Samaria (Movie - 2003)

The Emergence of Korean Cinema: Out of the Darkness, Onto the World Stage

Source | 2009/03/11 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Korean cinema has taken a long, winding road to where it is today: in the 20th century, it has weathered foreign occupation, civil war, political censorship, a maze of regulations, a barrage of imports, and South Korea's turbulent democratization movement two decades ago.

At least a shortage of dramatic inspiration is not a problem.

In recent years, with the full support of a proud government that realizes the power of its cultural exports, Korean films have finally arriving at a well-deserved place on the world stage.

To choose but a few highlights, Korean films have boasted wins in 2007 for best actress at Canne (Jeon Do-yeon) and best actor at the Asian Film Awards (Song Kang-ho), in 2004 for best director at the Berlin Film Festival (Kim Ki-duk's "Samaria") and the Grand Prix at Cannes (for Park Chan-wook's "Old Boy"), plus a growing plethora of domestic festivals, chief among them the Pusan International Film Festival, one of Asia's biggest.

"I would say that the major...| More

World renowned film music artist Ji Bark

Source | 2009/02/10 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Composer Ji Bark (33) received the Jerry Goldsmith Awards at 23 to become the first Asian recipient. Many Koreans may not know him but he is known as a globally promising genius musician. He was the music director for President Lee Myung-bak's inauguration ceremony and also directed the event marking 150 years of French-Japanese diplomatic ties, for which he modified an abandoned school for a showcase of his distinguished ability.

Genius artist comes to Korea

Even before he uttered his first words, he was bestowed with musical talent. His parents were opera singers. His mother Kim Mi-hwa, once a professor at Sookmyung Women's University, now teaches at the Christian Univ. of America in New York. His father, who was also a classical singer, turned to business after moving to the U.S. Ji Bark's music career may have been predestined. At 6, he was already fascinated by film music. He may forget the scenes and storyline of films such as "A Man and a Woman", "Love Story" and "Emmanuel...| More

[Tourist Attractions in Films]

Source | 2008/11/27 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Ewha Womans University: "S Diary" - A story about a woman who struggles to find her sense of self. Subway line 2, Ewha Womans University Station, Exits 2 and 3

Changdeokgung: "Strokes of Fire" - A film about the life of the 19th-century painter Jang Seung-eup (winner of Cannes Film Festival Award for directing in 2002). Subway line 3, Anguk Station, Exit 3

Seonyudo Park: "Samaria" - Kim Ki-duk won best director award at the 2004 Berlin Film Festival with this film. Subway Line 2, Hapjeong Station Exit 9, bus No. 5714

63 Building: "Who Are You - Movie" - A story about a couple who fall in love with each other through online chatting. Subway Line 1, Daebang Station, 400 meters from Exit 6

Insa-dong: "Marriage is a Crazy Thing" - a story about the fantasy and reality of marriage. Subway Line 1, Jonggak Station, Exit 3

Wumyeon-dong Cathedral: "Everybody Has Secrets" - a love story between three sisters and a man. Subway line 4, Seonbawi Station, Exit 3, bus No. 4424, Gyeongm...| More

"Rough Cut" Ready for September Release

Source | 2008/08/13 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Director JANG Hun, a new protégé of maverick auteur KIM Ki-duk, will see his feature debut "Rough Cut" released locally this September 11th. The US$ 1.5 million action-drama (Korean title: "A Movie is a Movie"), is the second film, not directed by KIM, to be produced by his production company KIM Ki-duk Film.

"Rough Cut" explores the slippery line between reality and fiction in film. It tells the story of an actor, Soo-ta, who begins to identify too well with the gangster role he is playing, disrupting the shoot. He ends up bringing a real gangster into the cast, Kang-pae, who has thespian ambitions – but the two strike a deal to use real violence during the action scenes instead of staged fights.

Soo-ta will be played by KANG Ji-hwan (from SIN Dong-il's "Host and Guest") while SO Ji-sub (from TV series "Sorry, I Love You") plays Kang-pae. Korean sales company Showbox Mediaplex has picked the film up. It is distributed locally by Studio 2.0. A trailer for the film was rece...| More

Korean Movies to Shine at Int'l Film Fests

Source | 2008/06/30 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

South Korean movies continue to make their way around the globe to vie for prizes and reach a wider audience. Some notable trips to international film festivals include feted director Kim Ki-duk's latest work "Dream", the anticipated summer blockbuster "The Good, the Bad, the Weird", which received rave reviews at the Festival de Cannes in May, and creative animations and documentaries.

"Dream" (Bimong) by celebrated director Kim Ki-duk will contend for the Golden Shell at the 56th San Sebastian International Film Festival running Sept. 18-27, the festival announced recently (http://www.sansebastianfestival.com). It is the only Asian film in the competition pool against five other works. It is Kim's third work after "3-Iron" and "Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... And Spring" to appear at the event. Kim has won the award for Best Director at Venice ("3-Iron") and Berlin ("Samaritan Girl" - "Samaria"), while "Breath" competed at Cannes.

Starring top...| More