LONDON KOREAN FILM FESTIVAL 2024 FULL PROGRAMME ANNOUNCEMENT
Posted byKOREAN CULTURAL CENTRE UK ANNOUNCES LONDON KOREAN FILM FESTIVAL 2024 PROGRAMME
Opening Gala Film: Park Beom-su’s VICTORY
Closing Gala Film: E.oni’s LOVE IN THE BIG CITY
Special Screening: Choi Dong-hoon’s ALIENOID: RETURN TO THE FUTURE
The 19th edition of the London Korean Film Festival (LKFF), organised by the Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK) and supported by the Korean Film Council, is proud to unveil its 2024 programme.
The London Korean Film Festival will take place at BFI Southbank, Ciné Lumière, and Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) from 1 November to 13 November. It will feature two strands; Cinema Now and Women’s Voices, as well as a programme from the BFI Echoes in Time: Korean Films of the Golden Age and New Cinema, a special screening of Choi Dong-hoon’s Alienoid: Return to the Future and will feature Park Beom-su’s Victory as the Opening Gala Film and E.oni’s Love in the Big City as the Closing Gala film.
Victory by Park Beom-su will open the festival on the 6 November at BFI Southbank with the director in attendance. In 1999, two rebellious teenagers start a cheerleading squad for their provincial high school, bringing confidence and solidarity to themselves, their misfit troupe and an entire community afflicted by narrow horizons and labour disputes. Park Beom-su’s joyously punkish and irreverently funny crowd-pleaser has infectious charm, winning wit and girl-power exuberance to spare.
The festival will close on 13 November with a screening of Love in the Big City by E.oni. Jae-hee (Kim Go-eun), a bold and free-spirited woman, accidentally uncovers Heung-soo (Steve Sanghyun Noh)’s secret, leading to an unlikely relationship. Misunderstood by many, the two navigate growing pains while searching for love and self in Seoul. Love in the Big City, based on Park Sang-young’s novel longlisted for the International Booker Prize in 2022, is brought to life by filmmaker E.oni.The film premiered in the Special Presentations at the Toronto Film Festival 2024.
There will be a special screening of Alienoid: Return to the Future, the second part of Choi Dong-hoon‘s 2022 film Alienoid, which was featured as the opening film of the LKFF 2022. Set during the Goryeo dynasty in the 1300’s in Korea, Ean (Kim Tae-ri) and Muruk (Ryu Jun-yeol) travel through time and space in an effort to obtain the divine sword, but on their quest, they are pursued by two mages, a blind swordsman, and a mysterious masked man, who all want the sword for themselves. This is all taking place while Earth is being bombarded by an alien invasion. Choi Dong-hoon’s film, with its grand scale and incredible CGI, is sure to captivate all film lovers.
Cinema Now explores the cutting edge of Korean cinema, showcasing a diverse and eclectic range of genres and moods, all at the forefront of national cinema, curated by programmer Anton Bitel. Following by Kim Se–hwi is a twisted thriller that radically shifts perspectives while exploring every variety of narcissist, creep, parasite and psycho — like Rear Window (1954) for our social media-driven world. Mother’s Kingdom by Lee Sang–hak brings to mind Bong Joon-ho’s Mother (2009), but from the son’s perspective. Both Following and Mother’s Kingdom are on a double bill at BFI Southbank on 8 November. Shot over four years, Kim Tae–yang’s feature debut Mimang tracks an always transforming Seoul, with each of its three chapters dramatising a different meaning of the Korean word ‘mimang’. Writer/director Yeon Je-gwang‘s The Guest is a tense, taut thriller and of horror viewership, in a cynical, metacinematic peek at unspeakable exploitation. The Noisy Mansion by Lee Lu-da follows Ahn Geo-ul (Gyeong Su-jin) right after temporarily renting a unit in the Baek-sae Apartment building. She discovers that a loud banging noise occurs from 4am every night, so she sets out to find the culprit, and in the process recruiting her neighbours to her cause. The strand closes with The Tenants by Yoon Eun–kyoung. Shindong’s (Kim Dea-gun) desperation forces him to sublet spaces in his tiny apartment. This invasion of privacy soon drives him to the brink of madness. Yoon Eun-kyoung’s dystopia, as it goes on, eventually accommodates a bleak outlook.
