The Korea Times

Cheong Wa Dae opens to public after 74 years

The main gate of Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul is being opened, Tuesday, during a celebratory event to mark the full opening of the former presidential office and residence. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukBuilding interiors still remain closedBy Kwak Yeon-sooCheong Wa Dae, the presidential office and residence for more than seven decades, has been transformed from a secluded place for the president and presidential staff, to an open space for everybody. It was opened to the public for the first time in 74 years on Tuesday, the day of the inauguration of President Yoon Suk-yeol, who promised to return the compound to the public and relocate the presidential office to the defense ministry building in Yongsan District.Cheong Wa Dae has been the site of the presidential office and residence since the Republic of Korea government was established in 1948. However, President Yoon has repeatedly declared that he would never move into Cheong Wa Dae, calling it a symbol of Korea's legacy of imperial presidencies.People approach the main gate of Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Tuesday, during a celebratory

May 10, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

Cheong Wa Dae opens to public after 74 years

Films

Award-winning actor Kang Soo-youn passes away

Actor Kang Soo-youn / Korea Times fileKang, 55, was first Asian actress to win at Venice film festivalBy Kwak Yeon-sooKang Soo-youn, a pioneer and legend of the Korean new wave cinema who became the first Asian actor to win a Venice International Film Festival award, died on Saturday at the age of 55.She died of a cerebral hemorrhage at around 3 p.m. at a hospital in southern Seoul, two days after suffering a cardiac arrest. She had been receiving medical treatment after falling unconscious at her home on Thursday. Kang's memorial service has been set up at Samsung Medical Center in Seoul. Her family will receive visitors from Sunday to Tuesday between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. The funeral ceremony will be held on Wednesday at 10 a.m. and broadcast live through the Korean Film Council's YouTube channel, according to the funeral committee led by Kim Dong-ho, former chairperson of the board of the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF). “Kang broke boundaries with her fearless performances. Winning two major international awards, she was the first generation world-class actor. She al

May 8, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

Award-winning actor Kang Soo-youn passes away

Films

INTERVIEW French filmmaker brings AI robot to war zones

French filmmaker Florent Marcie, left, and his humanoid robot Sota witness the yellow vest movement in France in 2018. Courtesy of Adnan FarzatSocial media, internet and AI are revolutionizing people's perceptions of warBy Kwak Yeon-sooAs somebody born a generation after two world wars, French filmmaker Florent Marcie never experienced war. However, his willingness to keep the knowledge about the past made him wonder, “What is war exactly?” “Now we are all against war, but just one generation before I was born, France was fighting against Germany. War shaped my country, culture and identity of being French. So I decided to see with my own eyes and find out 'what is war?'” he said during a recent interview with The Korea Times. He traveled to Eastern Europe during the Soviet era, and South Africa during the Apartheid era. Witnessing the Romanian Revolution in 1989 inspired him to dedicate his life to filming mostly war and conflict zones. “It was a very intense experience to meet people who participate in the revolution and fight for their rights. Then I

May 6, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

[INTERVIEW] French filmmaker brings AI robot to war zones

Films

'Doctor Strange 2' has massive opening day, smashes pandemic record

A scene from the film, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” / Courtesy of Walt Disney Company Korea By Kwak Yeon-soo“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” the latest movie in the Marvel series, notched a massive opening day at the Korean box office, Wednesday, by bringing in 7.4 billion won ($5.9 million).That is the highest grossing opening of any movie during the pandemic, according to data from the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). It surpassed 2021's “Spider-Man: No Way Home” which opened with a 6.2 billion won.As of Thursday 9:30 a.m., the “Doctor Strange” sequel attracted over 1.3 million ticket sales, grossing over 13.7 billion won. It topped over 1 million presold tickets.The flm stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Elizabeth Olsen as Dr. Stephen Strange and Wanda Maximoff, respectively. Dr. Strange dives back into the multiverse and unleashes more threats than he can handle, including what appears to be an evil version of himself. It is directed by Sa

May 5, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

'Doctor Strange 2' has massive opening day, smashes pandemic record

Books

INTERVIEW Lee So-eun tells of her workplace struggles, identity crisis

Singer-turned-lawyer Lee So-eun / Courtesy of Suo BooksSinger-turned-lawyer discusses her new book, "Who I Am Now is Enough"By Kwak Yeon-sooFor singer-turned-lawyer Lee So-eun, writing a book is a chance to stop and reflect upon a period in all its complexity, to make sense of her choices and record those moments in her own words. After she left the music industry to attend Northwestern University's law school in the U.S. in 2009, she wrote about her experiences, growth and thoughts about her career change in her first book, “Ttanttara Girl Goes to Law School” (2012). Lee debuted in 1998 at the age of 16 with her album, “Girl.” She juggled studying and performing onstage during her high school and college years. After graduating from college here, Lee said she craved a change and appreciated the broader skill set that a law school could provide.The case of her father being wrongfully fired from a university for participating in the democracy movement during the 1980s authoritarian regime also acted as a catalyst for change.“I believed a legal education w

May 4, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

[INTERVIEW] Lee So-eun tells of her workplace struggles, identity crisis

Films

Benedict Cumberbatch talks about evolution of his character in Doctor Strange sequel

Actor Benedict Cumberbatch waves to Korean reporters during an online press conference for the film, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” Monday. Courtesy of Walt Disney Korea By Kwak Yeon-sooActor Benedict Cumberbatch, who is returning with Marvel's “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” said the evolution of his character has been interesting ― going from a neurosurgeon with egotistical pride to a selfless hero acting for the greater good.On reprising his role as Dr. Stephen Strange in six years, the actor said the sorcerer has been pretty busy shooting six films to date, including “Thor: Ragnarok” (2017) “Avengers: Infinity War” (2018), “Avengers: Endgame,” (2019) and “Spiderman: No Way Home” (2021).“Just before 'Spider-Man,' Doctor Strange was omnipotent. He sees human flaws in 'Spider-Man,' but still is insistent to be the one in control. My task was to adjust the balance in him, and exhibit different variation of my character,” Cumberbatch sa

