Canneseries-invited 'TAROT' will tell stories of people attempting to defy fate

Structured within a unique omnibus format, horror flick "TAROT" will tell the stories of individuals who try to challenge their destinies, the director said Wednesday.

Produced by Studio X+U, "TAROT" is originally an omnibus drama series consisting of seven episodes. The series follows the stories of individuals who face ominous events predicted by tarot cards.

For the movie version, three episodes from the series -- "Do You Believe in Santa?," "Going Home" and "Delivery Call" -- have been chosen to create a 94-minute-long film. The three episodes each feature actor Cho Yeo-jeong, Ko Gyu-pil and Kim Jin-young as the protagonists, respectively.

The director said that through "TAROT" he aimed to tell the stories of people who attempt to defy their predestined fates.

"While we lead our lives with our own will, we often face significant destinies that cannot be overcome by willpower alone. 'TAROT' explores the stories of individuals who possess the determination to resist fate. (In order to portray this,) we endeavored to depict real-life characters with a documentary-style approach," said Choi Byung-gil, the director of "TAROT" during a press conference held in Yongsan, central Seoul, Wednesday.

"Do you believe in Santa?" from "TAROT" became the nation's first title that was invited to compete in the short film competition section of the Cannes International Series Festival held in April.

In this episode, Cho portrays a single mother grappling to raise her daughter. As the plot unfolds, she encounters a string of ominous occurrences after receiving a tarot card.

Cho said in regard to the episode being invited to Canneseries, she hoped "TAROT" would assist in popularizing Korean drama series globally.

"I was surprised more than anyone to hear that (the episode) was selected for the Canneseries competition. I was already fully satisfied with the production process, so this felt like an unexpected bonus. I felt good knowing that I could contribute, even a little, to promoting Korean dramas," said Cho.

The invitation of "Do you believe in Santa?" to Canneseries marks Cho's return to Cannes since attending the Cannes Film Festival for her appearance in "Parasite" in 2019.

"TAROT" also marks Kim Jin-young's debut as a movie star. Kim is more popularly known here as television personality Dex. Kim gained widespread popularity by his appearance in Netflix hit dating reality series "Single's Inferno."

"I took on the role because I was confident I could portray the character well. It's not just about getting a taste of (acting); now, I'm thinking about it seriously," said Kim.

"Feeling passionate and grounded, I used the name Kim Jin-young (in promoting 'TAROT') instead of Dex. By doing this, I wanted to make a clear distinction between appearing in variety shows and acting," he added.

"TAROT" will hit local theaters on Friday.