The Many Faces of Korean Cinema
Now in its fourth year, the Korean Film Festival in Australia (KOFFIA) has grown by leaps and bounds and is gearing up for its 2013 edition that will be held across three cities down under starting August 14th under the slogan ‘The Many Faces of Korean Cinema.’ As with previous years, the fest will display the latest and greatest that Korean cinema has to offer as 17 critical and commercial hits will screen until the last leg of the fest closes on September 5th. KOFFIA 2013, which will take place in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, is presented by the Korean Cultural Office Australia (KCCA) and Samsung.
Kicking off proceedings in all three locations will be JO Sung-hee’s hit fantasy melodrama A Werewolf Boy, starring SONG Joong-ki and PARK Bo-young, which enthralled seven million viewers late last year. Each city edition of KOFFIA will also close with CHOI Dong-hoon’s 2012 summer hit The Thieves. Featuring a glitzy cast that includes, KIM Yun-seok, LEE Jeong-jae, KIM Hye-soo, Gianna JUN, the caper action-thriller scored just shy of 13 million admissions last summer, becoming the second biggest hit in Korea’s history.
As with previous years, KOFFIA’s program is broken down into themed pairings reflecting the diversity of Korean cinema. ‘Discover Yourself’ will pair tow films that explore the theme of identity. Masquerade, period drama starring LEE Byung-hun, became a hit last fall after accruing over 12 million admissions in Korea. Joining it will be the animation Approved for Adoption, a co-production between Belgium, France, Korea and Switzerland.
Edgy indie thrillers will be the focus of ‘Dark Matter’, a sidebar which features KIM Ki-duk’s Golden Lion winning Pieta and the high school revenge film Pluto from director SHIN Su-won, who will be a guest of the festival this year. The family films Miracle in Cell No. 7 and Boomerang Family will comprise the ‘My Weird and Wonderful Family’ section. A surprise hit earlier this year, the prison melodrama became the third most successful Korean film of all time. Boomerang Family, which was recently picked up for distribution in the UK by Third Window Films, combines stars PARK Hae-il, KONG Hyo-jin and YOON Je-moon under one roof as a dysfunctional family.
‘Love is...’ will feature romantic fare such as the hit melodrama Architecture 101 from Possessed (2009) director LEE Yong-ju and the romcom Watcha Wearin’. ‘Reach for the Stars’ will explore stardom through screenings of the LEE Je-hoon and HAN Suk-kyu drama My Paparotti, about a young gang member who dreams of becoming an opera singer, and the documentary 9 Muses of Star Empire, which exposes the harsh reality of what it takes to become a K-pop star.
‘Crime and Punishment’, a sidebar that was very successful during KOFFIA’s 2011 edition, is back with screenings of RYOO Seung-wan’s hit spy action film The Berlin File, starring HA Jung-woo, HAN Suk-kyu, Gianna JUN and RYOO Seung-beom, and YOON Jong-bin’s gritty period gangster film Nameless Gangster, again starring HA Jung-woo, this time alongside ace Korean thesp CHOI Min-sik. ‘Push Me to the Edge’ will feature recent blockbusters Fist of Legend, the MMA action-drama starring HWANG Jeong-min, YOO Joon-sang and YOON Je-moon, and the big-budget inferno disaster flick The Tower, with SOL Kyung-gu and SON Ye-jin.
The ‘Director’s Spotlight’ will focus on the latest works from a pair of directors recognized at the Cannes Film Festilva. Stoker, the new film by PARK Chan-wook, whose Oldboy picked up the Grand Jury prize at Cannes in 2004, will be screened ahead of its Australian release, and MOON Byung-gun will attend and screen his short Safe, which picked up the Short Film Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes. Finally, a selection of 10 shorts, picked out of a batch a submissions, will compete in the ‘Korean Short Film Showcase.’ As a bonus, KIM Dong-ho’s Jury will also screen as part of this section.
According to KOFFIA’s Artistic Director Kieran Tully “KOFFIA 2013 feels like somewhat of a re-birth of the festival, as we move to a new multiplex venue in Sydney and Brisbane.” As with previous years, many events will run alongside the festival, such as a Cinema Forum, a K-Pop Dance Showcase and a Josen Dynasty Experience. KOFFIA will also feature top guests “This year we welcome our first female director (Shin Su-won), our first actress (Kim Kko-bbi) and our first short filmmaker (Moon Byoung-gon) and so we are really excited for what is to come of this years festival.”
KOFFIA kicks off in Brisbane from August 14th to 18th, then move on to Sydney where it will run over August 21-29, before finishing up with its Melbourne leg from September 5th to 11th. Tully believes that “KOFFIA 2013 will truly highlight the many faces of Korean cinema, showcasing diverse aspects of the Korean film industry. We know people are excited for it, and so are we!”