Women’s Voices has consistently been a platform for highlighting remarkable films by women in the Korean film industry, and this year it showcases 15 years of work by Korean female directors, programmed by curator Eunji Lee. Sisters on the Road (2008) by Boo Ji-young, where Myung-eun’s (Shin Min-a) attempt to reconnect with her estranged father drives a wedge between her and her sister (Kong Hyo-jin). Boo Ji-young’s debut film sensitively explores their evolving relationship. Digitally remastered, the film was re-released as part of the 2022 Seoul International Women’s Film Festival, celebrating restored works by female directors. A Girl at My Door (2014), directed by Jung July stars Bae Doo-na as a police officer who, after being transferred to a small seaside village, forms an unlikely bond with a local girl, played by Kim Sae-ron. Jung July’s debut feature, which premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, is produced by Lee Chang-dong, renowned for his cinematic masterpiece Poetry. The Truth Beneath (2015) by Lee Kyoung-mi is about a politician’s wife (Son Ye-jin) desperately searching for her missing daughter amidst a national election campaign. Lee Kyoung-mi’s 2008 debut was produced by Park Chan-wook, and she returns eight years later with this groundbreaking film co-written by Park. Concerning My Daughter, directed by Lee Mi-rang, is an adaptation of Kim Hye-jin’s 2017 novel, which was published in English in 2022. This all-female ensemble feature highlights the intersecting struggles of women across generations as they stand up for their own and their loved ones’ rights, while tentatively redefining conventional notions of family. Sandstorm by Park Jae–min follows five wrestlers from the Kolping Women’s Ssireum Team over five years, capturing their victories, struggles, and personal growth.
FAQ by Kim Da-min, where a struggling eleven-year-old student (Park Na-eun) discovers a talking barrel of rice wine at summer camp, leading to an adventure. The screening will also feature a Q&A with the director Kim Da-min. It’s Okay! by Kim Hye-young features a high schooler (Lee Re), facing eviction, secretly moving into her dance school. The head choreographer (Jin Seo-yeon) eventually discovers her and finds a role for her in an upcoming production. It’s Okay! won the Crystal Bear for Best Film at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival’s Generation Kplus competition. The screening will also feature a Q&A with the director Kim Hye-young. Also, the two directors of both films (It’s Okay! and FAQ), Kim Hye-young and Kim Da-min, will be in conversation with Professor Jinhee Choi of King’s College London discussing themes emerging from works by contemporary Korean female filmmakers, as well as a discussion on the current state of the Korean film industry for female talent on 11 November at the BFI Southbank. Four shorts complete the strand: Bug by Myoung Se–jin, Hansel: Two School Skirts by Lim Ji-sun, The Lee Families by Seo Jeong-mi, and Teleporting by Nam A–rum, Chifumi Tanzawa, Nana Noka, and Kwon Oh–yeon. Director Nam A-rum will attend the Q&A session.
