This year's Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival touts a surprisingly broad and mainstream theme: "Love, fantasy, and adventure".
The theme signals the festival's decision to take a bold leap forward in trying to lure mainstream audiences to its variety of genre films such as horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and animation, organizers said in a press conference on Tuesday.
The 12th annual Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival will run from July 18 to July 27, showcasing 25 films from 39 countries. Last year, films were gathered from 33 countries.
"Waltz with Bashir", an autobiographical documentary animation set in Israel by Ari Folman, will open the 12th annual Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival, which runs July 18 to 27.
Festival programmer Kwon Yong-min sees the rise in participating countries as a positive sign. "This increase means that genre films are gathering more international acclaim, and finding a greater place in world cinema", he said. A total of 205 films were submitted to the festival. Chief festival organizer Han Sang-jun explained the festival's shifting focus to a more mainstream audience. "This year, we're trying to make it easier for the audience to choose films. Trends are changing, so we are looking for more popular themes while maintaining the Puchon festival's own unique flavor. We believe it's possible to satisfy both hardcore fans and mainstream moviegoers".
The festival's films will be introduced in various categories such as World Fantastic Cinema, Forbidden Zone, and Family Fanta. More specialized sections are also new to the program, such as one titled, "The Rebellious: Asian Action Special" which features eight films from Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and the Middle East.
The opening film for the festival this year will be "Waltz with Bashir", an Israeli film by Ari Folman which was also featured as a competition piece at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. In this autobiographical documentary animation, Ari embarks on a journey to remember his experiences in the Israeli army from two decades ago. He finds his war-time friends and confronts the trauma of his time fighting for his country. The film is a moving interpretation of memory and the relationship between mankind and war from a personal vantage point.
The festival's closing film is a Korean and Japanese collaboration titled "Cyborg She", directed by Korean filmmaker kwak Jae-Yong. Kwak is most well-known for his piece, "My Sassy Girl" (2001), and once again brings his comedic yet poignant touch to the screen.
A combination of melodrama, sci-fi and romance, "Cyborg She" follows 21-year old Ji-ro, a lonely man living in the year 2007. Ji-ro meets a strange girl on his birthday, but thinks nothing of her until he meets her again a year later, and then begins dating her. He finds the girl colder and more distant than when they first met, until he discovers this is because she is a cyborg from the future.
In addition to the films featured in the festival, chief organizer Han introduced a new program titled the Network of Asian Fantastic Films (NAFF 2008). As the product of five years' worth of planning, the program is an initiative taken by the festival committee to strengthen the place of genre films worldwide and in the hearts of mainstream audiences. There are also plans to set up a Fantastic Film School which will showcase films and host forums.
Another program launched is the "It Project". The project will focus on a different country and genre of film each year, and then run workshops to train filmmakers in that particular style. Chinese action movies will kick off the project this year, and chief organizer Han announced that the festival committee itself will be putting 40 million won into the project.
The "It Project" showcases 19 Chinese action movies, including "Speed Delivery" by Xie Dong, a mystery action film with a hint of horror about five friends who wind up pulled into a dangerous game. These projects will be crucial to the festival's growing reach and reputation as an international forum for genre filmmakers and artists.
Ticket reservations for the festival are available at its official website, Open the link . For further information, call (032) 345-6313~4.
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