The 29th Busan International Film Festival announced Thursday 12 selections for the “Korean Cinema Today -- Vision” section, which premieres indie films of up-and-coming independent film directors in Korea. A world premiere in this section has been regarded as a stepping stone for garnering attention in the domestic and international film industries, as the films go through official release at cinemas here or receive invitations to prestigious international film festivals. The select

Veteran actor Choi Min-sik’s remarks on an interview show recently have sparked debate about whether movie tickets at South Korean cinemas are indeed expensive. While his comment drew mixed reactions, the country’s largest multiplex cinema chain decided to halve its ticket prices for four days. “Movie theaters have raised (ticket) prices a lot. Please lower them a bit. If you suddenly raise them like that, I wouldn’t go anywhere either (even as an actor). Do you think peo

The Korea Herald’s ‘My Grey Zone: Radio Revolution’ screening in Korean shorts competition section

The late actor Lee Sun-kyun will get special attention during the 29th Busan International Film Festival when it presents a special program entitled “In Memory of Lee Sun-kyun.” Six of Lee’s films will be screened and a special talk event will be held as part of the program that sheds light on Lee’s work. “Through the program, the festival aims to reflect on and commemorate the achievements of the late actor, whose diverse and profound performances have represented

“Twisters” (US) Opened Aug. 14 Action/Adventure Directed by Lee Isaac Chung Retired tornado chaser and meteorologist Kate (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is persuaded to return to Oklahoma to work with a new team and test a groundbreaking tornado tracking system. “Land of Happiness” (South Korea) Opened Aug. 14 Drama Directed by Choo Chang-min Passionate lawyer In-hoo (Jo Jung-suk) strives to defend his client Tae-joo (Lee Sun-kyun), a soldier implicated in the assassination of P

Long journey to screen made possible by financier who sold his house

Ryoo Seung-wan, who directed the 2015 action blockbuster “Veteran,” is returning with sequel “I, the Executioner” this fall. The movie picks up the story of veteran detective Seo Do-chul (Hwang Jung-min) nine years after the first installment, as he is joined by rookie detective Park Sun-woo (Jung Hae-in), who is full of passion and a sense of justice. Do-chul and Sun-woo investigate a high-profile murder case of a professor which seems to be in line with the previous mur

From small autobiographical film to large-scale extravaganza, Chung continues to show humanism

Director Lee Myung-hun, who made a directorial debut with the comedy action “Mission: Cross,” has a lot of love for comedy. “Comedy is definitely a difficult genre to make. When you don’t make it correctly or miscalculate the lines or scenes, the audience can easily turn away from the story. But that also makes comedy an attractive genre, because you get to see the feedback or reactions right away,” Lee told reporters during a group interview in Seoul, Aug. 12. &ldq

“Heartsping: Teenieping of Love,” the first movie of the hit Korean animation series “Catch! Teenieping,” appeals not only to young viewers, but to those in their 50s and 60s as well, its director said. Kim Su-hoon, who doubles as the movie's director and the CEO of SAMG Entertainment and is responsible for the Teenieping worldview, said he differentiated the movie from the TV series by adding elements of a family movie. “From the beginning, I was sure that thi

South Korean actor Kim Min-hee received the best performance award at the 77th Locarno International Film Festival for Hong Sang-soo’s 32nd film “By the Stream.” “By the Stream,” titled “Suyucheon” in Korean, is the story of Jeon-yim (played by Kim), a lecturer at a woman’s university who asks her uncle, a blacklisted actor-director, to direct a skit at the university. While Jeon-yim goes out every night to paint by the stream and get inspiration,

“Heartsping : Teenieping of Love” (South Korea) Opened Aug. 7 Animation Directed by Kim Soo-hun Princess Romi of the Emotion Kingdom comes to Earth to catch cute and mischievous creatures Teeniepings and has a fateful encounter with Heartsping who becomes a soulmate. “Revolver” (South Korea) Opened Aug. 7 Crime Directed by Oh Seung-wook Former detective Soo-young (Jeon Do-yeon) is released from prison after being convicted of crimes she did not commit. With one goal in

The 1970s is an important era in South Korea's contemporary history, a turbulent time that shaped the country's politics. Set in the 1960s and 1970s, director Byun Sung-hyun's “Kingmaker” follows a group of politicians who attempt to replace the dictatorship with a democracy. Kim Woon-beom (played by Sol Kyung-gu) is an opposition party politician who dreams of becoming a president, despite having failed in four consecutive parliamentary elections. He comes across natu

South Korean auteur Park Chan-wook will begin shooting his new film “No Other Choice” starring Lee Byung-hun and Son Ye-jin on Aug. 17, the film distributor CJ ENM said Monday. Based on the US novel titled “The Ax” by Donald E. Westlake, the movie revolves around Man-soo, an employee who is fired from his paper manufacturing company. Lee, who worked with Park on the 2000 mystery thriller “Joint Security Area” and the Korean section of 2004 horror trilogy &ldqu

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