The BFI, in partnership with the Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK), presents the BFI Southbank programme ECHOES IN TIME: KOREAN FILMS OF THE GOLDEN AGE AND NEW CINEMA, a major new season running from 28 October – 31 December. Titles screening in late October and November will include AIMLESS BULLET (Yu Hyun-mok, 1961), A WOMAN JUDGE (Hong Eun-won, 1961), THE MARINES WHO NEVER RETURNED (Lee Man-hee, 1963), NOWHERE TO HIDE (Lee Myung-se, 1999), THE CONTACT (Chang Yoon-hyun, 1997), JOINT SECURITY AREA (Park Chan-wook, 2000), and SAVE THE GREEN PLANET! (Jang Joon-hwan, 2003), with a screening on 30 October followed by Q&A with director Jang Joon-hwan, while programmers Young Jin Eric Choi and Goran Topalovic will also introduce several films in October. Titles screening in December will include THE COACHMAN (Kang Dae-jin, 1961), GORYEOJANG (Kim Ki-young, 1963), THE SEASHORE VILLAGE (Kim Soo-yong, 1965), THE DAY A PIG FELL INTO THE WELL (Hong Sangsoo, 1996), PEPPERMINT CANDY (Lee Chang-dong, 1999), BARKING DOGS NEVER BITE (Bong Joon-ho, 2000), OLDBOY (Park Chan-wook, 2003) and UNTOLD SCANDAL (E J-young, 2003). This landmark season, which features many titles rarely screened in the UK, was prepared in collaboration with the Korean Film Archive (KOFA), which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year; featured in the programme are 12 digital restorations and 5 digital remasters supervised by KOFA, as well as unique 35mm prints from its archival collection. The season is also presented in partnership with the Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK) and the Korean Film Council.
About London Korean Film Festival
The London Korean Film Festival has grown from humble beginnings to become one of the longest running and most respected festivals dedicated to Korean cinema in the world. We’ve built a name upon presenting line-ups consisting of everything from the country’s most successful blockbusters to thought-provoking independents from its finest auteurs. Across a variety of finely curated strands we aim to cater for general audiences to committed cinephiles, and everyone in between.
Organised by the Korean Cultural Centre UK
Supported by the Korean Film Council
Venue Partner : BFI, Institute of Francais (Ciné Lumière), Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA)
Programme Partner : Korean Film Archive, Seoul International Women’s Film Festival
London Korean Film Festival 2024 Volunteers
Posted byLondon Korean Film Festival at BFI Southbank
Posted byThe 19th edition of the London Korean Film Festival (LKFF) and organised by the Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK) and supported by the Korean Film Council, is proud to unveil its 2024 programme.
Ranging from new releases to independents to special strands, the London Korean Film Festival is the largest Korean film festival outside of Korea and to complement the Echoes in Time season, the festival will present two strands of films at BFI Southbank – Women’s Voices, showcasing 15 years of Korean female directors, and Cinema Now, celebrating contemporary voices in Korean cinema.
This special programme is curated by Anton Bitel and Eunji Lee and will include numerous intros and Q&As, as well as a special event the Women’s Voices Forum on 11 November, with directors Kim Hye-young (It’s Okay!) and Kim Da-min (FAQ) in conversation with Professor Jinhee Choi. Both It’s Okay! (Kim Hye-young, 2023) and FAQ (Kim Da-min, 2023), will have screenings during the festival followed by Q&As with their respective directors, while other titles screening will include Sisters on the Road (Boo Ji-Young, 2008), A Girl at My Door (Jung July, 2014), The Truth Beneath (Lee Kyoung-Mi, 2015), Concerning My Daughter (Lee Mi-Rang, 2023), Following (Kim Se-Hwi, 2023), Mother’s Kingdom (Lee Sang-Hak, 2023) and The Tenants (Yoon Eun-Kyung, 2023).
Echoes in Time: Korean Films of the Golden Age and New Cinema
Posted byThe BFI Southbank programme for late October and November 2024 begins with Echoes in Time: Korean Films of the Golden Age and New Cinema, a major new season running from 28 October to 31 December. Programmed by Young Jin Eric Choi and Goran Topalovic, Echoes in Time will focus on two groundbreaking periods in the Korean cinema timeline, when huge technical, stylistic and thematic innovations took place: the golden age of the 1960s and the New Korean Cinema movement (1996 to 2003).
