News More

Korea culture to be on the screen at 4th London Korean Film Festival

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

The fourth London Korean Film Festival 2009 runs from Nov. 1 to 18 and already some of the big name directors in Korea have flown to the United Kingdom to promote Korean movies. Prior celebrations and functions aside, the actual first screening was on Thursday (Nov. 5).

This year's film festival, with 25 feature films and four animations from Korea, is organized by the Korean Cultural Center in the United Kingdom and the Korea Creative Content Agency, with the support of the Korean government.

The films will be screened at the BFI (British Film Institute) from Nov. 1 to 14; the London Barbican Centre from Nov. 5 to 12; Manchester Cornerhouse from Nov. 7 to 9; and Nottingham Broadway Cinema from Nov. 16 to 18.

Some award-winning directors from Korea, namely director Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon-ho will visit London with their respective works, "Thirst" (2009) and "Mother - 2009" (2009). The Thirst, which won a Jury Prize at the 62nd Cannes International Film Festival this year,...| More

Applications for the 2nd Cultural Contents Project Camp Now Being Accepted

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

The Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA, President & CEO Lee Jae-woong) is now accepting applications for the 2nd Cultural Contents Project Camp until November 6th.
Jointly run by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and KOCCA, the training program is designed to help top talents gain necessary field experience to become the leaders of Korea's content industry.

There are 11 projects in total, and they include Chuno, a new TV series in production for KBS2TV by Chorokbaem Media, The Dumb Mafia by Younggu Art, Toonzip's Robot Arpo that successfully attracted large-scale investment from Italy and Malaysia, and "Like The Moon Escaping From The Clouds" by director Lee Joon-ik.
The selected trainees will receive six months of practical training at a project camp between December 2009 and May 2010. Here, the trainees will immediately dispatched to businesses to learn what it takes to produce contents. Each of them will receive KRW1.4 million in government subsidy and will have a...| More

"New Stories" to Create the Legend of Korean Contents

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Korea's Biggest Story Competition ? A First Step to Advance into the Global Market
KRW12.5 Billion to be Invested for Support of Story Development, Production, and Distribution

▲ The Korea New Story Creation Project presentation. From Left: Chairman Geum Kang of the Korea Popular Culture Writers Association, Chairman Jeong Seon-eon of the Korea Independent Productions Association, CEO Kim Jeong-ah of CJ Entertainment, CEO Song Seung-hwan of PMC, President Kim Ok-young of the Korean TV & Radio Writers Association, President Lee Jae-woong of the Korea Creative Content Agency, Actor Park Yong-woo, Executive Director Yoo Hae-young of the Korea Creative Content Agency, Director Pyo Min-soo, and Chairman Choi Jong-il of the Korea Animation Producers Association.

Korea's contents-related industries have come together to develop new stories and turn them into high-quality content that has appeal on the global market.

The Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA, President & CE...| More

Gov't Sets Standard Names for Korean Food

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has devised recommended standard spellings and descriptions for 124 Korean dishes favored by foreigners.

Under the new menu standards, "kalguksu" should be referred to as "noodle soup", "hanjeongsik" as "traditional Korean set menu" and "gimbap" as "dried seaweed rolls".

The standards also include recommended descriptions for kimchi fried rice, dolsot bibimbap, and beef-rib soup.

Reported by KBS WORLD Radio...| More

Interview: Director Park Chan-wook of 'Thirst'

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Director Park Chan-wook, who received the Jury Award at the Cannes Film Festival for his movie "Thirst", says that Korean films can gain global recognition by improving their artistic expression and setting new trends.

In an interview with the Yonhap News ahead of the screening of "Thirst" at the London Barbican Centre as the opening film of the 4th London Korean Film Festival, Park said that Korean movies can be exported overseas not only by producing them in English but also by setting new trends.

The festival will run through November 18 at the London Barbican Centre and the British Film Institute. A total of 29 Korean films will be screened, including "Thirst" as well as "Mother - 2009" by Bong Joon-ho.

Interview with director Park Chan-wook.

