11 works to compete at Jeonju film festival

Jeonju International Film Festival on Thursday announced its lineup for this year’s Korean competition section, consisting of 11 films including three documentaries. Among them, nine will be screened as world premieres.

A total of eight feature films have been included in the lineup, including Yang Ji-eun’s “Sook-hee,” a film about female sexuality with an unusual narrative, and “Monkeys,” which deals satirically with Korea’s independent film scene. 

Jang Woo-jin’s “Fall Break” tells the story of an impoverished young man, while Yoo Young-seon’s “Witch” deals with issues of morality and ethics and has an unpredictable female protagonist. Mo Hyeon-shin’s “Pohang” tackles themes of poverty and labor, while Lee Won-hee’s “You Are My Vampire” is said to combine different film genres.

Lee Gyeong-sub’s “Under-aged” is a film that uses images from both dreams and reality, while the omnibus film “Ready Action Youth” is a collaboration by four emerging Korean filmmakers that explores the lives of young people in the country.

The three documentaries include “600,000 Tries,” which examines the lives of young ethnic Korean rugby players living in Japan. Filmmaker Kim Ji-gon’s “Musicians” is a film about Busan-based musicians who have been active since the 1970s. Park Kyung-kun’s “A Dream of Iron,” which won the NETPAC Award for Best Asian Film at this year’s Berlin International Film Festival, has also been included in the lineup.

The filmmaker pitched the idea for the documentary, which uniquely deals with modern South Korean history using fascinating images of the POSCO steelmaking plant, at Jeonju International Film Festival’s Jeonju Promotion Documentary Pitching Session. His pitch won supporting funds from the program that year.

Directors Lee Gyeong-sub and Kim Ji-gon’s previous works ― “Mr. Vertigo” and “Grandma ― Cement Garden” ― were featured at last year’s JIFF.

Launched in 2000, JIFF is one of the biggest Asian film festivals and a supporter of independent and experimental film projects in Korea. It is also known for introducing unconventional works by up-and-coming filmmakers from around the world.

In 2011, a total of 11 Korean films were invited to international festivals after being featured at JIFF, including Yi Seung-jun’s documentary “Planet of Snail,” which later won the top prize at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, as well as Lee Young-mi’s sensual drama “Secrets, Objects,” which later was invited to the 25th Montreal World Film Festival and the 33rd Moscow International Film Festival.

Located in North Jeolla Province, Jeonju, famous for its bibimbap and hanok village, is one of the most popular tourist spots in southern Korea.

This year’s Jeonju International Film Festival runs from May 1 to 10 at various venues in the city.

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)