Both periods gave birth to seminal works across a wide range of genres, successfully combining genre thrills with arthouse sensibilities. Although South Korean cinema didn’t break out into the global mainstream until the Cannes and Oscar success of Parasite (and on the small screen with Squid Game), it had been producing remarkable films for decades, despite unique historic and socio-economic challenges, and this season will serve as a perfect entry point and introduction for audiences to the rich legacy of Korean cinema.
Titles screenings in October and November will include Aimless Bullet (Yu Hyun-mok, 1961), A Woman Judge (Hong Eun-won, 1961), The Marines Who Never Returned (Lee Man-hee, 1963), Let’s Meet at Walkerhill (Han Hyeong-mo, 1966), A Swordsman in the Twilight (Chung Chang-wha, 1967), Nowhere to Hide (Lee Myung-se, 1999), The Contact (Chang Yoon-hyun, 1997), Shiri (Kang Jae-gyu, 1999), Joint Security Area (Park Chan-wook, 2000), Take Care of My Cat (Jeong Jae-Eun, 2001) and Save the Green Planet! (Jang Joon-hwan, 2003). A screening of Save the Green Planet! on 30 October will be followed by Q&A with director Jang Joon-hwan, while programmers Young Jin Eric Choi and Goran Topalovic will also introduce several films in October.
This landmark season, which features many titles rarely screened in the UK, was prepared in collaboration with the Korean Film Archive (KOFA), which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year; featured in the programme are 12 digital restorations and 5 digital remasters supervised by KOFA, as well as unique 35mm prints from its archival collection. The season is also presented in partnership with the Korean Cultural Centre UK (KCCUK) and the Korean Film Council. The KCCUK hosts the annual London Korean Film Festival, which returns for its 19th edition from 1 to 13 November.
[채용공고] 한국영화시즌 연계행사 전문 인력 모집 공고
Posted by주영한국문화원은 한국영화시즌 연계행사의 원활한 진행을 위해 아래와 같이 전문인력을 모집합니다
1.주요업무
○ 상영작 선재물 확보 및 관리
○ 상영회 기간 중 상영회 및 행사 운영 전반 관리
○ 초청게스트 전체 일정 구성 및 관리
○ 초청게스트 입출국 및 부대행사 시 수행 업무
○ 각종 부대 행사 준비 및 진행 협조
○ 상영회 진행 지원
○ 기타 상영회와 관련하여 필요한 제반 업무 지원
2. 응모자격
○ 영국 체류 자격에 문제가 없는 자 (관광비자 등 일을 할 수 없는 비자 제외, 별도 비자 발급 지원 불가)
○ 영어 및 한국어에 모두 능통한 자
○ 영화제, 영화 배급사 및 영화/문화 행사 등 관련 분야 경력자 우대
○ 영화 이론 및 실기 전공자 우대
○ MS 오피스 (워드, 엑셀) 사용 필수, 어도비 디자인 (포토샵, 인디자인) 및 프로젝트 관리 프로그램 사용 가능자 우대
3. 제출서류
○ 자기소개서, 이력서 (자유 양식) 국문 1부 및 영문 1부 (총 2부)
○ 자격요건에 부합하는 자격증, 경력증명서 사본 등 제출 가능
4. 전형절차
○ 서류전형 → 면접전형 → 최종합격
5. 근무기간 및 시간
○ 근무 기간: 2024년 8월 26일~11월 29일
○ 근무 시간: 주 2일 (8월 26일~11월 1일, 11월 18일~29일), 주 5일(11월 4일~11월 15일)
※ 행사 일정에 따라 필요시 야간 및 주말 근무
※ 첫 2주는 수습시간으로, 수습기간 후 평가를 통해 정식 채용이 확정됨.