-- Did the film face a lot of red tape because it deals with Christianity?

- We had a hard time designing its posters. In Korea, we had to take out the image of the lead actress's legs from the poster because they were said to l...| More

Jang Dong-gun, Ko So-young Admit Romance at Last

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

The romance between actor Jang Dong-gun and actress Ko So-young has been confirmed. AM Entertainment, Jang's management agency, in a press release on Thursday afternoon said, "Jang and Ko have been good friends since appearing together in the film 'Love Wind, Love Song' (1998) and the relationship recently blossomed into romance".

However, it said there were no immediate plans for marriage. "If there is good news to be delivered we will let everyone know".

Rumors about Jang and Ko being together had spread several times in the past, but both had consistently denied them. But when rumors of impending marriage were reported Thursday afternoon, the management agency officially admitted it for the first time. ...| More

N.Korea Documentary Wins Another Award

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

A documentary about North Korean refugees produced by the Chosun Ilbo has won the award for best investigative television documentary by the Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) in London. It announced the winners of the AIB Awards 2009 on Tuesday, and named "Korea: Out of the North" as the winner of the best investigative television documentary.

The film is a 52-minute edited version in English of "On The Border" and was aired in BBC in May last year.

The AIB International Media Excellence Award was established in 2005 to recognize the best programs in nine categories including news and documentaries around the world. This year, there were 200 entries from 26 countries.

"On The Border" was first broadcast in March last year by the Chosun Ilbo, and has been aired on 16 channels around the world including the BBC, PBS in the U.S., CANAL+ in France, TBS in Japan, and ARD in Germany. The documentary drew worldwide acclaim, winning 14 awards both here and abroad, inclu...| More

Choi Song-hyeon Has No Regrets Over Leaving KBS

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Presenter-turned-actress Choi Song-hyeon says she has never for a moment regretted quitting Korea Broadcasting System (KBS), one of Korea's three major broadcasters.

She was speaking in a press conference for a new drama on cable channel tvN in Seoul on Wednesday after being cast in the leading role for "Mrs. Town".

"It's been over a year since I quit my presenter job at KBS, and now I don't even think about the reputation I had as a presenter", she said. "I just love being part of an ensemble and acting".

When filming her debut movie "Insadong Scandal", she was thrilled to be able to act but wasn't good at analyzing and understanding the character, let alone knowing much about the craft. "I think I've gained better understanding and knowledge about acting, so I'm enjoying shooting even more", she said.

Choi, who is playing the lead for the first time in the new show, faces some steamy love scenes. The drama will be aired every Friday midnight, with the first episode sched...| More

Kim Hye-ja Named Best Actress in China Festival

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Veteran actress Kim Hye-ja was named Best Actress in the foreign film category of China's top film festival for her role in "Mother - 2009", the film's local producer announced Friday.

The China Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival (Jinji Baihua) opened its 18th edition this year in Nanchang from Oct. 14 to 17, with 155 films competing for 18 awards.

It has been screening and awarding foreign films since 2005. Prizes are unique in that they compile votes by both jury members and the audience.

Kim is known as South Korea's quintessential mother figure through her TV roles. Bong Joon-ho's crime thriller marked the 68-year-old's big screen debut, and she surprised fans with her intense performance of an obsessive mother who becomes involved in a murder case.

She was also named Best Actress at three local awards including the Busan Film Critics' Award

Past Korean winners in the foreign film category of the Chinese festival inclu...| More

Sin Injured in Motor Bike Accident

Source | 2009/11/06 | 0 comments | Permalink |

Singer and entertainer Sin Jeong-hwan was wounded during a motorbike accident in Yongin, south of Seoul, Friday morning.

Sin, 34, was taken to a nearby hospital for emergency treatment. The severity of his injury was not immediately known, but he reportedly seriously sprained his right ankle.

Sin's agency said, "He didn't lose consciousness".

Sin, an avid fan of motorbikes, has been appearing in several TV programs.

Known first for being part of K-pop groups Roo'ra and Country Kko Kko, he has since become a versatile entertainer on various variety shows....| More