May 2, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

Benedict Cumberbatch talks about evolution of his character in Doctor Strange sequel

Films

Jeonju International Film Festival highlights auteur Lee Chang-dong's universe

Director Lee Chang-dong speaks during a press conference for “Lee Chang-dong: The Truth of the Invisible” at Jung Bu Vision Center in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, Friday. Courtesy of JIFFBy Kwak Yeon-sooJEONJU, North Jeolla Province ― Director Lee Chang-dong has been passionately devoted to Korean cinema throughout his 25-year career. This year's Jeonju International Film Festival (JIFF) will screen six of Lee's films remastered in 4K digitally-restored versions. “Lee Chang-dong: The Art of Irony,” a documentary directed by French director Alain Mazars, as well as Lee's short film, “Heartbeat,” produced with the support of the World Health Organization (WHO), will have their world premieres at the festival.Lee talked about the challenges of shooting a film amid a pandemic and being the subject of a documentary film. “As far as I know, I was the last person to join the WHO's project of using short films to create awareness about depression. However, I was the first one to complete it. It's weird because it usually takes a long time for me to

Apr 29, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

Jeonju International Film Festival highlights auteur Lee Chang-dong's universe

Films

23rd Jeonju film festival kicks off with premiere of Kogonada's sci-fi film

Actors Jang Hyun-sung and Yoo In-na host the opening ceremony of the 23rd Jeonju International Film Festival at Jeonju Dome in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, Thursday. Korea Times photo by Kwak Yeon-sooBy Kwak Yeon-sooJEONJU, North Jeolla Province ― The 23rd Jeonju International Film Festival (JIFF), an annual celebration of indie films, kicked off on Thursday night as moviegoers flocked to Jeonju Dome for the sold-out premiere of “Pachinko” director Kogonada's new sci-fi film, “After Yang.” The festival will run through May 7.Under the slogan “Film Goes On,” the festival is being held offline for the first time in three years, screening 217 films from 52 countries. The 21st edition took place entirely online, while last year's event was held in a much scaled-down, hybrid format. This year, 112 out of the 217 films will be made available for online streaming via ONFIFN as well. The opening ceremony was hosted by actors Jang Hyun-sung and Yoo In-na.“For the past eight years of serving as the chairman of the festival, I always kept in mind that

Apr 29, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

23rd Jeonju film festival kicks off with premiere of Kogonada's sci-fi film

Entertainment

Innovation critical for continued growth of hallyu

Kim Hyun-hwan, vice minister of culture, sports and tourism, gives a welcoming speech during the first K-Culture Conference titled, “The Spirit of the Times as Reflected in K-culture,” held both online and offline, Wednesday. Courtesy of Ministry of Culture, Sports and TourismBy Kwak Yeon-sooThe Korean Wave, or hallyu, is a powerful force in the U.S. and the world is practically obsessed with all things Korean, including K-pop, K-beauty, K-film and K-drama, acknowledged Stephen Duncombe, professor of media and culture at New York University.Sharing a video clip of ADG7, a shamanic funk band in Korea, Duncombe claimed that promoting lesser-known experimental artists is critical as the next growth engine of hallyu. This would allow K-culture to achieve sustainable development and social innovation, according to the professor.“Hallyu needs to innovate in its own cultural scene. Korea needs to promote incredible innovative artists and call it 'hallyu 2.0' or 'Alt hallyu.' Artists and performers are not products, so they cannot be packaged. If you want Korean Wave to con

Apr 28, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

Innovation critical for continued growth of hallyu

Films

Jun Jong-seo to star in new action film

From left, actors Jun Jong-seo, Kim Ji-hoon and Park Yu-rim / Courtesy of My Company, bnt, BH EntertainmentBy Kwak Yeon-sooActor Jun Jong-seo will star in director Lee Chung-hyun's new action film “Ballerina,” which will be produced by Climax Studio and released on Netflix. This is Jun's second collaboration with Lee, her boyfriend, after “The Call” (2020), a thriller film about two women living two decades apart but become connected through an old phone. The new action thriller film follows the story of former security guard Ok-ju (Jun), who sets out on a quest for vengeance against Mr. Choi (Kim Ji-hoon) upon her best friend's request.Jun will portray a strong female character who risks her life to complete a dangerous mission. Her character Ok-ju is adept at martial arts, handling weapons and riding motorcycles. Kim, who took on the role of a psychotic murderer in tvN's “Evil Flower,” will play the villain in the film. This marks Jun and Kim's second collaboration following the Korean adaptation of Netflix's Spanish crime series “Money Hei

Apr 26, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

Kwak Yeon-soo

Read more

Cheong Wa Dae opens to public after 74 years

Award-winning actor Kang Soo-youn passes away

INTERVIEW French filmmaker brings AI robot to war zones

'Doctor Strange 2' has massive opening day, smashes pandemic record

INTERVIEW Lee So-eun tells of her workplace struggles, identity crisis

Benedict Cumberbatch talks about evolution of his character in Doctor Strange sequel

Jeonju International Film Festival highlights auteur Lee Chang-dong's universe

23rd Jeonju film festival kicks off with premiere of Kogonada's sci-fi film

Innovation critical for continued growth of hallyu

Jun Jong-seo to star in new action film

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