUSAN - Dark clouds overshadowed the opening of this year's Pusan International Film Festival. The suicide of one of Korea's most beloved actresses, a perceived crisis in the nation's once booming film industry and tensions in the global economy were a distraction that muted the festivities.

When news broke on Day 1 of the festival that the actress Choi Jin-sil had tragically killed herself and rumors circulated as to the cause and the circumstances, several reporters and celebrities canceled their trips at the last minute or returned to Seoul shortly after the festival opened. The sense of loss and despondency in the southern port city was palpable.

A visit to the Asian Film Market, which took place during the festival, seemed to sum up the mood. Last year, 460 film production companies came to Busan - "Busan" was formerly "Pusan" and the film festival retains the old spelling - but this year there were 132. It's no surprise that fewer distribution deals were struck.

The prevailing atmosphere was apt, capturing the sense of crisis that is engulfing the local film industry. The suffering has been caused by overproduction, heightened by the hype of hallyu, or Korean wave, and wider access to illegal software, allowing viewers to download movies for free, have rattled the industry. Shocked but perhaps not surprised was the response of many to information released by the Korean Film Council recently that Koreans download an average of 54 movies a year from file-sharing sites.

Throughout the festival, one of the hottest topics of conversation was the government's lax attitude to licensing rights in new media services. Some experts have even suggested that the government is strategically letting unauthorized software exist on the Internet and on mobile services to nurture Korea's IT industry.

Other experts saw the problem as a crisis of talent, or lack thereof. "Investment has been too hasty in the past and that has caused problems", said Kim Jin-hae, a film professor at Kyungsung University, who facilitated a talk last Sunday on the state of the domestic film industry. "But I think the problem now is a lack of creativity".

On top of this, the country's distribution system and a lack of grants for art house or low-budget fi...More

When the Chungmuro International Film Festival (CHIFFS) hit central Seoul last year, it was widely regarded as somewhat of a throwback festival. The event featured films dripping with nostalgia from when Chungmuro was the heart of the Korean film industry.

Longing for the past, however, can only take a festival so far. For the second edition, organizers drew up a list of films that not only reminisce over years gone by, but also look to the current film scene.

"Like last year, we wanted to still focus on older movies, but now we also want to expand to the current repertoire of movies", said festival planning chief Cha Seung-jae at a press conference at Chungmuro's Daehan Cinema yesterday.

Yesterday, organizers of the festival announced ...More

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...More

Local film weekly magazine, Cine 21, provided its annual list of the most powerful players in the Korean film industry, with CJ Entertainment president KIM Joo-seong at the top for the first time. With the industry taking a downturn last year, CJ Ent. has grown to become the key investor and distributor for many of the biggest projects expected out this year, including "Modern Boy" and "The Good, the Bad, the Weird".

In second place was Cha Seung-jae of SIDUS FNH, switching from the top spot last year and the year before. In third was Cinema Service founder and director Kang Woo-seok, ("Silmido", "...More

The Korean Film Council (KOFIC) is to hold a showcase event in Tokyo, Japan from December 8 - 14, to introduce 9 Korean films to Japanese viewers.

The event is a result of KOFIC's continuous efforts to expand the market base for Korean films in Japan by presenting Korean films of both quality and commercial value. Furthermore, it is important to note that Korean films exported to Japan will receive support with their theatrical release.

During this week-long event at Cinequanon of Tokyo, Japanese viewers will be able to see 9 Korean films across a varied spectrum such as Beyond the Years, the monumental 100th feature from director Im Kwon-taek, and "200 Pounds Beauty" which was a big success in Korea, as well as "Our School", a record breaking independent documentary.

The...More