JEonJU JAUNT
Korea’s second largest generalist film event the Jeonju International Film Festival has set eight fiction films by first or second-time feature directors, for its main competition.
They are “Cu Li Never Cries,” by Pham Ngoc Lan; “Junkyard Dog,” by Jean-Baptiste Durand, “La Palisiada,” by Philip Sotnychenko; “My Endless Numbered Days,” by Shaun Neo; “Oxygen Station,” by Ivan Tymchenko; “Practice,” by Laurens Perol; “The Major Tones,” by Ingrid Pokropek; and “The Permanent Picture,” by Laura Ferres.
Additionally, two documentary features also compete: “After the Snowmelt,” directed by Lo Yi-Shan and “Kix,” by Balint Revesz and David Mikulan.
The COVID-pandemic continues to affect filmmaking and festival selection, organizers said. “Even films planned to be made beforehand had to extend their production period due to the pandemic, and many works highlighted the limitations of the production environments, such as smaller cast numbers and minimal locations,” said chief programmer Chun Jinsu.
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The festival runs May 1-10 in Jeonju, a major town on South Korea’s west coast.
Its Korean competition section was announced earlier. Its ten fiction titles include: “A Chronicle in Spirals,” directed by Kim Yiso; Blanket Wearer,” by Park Jeongmi; “Mimang,” by Kim Taeyang; “My Missing Aunt,” by Yang Juyeon; “Autumn Note,” by Kim Sol; “Sister Yujeong,” by Chung Haeil; “Mother’s Kingdom,” by Lee Sanghak; “Silver Apricot,” by Jang Man-min; Deprivation, by Kim Solhae and Lee Dojin; and “Time to be Strong,” by Namkoong Sun.
CUSTOMS CLOSER
The Far East Film Festival in Italy’s Udine has confirmed that the world premiere screening of Herman Yau’s “Customs Frontline” has been set as the feature for its closing night gala. The action thriller sees acontainer ship appear in Hong Kong waters and customs officers board to inspect it. The team, which includes cocky inspector portrayed by Nicholas Tse, soon discovers the corpses of the crew and a huge cache of weapons, including an extremely valuable compass suitable for piloting a submarine. The customs officers don’t know it yet, but an international incident is about to blow up.” Yau and Tse will be on hand to present the film on an evening that also includes the presentation of Golden Mulberry lifetime awards to Zhang Yimou and Chiu Fu-sheng.
