“12.12: The Day” (South Korea) Opened Nov. 22 Drama/Action Directed by Kim Seong-su Over the course of nine hours on Dec. 12, 1979, Gen. Chun Doo-gwang (Hwang Jung-min) attempts a coup, while another commander, Lee Tae-shin (Jung Woo-sung), tries to stop the secret plan from unfolding. “Pororo Popstar Adventure” (South Korea) Opened Dec. 13 Animation Directed by Yoon Je-wan, Kim Seong-min Pororo and friends accidentally land on the planet Parangdol and participate in a

Director Kim Han-min who helmed “The Admiral: Roaring Currents” (2014), South Korea’s biggest hit of all time with 17 million admissions, spent the last decade producing a trilogy on Adm. Yi Sun-sin, one of the most revered figures in Korean history. On Wednesday, the epic finale “Noryang: Deadly Sea” opened in theaters. “I’m just not ready to leave Adm. Yi Sun-sin. To borrow his word, it was definitely a blessing from heaven – 'cheonhaeng

The Korean Film Archive (KOFA) is currently screening 14 well-received indie films that were released between December 2022 and November 2023. The 14 films will be screened at KOFA’s Cinematheque theater in Mapo-gu, Seoul. KOFA said the screening will not only wrap up this year’s indie film scene but will also give audiences a chance to revisit this year’s hit indie films. The 14 indie films to be screened include: Director Lee Ji-eun’s “The Hill of Secrets,”

The continued success of modern historical drama flick “12.12: The Day” has led to improved November ticket sales at local theaters overall, according to the Korean Film Council. According to KOFIC data, November ticket sales at local theaters reached 70.2 percent of pre-pandemic levels at 41.1 billion won – up by 22.5 percent on-year. The average number of November ticket sales at cinemas from 2017 to 2019 stands at 58.6 billion won. The KOFIC said “12.12: The Day”

“12.12: The Day” (South Korea) Opened Nov. 22 Drama/Action Directed by Kim Seong-su Over the course of nine hours on Dec. 12, 1979, Gen. Chun Doo-gwang (Hwang Jung-min) attempts a coup, while another commander, Lee Tae-shin (Jung Woo-sung), tries to stop the secret plan from unfolding. “Our Season” (South Korea) Opened Dec. 6 Drama Directed by Yuk Sang-hyo Bok-ja (Kim Hae-sook) visits her daughter Jin-joo (Shin Min-a) as part of her “vacation from heaven” af

Director Kim Han-min returned to the silver screen after 1 1/2 years to bring to a close his decadelong project on Admiral Yi Sun-sin, this time with the epic finale “Noryang: Deadly Sea.” A lot larger in scale, “Noryang" features epic characters and more sophisticated computer graphics than its first installment “The Admiral: Roaring Currents,” South Korea’s biggest hit of all time with 17 million admissions, and its prequel “Hansan: Rising Dragon.

Experts say CJ ENM will focus on distributing Asia’s unique content to Hollywood

Low sales for local blockbusters may continue into 2024 as more people turn to streaming platforms

Director Noh Young-seok’s “The Nature Man” won the grand prize at the 49th Seoul Independent Film Festival, the organizer announced Monday. “The Nature Man,” starring Shin Un-seop, Byun Jae-sin and Jeong Yong-hoon, tells the story of two ghost-seeking YouTubers who happen to meet a bizarre man who lives in a forest by himself. The director wrote, shot and edited the film. He also did the art and music direction for the film. Judges for the film fest said “The

Samansa, a streaming platform that specializes in short films, has soft-launched operations in South Korea, becoming its second country of operations. The service, founded in Japan in 2021, provides some 800 short films from around the world, with subtitle options including Japanese and Korean. The platform claims 45,000 subscribers and 200,000 monthly active users in Japan, with numbers growing by 10 to 15 percent, monthly. "There's rapid technological development in the way people wa

The American epic sci-fi film "Dune," which grossed $402 million worldwide, will hit local theaters in February with its long-awaited sequel. "Dune" is the film adaptation of Frank Herbert's renowned novel of the same title released on 2021. The film follows the narrative of Paul Atreides -- a young nobleman who rises to command a desert army in a conflict for dominance over the planet's precious resource, Spice. Denis Villeneuve, the French Canadian film director a

“Single in Seoul” (South Korea) Opened Nov. 29 Romance Directed by Park Bum-soo Young-ho (Lee Dong-wook) -- who dreamt of being single forever and enjoying every moment of his life by himself -- meets Hyun-jin (Im Soo-jung), who gives the men around her a sense of meaning in their actions. “12.12: The Day” (South Korea) Opened Nov. 22 Drama/Action Directed by Kim Seong-su The film covers nine hours on Dec. 12, 1979 during a coup attempt by Gen. Chun Doo-gwang (Hwang Jun

South Korean actor Lee Young-ae will be making her comeback to television after a near two-year hiatus via cable TV channel tvN's 12-episode drama series, "Maestra: Strings of Truth." Based on French television series "Philharmonia," the series narrates the story of a globally renowned female violinist-turned-conductor with a secret past. After returning to Korea, Cha Se-eum, played by Lee Young-ae, becomes the conductor of a Korean orchestra where mysterious incidents h

Hopes are growing that Korean Canadian director and playwright Celine Song’s directorial debut “Past Lives” could repeat the success of Lee Isaac Chung's heartwarming family drama “Minari," nominated in six categories at the 2021 Academy Awards. The 2024 Academy Awards are slated to take place March 10, 2024. "Past Lives," which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival in January, quickly garnered international critical attention. The film opened i

Appearing in a US documentary, singer and painter Solbi has impressed viewers with her courageous journey in overcoming malicious comments. Solbi appeared in a documentary entitled "Painting Through Pain" as part of the Voice of America's 52 Documentary series on YouTube, sharing the painful experience of malicious comments and cyberbullying and how she overcame them. Directed by Komeil Soheili, the documentary was part of the weekly documentary series released from the VOA. Accor