Pusan Film Fest to Have 64 World Premieres

Now for some news from the cultural scene -- The Pusan International Film Festival is preparing to show off a long list of movies premiering at the annual event this year.
Here's Son Heekyung with a preview.

The eleventh Pusan International Film Festival is approaching fast.
With little time before the annual event begins, filmgoers from home and abroad are busy reserving tickets.
More than 70,000 tickets have been sold a clear indication that audience expectations are high.
The festival is the most prestigious in Asia, and will screen a record number of domestic and international films.

SON HEEKYUNG, REPORTER: "Of the 245 films being screened during the nine-day run, 64 of them will be making their world premieres. Programmers at the festival say, 'Crossing the Line' a British documentary about a U.S. soldier who defected to North Korea is one of the highlights".

Set in the 1960s, the film is about U.S. Army deserter James Dresnok, who is believed to be the last American defector living in Pyeongyang.
This is British director Daniel Gordon's third documentary on North Korea.
As the first foreigner to have shot a documentary in Pyeongyang, he says he wants to raise awareness about life in the world's most isolated country.
For those undecided over what to see, here is a list of can't-miss world premieres as chosen by the festival's organizers.

RECORDED:"From Vietnam comes "The White Silk Dress", a film about the power of women, and is an emerging film from Southeast Asia.
Set in the 1950s, it's a tragic story about a family in Vietnam, who suffers from endless poverty and war, and hopes for better living conditions".

Next is a highly recommended work for those into unconventional scenarios.
"Eternal Summer" from Taiwan deals with the taboo topic of homosexuality.
Director Leste Chen's movie centers around two boys whose relationship develops into something forbidden.
For Korean film lovers, 34 new flicks will make their premieres at the festival.
Among them include director Kim Tae-sik's "Driving With My Wife's Lover" about a man eager to punish his wife and her lover.
Another selection, "People Crossing The River" sheds more light on the lives of people in Korea and Japan.
The director is an ethnic Korean resident of Japan who filmed the documentary over six years.
From Germany comes "Comrades in Dreams", a documentary about four film projection engineers in North Korea, the U.S., India and Africa. Though they live in different parts of the world, the engineers share one thing in common: passion for cinema.

Son Heekyung, Arirang News.