When Theresa Kang read “Pachinko,” by Korean American author Lee Min-jin, around four years ago, she felt that the book captured the feeling of being Korean very well. “It was a story about Korean history but also Korean immigration and the diaspora. I thought it covered a lot of ground and it was a point of view of Zainichi that I haven’t heard about within the Korean diaspora before. At least not onscreen or on the page,” she said in an interview via Zoom with T

South Korean model and actor Jung Ho-yeon, who rose to global stardom in the Netflix hit series “Squid Game,” will star in Joe Talbot’s sophomore feature “The Governesses,” according to the actor’s agency Saram Entertainment on Thursday. Talbot is a director known for his critically acclaimed debut feature “The Last Black Man in San Francisco.“ A24, the company behind “Minari” directed by Lee Isaac Chung, is to produce Talbot‘s

Vanishing (France) Opened March 30 Crime Directed by Denis Dercourt Alice (Olga Kurylenko) is a forensics scientist, widely known for inventing a revolutionary technique that can restore the damaged skin of corpses. She receives a request from the Korean police to apply her technique to an unidentified corpse found in a river. With help from Alice, Jin-ho (Yoo Yeon-seok), a detective, learns the case is connected to an organ trafficking syndicate. Hot Blooded (Korea) Opened March 23 Cri

Director Kim Ji-hoon’s new film, “I Want to See Your Parent’s Face,” tells a deeply uncomfortable story about school bullying. The cast, who have come to realize the weight of the subject matter, pleaded with moviegoers to come to the theater to watch the film during an online press conference held Thursday. “Since the movie is about school bullying, audiences might feel uncomfortable watching it. Even though it can be uncomfortable, I think it is a topic that w

There has been no shortage of Hollywood spy movies, but we have not seen many well-made Asian spy films, Na Hyeon who directed the Netflix movie “Yaksha: Ruthless Operations,” said during an online press conference held Tuesday. “Through Netflix, I think we can show the world that an Asian spy movie also can be entertaining,” Na added. Na’s film introduces Kang-in (Sol Kyung-gu), a ruthless leader of a secret National Intelligence Service team who is also known a

“Squid Game” director Hwang Dong-hyuk’s next film will ”surely be another controversial film,“ according to the director. Hwang revealed the working title for his new project, “K.O Club,” also known as “Killing Old People Club,” during a panel session on Monday at MipTV, an international trade fair for TV and media that takes place in parallel with the Cannes International Series Festival from April 4 to 6. “It will be more violent t

Actor Son Ho-jun, who rose to stardom after appearing in tvN’s hit drama “Reply 1994,” said his latest project challenged him to build on-screen chemistry with an unlikely co-star -- a car. Son, who was cast as the main lead in the movie “Stellar” directed by Kwon Soo-kyung, said it was much harder than working with human actors. “Performing with a car was not easy since there was no reaction from it,” Son said during an interview with a group of repo

The upcoming Jeonju International Film Festival will feature 217 films, including works by “Hellbound” director Yeon Sang-ho and “Pachinko” creator Kogonada, its organizing committee said Thursday during a press conference at CGV Yongsan in central Seoul. The 23rd edition of Jeonju IFF will kick off April 28 and run through May 7 at five theaters in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province. It will be an online-offline hybrid festival, similar to last year, but the committee sa

Hot Blooded (Korea) Opened March 23 Crime, Action Directed by Cheon Myoung-kwan In 1993 in Kuam, a small port town outside Busan, third-rate gangster Hee-su acts as a hotel manager under Don Son (Kim Kap-soo). One day, Yong-kang (Choi Mu-sung), who fled the country suspected of murder, returns home and begins causing trouble. Hee-su finds out that the trouble was caused by the drugs that Yong-kang has been smuggling. Moonfall (US) Opened March 16 Science-fiction Directed by Roland Emmer

For Korean star Yoo Yeon-seok, an opportunity to work with actors and staff from different countries was something that he has been longing to do. “I always had lots of interest in global projects but unfortunately I did not have much opportunity,” Yoo said during his interview with a group of local reporters via videoconference Tuesday. He finally got the chance to work on the global project “Vanishing” directed by French director Denis Dercourt in the fall of 2020.

Local news outlets and netizens complimented actor Youn Yuh-jung for using American Sign Language in presenting the best supporting actor Oscar to Troy Kotsur for his role in “CODA.” At the award ceremony held at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, Youn first signed Kotsur’s win before carefully pronouncing his name. She also held the Oscar trophy for Kotsur, who made history as the first deaf male actor to win the top prize, as he signed his acceptance speech. &ldqu

Three Korean actors -- Park Yu-rim, Jin Dae-yeon and Ahn Hwi-tae -- attended the 94th Academy Awards ceremony Monday and celebrated the Japanese film “Drive My Car” directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi winning the best international feature film award. During Hamaguchi’s acceptance speech, the director expressed his gratitude toward the actors, including the three Korean actors. “I also would like to thank the actors here. Nishijima Hidetoshi, Okada Masaki, Kirishima Reika, P

Oscar-winning actor Youn Yuh-jung on Monday presented the award for best performance by an actor in a supporting role to Troy Kotsur of “CODA” at the 94th Academy Awards held at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles. The veteran Korean actor presented the award wearing a black dress with a blue ribbon pin that says “#WithRefugees,“ showing her support for Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees. “My mother used to say ‘you reap what you sow.’ I should have listened

Top actor Gang Dong-won has signed with the US-based talent agency Creative Artists Agency, US entertainment publication Variety reported Friday. While he will continue to be represented in Korea by his current agency YG Entertainment, Gang’s international representation will be made by the CAA. The 41-year-old model-turned-actor made his name hit movies including “Romance of Their Own” (2004), “Jeon Woochi: The Taoist Wizard” (2009), “A Violent Prosecutor&

Hot Blooded (Korea) Opened March 23 Crime, Action Directed by Cheon Myoung-kwan In 1993 in Kuam, a small port town outside Busan, third-rate gangster Hee-su acts like a hotel manager under Don Son (Kim Kap-soo). One day, Yong-kang (Choi Mu-sung), who fled the country suspected of murder, returns home and begins causing trouble. Hee-su finds out that the trouble was caused by the drugs that Yong-kang has been smuggling. Spencer (UK) Opened March 16 Drama Directed by Pablo Larraín