The Korea Herald

KOFIC eyes global market at H.K. FILMART

Mar 19, 2012

Korean Film Council (KOFIC) announced on Monday that it is currently participating in Hong Kong International Film & TV Market (FILMART), to promote local films worldwide and launch more foreign projects in Korea. The Hong Kong-based event, which kicked off Monday and runs through Thursday, is considered one of the biggest film markets in Asia. KOFIC said they will have their own lounge, titled “Korean Film Center,” during the event. A total of 11 Korean film producers, overseas sales representa
Mueller named director of Rome film festival

Mar 18, 2012

ROME (AP) ― Marco Mueller, the longest-running creative director of the Venice Film Festival, is moving to the Rome International Film Festival.The Rome festival’s president Paolo Ferrari announced the appointment Friday, saying Mueller was ``esteemed in Italy and abroad.’’Mueller, whose eight years at Venice were widely regarded as a success, was not confirmed to a third stint last year. He said in a statement he was looking forward to working at the Rome festival, ``which wants to better meet
‘Hunger Games’: The next big movie franchise

Mar 18, 2012

Best-selling trilogy to follow on the success of ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Twilight’LOS ANGELES ― The movie magic is over for “Harry Potter.” The bite will be gone from “Twilight” when the final film’s released in November.It now falls to “The Hunger Games,” based on to the best-selling trilogy by Suzanne Collins, to launch the next great film franchise. It’s a worthy heir. This story is not only a big literary success ― where parents and their children are reading the books ― it has spawned numerous
Shamanism explored in contemporary art

Mar 16, 2012

Director and young performing artist delve into the world of Korea’s indigenous spirituality Aside from the comical talk-show character “The Knee-Drop Guru,” and a few TV drama shows such as MBC’s 2004 flick “Lotus Flower Fairy,” it’s hard to come across much about Korean shamanism in popular culture.In the contemporary art scene, however, two artists have recently come up with unconventional works that shed light on the historical and artistic value of shamanism. One is media artist Park Chan-k
Box Office

Mar 16, 2012

Gabi (Korea)Opening March 15Period drama. Directed by Jang Yoon-hyun. Tanya (Kim So-yeon), a young Korean woman who grew up in Russia and knows how to brew coffee, comes to Joseon with her boyfriend Illichi (Joo Jin-mo), who is also Korean. Shortly after her arrival, she becomes Joseon’s first barista and ends up serving Gojong, the King of Joseon. Gojong has no idea that Tanya and Illichi together carry a secret mission from the Japanese to assassinate the monarch. Love Fiction (Korea)Opened Fe
Willie’s Shoe Service leaves footprint in Hollywood

Mar 16, 2012

For a recent episode of the TV series “Modern Family,” Raul Ojeda crafted a pair of shoes covered in red sequins for actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson. His character, Mitchell, shows off the shoes for a “Wizard of Oz”-themed birthday party he throws for his partner, Cam.A decade ago, Raul Ojeda was working as a shoe shiner. Now the 29-year-old is leaving his own footprint in Hollywood, supplying custom-made shoes to stars such as Steve Carell and Sally Field.Ojeda is the owner of Los Angeles-based Will
Date set for 2013 Oscars

Mar 15, 2012

LOS ANGELES (AFP) ― The annual Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, Feb. 24 next year, Oscars organizers said Wednesday, two and a half weeks after this year’s show. Nominations for those shortlisted for prizes on Hollywood’s biggest night will be unveiled on Tuesday, Jan. 15, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said.“The ceremony will take place at the Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network to more than 225 countries,” it
Biopic on South Korean opera singer to film in Serbia

Mar 15, 2012

BELGRADE (AFP) ― South Korean film production company Morein Group will start shooting a biopic of famed opera singer Bae Jae-chul in Serbia next month, local officials said Wednesday.“My film ‘Miracle’ will be the first Korean film ever shot in Serbia and it will be sensational in Korea,” producer T.J. Chung was quoted as saying in a statement by the Serbia Film Association. The co-production between Korea and Japan tells the story of the internationally-acclaimed South Korean tenor who perfor
Depp, Streep join call to lower ‘Bully’ rating

Mar 14, 2012

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― More Hollywood heavyweights are calling for a lower rating on the documentary “Bully.’’The Weinstein Co. says Johnny Depp, Meryl Streep and New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees are supporting the film, which will be released March 30.Lee Hirsch’s documentary on bullying in American schools has been rated R, which restricts kids under 17 from seeing it without an adult.Distributors appealed the decision, but it was upheld by the Motion Picture Association of America, which
Disney to hire 1,000 US military veterans

Mar 14, 2012

The Walt Disney Company will give jobs or career opportunities to at least 1,000 returning US military veterans over the next three years, the entertainment and theme park giant said Tuesday.As part of a "Heroes Work Here" initiative, announced at its annual shareholder meeting, the company will als
Tehran Oscar ceremony for Iran director canceled

Mar 13, 2012

TEHRAN (AFP) ― A Tehran ceremony to hail Iranian director Asghar Farhadi’s Oscar win for his movie “A Separation” has been cancelled by authorities, media reported on Monday without giving an explanation.The Centre for Directors and the Supreme Council for Iranian Filmmakers issued a joint statement to Farhadi saying “we were planning a simple and sincere ceremony for you to honour your great achievement for Iranian cinema, but we cannot hold it,” according to the ISNA news agency.The two bodies
Silent film narrator returns to modern stage

Mar 12, 2012

Actor Cho Hee-bong performs oldest surviving Korean silent film ‘Crossroads of Youth’What would it have been like to watch a silent film with live narration and music?Today’s moviegoers were given an opportunity to watch Korea’s oldest surviving silent film, “Crossroads of Youth.” last week, accompanied by live music and narration ― all in the 1930s style. Just like the “silent era” in the 20s and 30s, they saw and heard a “byeonsa” ― Korean term for silent-film narrator ― “performing” each an
After long wait, Whedon brings ‘Cabin’ to SXSW

Mar 11, 2012

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) ― After several years of studio purgatory, Joss Whedon’s long-shelved, much-anticipated horror film “The Cabin in the Woods’’ finally arrived before audiences at the South By Southwest Film Festival.Nobody complained about the delay.“It really holds up,’’ deadpanned Whedon after the Friday evening premiere before a rapturous, hooting crowd at Austin’s Paramount Theatre. “I would say, timeless classic.’’“The Cabin in the Woods,’’ which Whedon produced and co-wrote with director
'Home Alone' house sold for $1.6M

Mar 11, 2012

The 14-room suburban Chicago house in which the big-screen comedy "Home Alone" was shot has been sold for nearly $1.6 million after 10 months on the market.The red-brick house in Winnetka, which was put up for sale last May by owners John and Cynthia Abendshien for $2.4 million, sold Thursday to an
Box Office

Mar 9, 2012

Howling (Korea) Opened Feb. 16Crime. Thriller. Directed by Yoo Ha. Detective Sang-gil (Song Kang-ho), who is desperate for promotion, gets annoyed when he is assigned to work with an inexperienced junior Eun-young (Lee Na-young) for what looks like a suicide case. Eun-young finds out that it is a murder case involving a giant wolf-dog. Being the only female detective in her team, socially inept Eun-young endures low expectations, lewd jokes and even sexual harassment by her macho team members. W