6. 보수
○ 시급 £11.5 ~ £13.15 (문화원 규정 및 지원자 경력에 따라 책정)
7. 접수처
○ 이메일 지원 (info@kccuk.org.uk)
○ 접수 시 이메일 제목 란에 ‘한국영화시즌 연계행사 전문인력 지원’을 명시하기 바람
8. 서류 접수기한
○ 2024년 8월 19일(월)
9. 기타 참고사항
○ 서류 심사 통과자에 한해 개별 면접을 2024년 8월 21일 혹은 8월 22일에 실시
○ 서류 통과 여부, 구체 면접 일정, 최종합격여부는 해당자에게만 개별 통보
○ 제출 서류는 반환하지 않으며, 기재내용이 사실과 다른 경우 채용을 취소할 수 있음
주영한국문화원
Korean Cultural Centre UK
Job Opportunity – Marketing Coordinator
Posted byPlease read the following job description and candidate specification carefully, telling us in your cover letter what brought you to apply for this role, and with what kind of professional skills you can contribute to the film festival.
Please submit your application (cover letter and CV) via email. Your cover letter should outline why you are interested in the role, as well as the skills and experience. The closing date for applications is 19 August 2024.
Once applications have been processed, selected candidates will be invited to attend an interview on either 21 or 22 August 2024.
For further information on the role please contact info@kccuk.org.uk.
We look forward to receiving your application.
(1) Terms and Conditions
- Employer: Korean Cultural Centre UK
- Salary: 11.15GBP-13.15GBP per hour (based on KCCUK regulations and candidate experience)
- Term: 9 September – 29 November 2024. (Period of work is flexible, based on festivals needs) The position is offered on a temporary basis, it is a part-time post, covering the period in preparation, build up, operation and debrief of the Korea Season Screening Event
- Hours: 16 hours (2 days) per week in 9 September-18 October, 40 hours (5days) per week in 21 October -19 November. This will involve some weekend and evening work, and hours can be flexible to accommodate this
- Notice Period: There is a 2-week probationary period, and if successful the candidate will be confirmed. Upon confirmation, either party will provide 2-weeks’ notice should they wish to terminate the agreement prior to the end of the contract
- Right to work: The successful applicant will be required to provide documentation that proves their right to work in the UK
- References: Offers of employment are subject to the receipt of two references
- Application: To apply for this position, send your CV and cover letter to info@kccuk.org.uk with ‘Korea Season 2024 Marketing Coordinator’ in the subject line by 19 August
- Interview period: 21 or 22 August 2024
- Start date: 9 September 2024
(2) Job Description
The Marketing Co-ordinator is a core member of the festival team. The successful applicant will be creative and insightful, showing the ability to present both in-depth promotional content and fresh ideas that link Korean cinema with film culture in the UK.
(3) Responsibilities and Accountabilities
- To support the Festival Director to develop an overall strategy with regards to print distribution and offline promotion, and to ensure Korea Season screenings 2024 attracts large audiences.
- Managing and creating content for online platforms – e.g. the social media accounts, website
- To oversee the distribution of print marketing including ordering, payment and effective distribution of printed materials
- To design and deliver online campaign strategies for the festival including strand-specific e-newsletters, social media, festival & venue websites.
- To manage festival volunteers for the distribution of materials and other marketing tasks.
- To communicate regularly with a PR agency to build relationships with press lists and journalists, ensuring they are informed about upcoming films and events at Korea Season screenings.
- To identify and consider potential opportunities for cross-promotion and advertising with relevant external partners.
- To collaborate on all areas of marketing for the successful promotion of the festival, offering constructive, creative ideas to help generate ticket sales.
- General marketing and communications support, and any other duties relevant to the post as required by the festival team.
(4) Personal Specification
- At least three years’ experience of working in a film festival or similar cultural event in a marketing and/or press officer role
- Understanding of various screening formats, experience handling audio-visual content
- Experience working to budget on large scale cultural projects and working with multiple external agencies and partners
- Excellent organisational skills with the ability to prioritise and to manage and meet changing deadlines
- Excellent attention to detail and confidentiality
- Good IT skills including MS Office, skilled in Excel
- Demonstrable commitment to the principles of diversity and inclusion and its practical application and integration in the work environment
- Ability to work flexible hours (there is a requirement to work outside contracted hours, including some evenings and weekends)
- Well-organised and effective at prioritising work and managing deadlines under pressure.
