With the start of the new year, the Korean film industry looks to its brightest prospects. KANG Byeong-jin profiles eight highly anticipated films of 2012.

"The Fortune Tellers"  In production. Directed by Sin Jeong-won. Starring Kim Soo-ro, Lee Je-hoon, Kang Ye-won. Produced by Dasepo Club, Saram Entertainment. Distributed by N.E.W.Release planned for the first half of 2012.   Korean fortune-tellers not only tell the future, but they also chase away ghosts. The background of "The Fortune Tellers" is Uljinri where a decades-old evil spirit rules. When mysterious accidents and events keep happening without avail, fortune-tellers from all over the country gather to hold a shaman ritual...More

Set for an international premiere in the Berlinale Panorama section, director Jeon Kyu-hwan's "From Seoul to Varanasi" has been re-edited since its world premiere in Busan. Kim Seong-hoon met with Jeon's producer CHOI Mi-Ae to talk about their work together and profile the film.

- Photograph by CHOI Sung-yeol

Treefilm, the production company of upcoming Berlinale Panorama film "From Seoul to Varanasi", was founded by producer CHOI Mi-Ae and director Jeon Kyu-hwan. Together they made the "Town Trilogy" of "Mozart Town" (2008), "Animal Town" (2009) and "Dance Town" (2010) which travelled to numerous international film festivals including San Sebastian, Hong Kong and Torino. They are now in production for Jeon's next film entitled "Moogae" in Korean, meaning "weight"...More

The Korean film industry has a lot to offer for the year of 2012. Korean films have been gathering more attention around the world and in the domestic market, as Korean films gain attention and Korean actors and producers take part in more international collaborations.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the market share for Korean films was 51.9%, up from 46.5 in 2010 and marking the first time in modern history that Korean moviegoing audiences showed a marked preference for domestic movies. As well, film exports increased by 14% in 2011...More

South Korean films had a record year, according to the Korean Film Council (KOFIC) and its box office report for 2011. The governmental body has announced total box office receipts came to a record KW1.23 trillion (US$1.1 billion) last year, up 7.4% from 2010. Admissions also rose to 159 million, up 8.7% compared to the year before.

Korean films took 52% market share, making it the first time in four years that they took more than half the market...More

A scene from "The Thieves", which is expected to wow movie fans this year with its A-list cast. / Courtesy of Showbox/Mediaplex

By Lee  Hyo-won

While 2011 saw the release of some novel, genre-defying works, not many local films aside from "Sunny - 2010" and "War of the Arrows" (a.k.a. "Arrow, The Ultimate Weapon") managed to draw crowds at the box office.

This year, a lineup of big-budget films featuring the return of big stars await moviegoers...More