- Excellent communication skills, both written and oral.
Korean Film Nights: MA-EUM (마음) Brochure
Posted byVoices of the Silenced, Programme Note
Posted byBorn in the Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, Park Soo-nam is a second-generation Korean-Japanese. She first gained fame as a bestselling author with her book Crime, Death and Love (1963), which comprises two collections of correspondence between herself and Lee Jin-woo, a Korean-Japanese death row inmate who allegedly murdered two Komatsugawa High School girls in 1958—an incident most known internationally through Ōshima Nagisa’s film Death by Hanging 絞死刑 (1968).
In 1985, she shifted from writing to filmmaking with her debut as a documentary filmmaker on The Other Hiroshima. This was followed by Korean A-bomb Victims Tell Their Story, Song of Ariran – Voices from Okinawa (1991), Nuchigafu – Life is a Treasure “Gyokusai” Stories in the Battle of Okinawa (2012), and The Silence (2017). Park Maeui scavenges durations of silence from 50 hours of footage captured by her mother over her 30-year long filmmaking career; a personal film archive thus became an invaluable reservoir of historical testimonies.
“I thought video was the only way to capture their trembling words and bodies, as language couldn’t convey such profound silence (Voices of the Silenced, 2023, 46:47).”
This is what Park Soo-nam told the camera when she was asked why she first started making films—it was to capture the silence that evaded the pen. The register of non-utterance, including the countenance, the gesture, and the wordless flow of unfilled time conveys the lived experiences that cannot be reduced to speech—especially for those whose mother tongue is stripped away from them. Language becomes a weapon of subjugation, communication turns into a battlefield, and to speak is to be complicit in the reenactment of violence. Trinh T. Minh-ha effectively underscores the language of silence in her writings about voyages across continents and languages:
“In other words, silence not as opposed to language, but as a choice not to verbalise, a will not to say, a necessary interval in an interaction—in brief, as a means of communication of its own (elsewhere, within here, 2011).”
We listen to the voices of the silenced.
Eleanor Lu, programmer
Korean Film Nights: Ma-eum (마음)
Posted byFilm is a powerful form of expression; a voice that takes many forms but is at its most powerful when spoken from the heart. “Ma-eum” can mean both heart and mind, symbolising the inseparable bond between reason and emotion.
Theresa Hak Kyung Cha describes Ma-eum as a true spirit, an inherent part of a person’s soul that remains unshaken by displacement or oppression. It resides in memory and is present in every word we speak.
We have curated a selection of films that use documentary cinema as a tool to express unique voices, preserve memory against the tide of forgetting, and maintain identity in the face of colonialism and modernisation.
Our artists express themselves through imagery, speech, action, and song, whether collectively or individually, personally or publicly, intimately or boldly. They speak from the Ma-eum, the spirit-heart.
Many of our films are screening in the UK for the first time. Our programme includes shorts, artist films, features, and audiovisual works that explore historical events in both documentary and essayistic approaches. We aim to present a chorus of voices that demonstrate cinema’s unique ability to turn the specific into the universal. Experience the resonant power of Ma-eum; a symphony of spirits and memories.
Programmed by Birkbeck, University of London, Film Programming and Curating MA Students:
Cheryl Ho
Eleanor Lu
Najrin Islam
Paul Salt
Zhiyin Du
Mentored by Ricardo Matos Cabo
It is the mark. The mark of belonging. Mark of cause. Mark of retrieval. By birth. By death. By blood. You carry the mark in your chest, in your MAH-UHM, in your MAH-UHM, in your spirit-heart.
You sing.
– Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Dictee, 1982