Saluting grassroots

Lee Sang-woo’s “Dear Dictator,” which follows what happens when three teenagers find a North Korean spy strolling in their neighborhood, is among the highly anticipated works for this year’s Jeonju International Film Festival. / Courtesy of JIFF

Jeonju International Film Festival to highlight independent cinema

By Jason Bechervaise

The Jeonju International Film Festival (JIFF), which kicks off on Thursday, has grown into a major film industry event since its launching in 2000. But organizers have made a number of changes this year to renew the focus on the festival’s grassroots ― independent and alternative cinema.

"Since its beginning, JIFF focused on independent and alternative films. The 15th JIFF looks back on the first festival to keep that in mind and consolidate the identity of JIFF,’’ Ko Suk-man, the festival’s director, told The Korea Times.

“JIFF selected many fresh independent films to fit into the identity that JIFF has. JIFF, in the future as well, will support Korean independent films to seek improvements in quality and quantity of independent films.”

While last year’s program was highlighted by commercial films, art house and independent films are generating the most conversation entering this year’s event.

Lee Song Hee-il’s, ``Night Flight,’’ a drama about a gay couple facing violence and abuse, and Lee Sang-woo’s ``Dear Dictator,’’ which follows what happens when three teenagers find a North Korean spy strolling in their neighborhood, are among the highly-anticipated works in the festival’s Korean Cinemascape section.

In the Korean competition program, which consists of eight fiction films and three documentary films, Ko said ``the audience could find diversity and rising directors’ potential through the films.”

“Among them, I would like to focus on `One For All, All For One,’ a documentary film that captures a story of rugby team at a Korean Japanese school. I wonder how the audience would react as it was released in Japan in March and has brought wide sensations to the audiences in Japan.”

Opening the festival this year will be`` Mad Sad Bad,’’ a three-part, three-dimensional (3D) film by renowned directors Ryoo Seung-wan (The Berlin File, 2013), Han Ji-seung (Papa, 2012) and Kim Tae-yong (Late Autumn, 2010).

“There was a mutual agreement among the programmers to pick a Korean film as the opening film. As they heard that three renowned directors are producing 3D omnibus projects from the Korean Academy of Film Arts, they contacted those directors. `Mad Sad Bad’ seemed meaningful in that those directors with unique characteristics show their individual styles through a film,’’ Ko said.

While experimental works by Korean filmmakers are expected to set the tone, the JIFF will also feature a comprehensive international lineup, screening 181 films from 46 different countries, including 40 world premieres.

The festival’s Special Focus program will examine the works of a variety of influential filmmakers, including Ingmar Bergman, Leos Carax and Roberto Rossellini, through a series of documentaries. The program will also shed light on the early documentaries made by leading filmmakers such as the Dardenne brothers, Hirokazu Koreeda and Ulrich Seidl.

Ko said that the aim of the Special Focus section is to put a spotlight on the ``origin of films.’’

“Understanding the context of scenario writers, their concerns since the birth of cinema, will lead to understand modern cinema in-depth,’’ he said.

This year’s event will also represent a number of administrative changes for JIFF.

“For the first seven days, program events and other events will be held whereas the last three days after the Awards Ceremony, award winner films and films that were in the limelight during the fest will be screened,’’ Ko said.

“At the Awards Ceremony on May 7, instead of a Closing Ceremony, the Grand Prize winner film of International Competition will be screened … It seeks to draw attention to the competition section, which is the most popular aspect of the international film festival to look back on the fest through the outcomes for three days.’’

Another significant change to this year’s edition is the Jeonju Digital Project, which will now be three features as opposed to one feature consisting of three shorts combining the festival’s signature programs: Jeonju Digital Project and Short! Short! Short! with Hungarian filmmaker Gyorgy Palfi and local directors Shin Youn-shick and Park Jung-bum premiering their latest works.

Accepting that short films have limited opportunities, this enhances “the bond with the film industry through producing various feature films domestic and international, distributing those projects through JIFF, and thus expanding the scope of JIFF could take,’’ Ko said.

This year, the festival has also recently announced a number of changes owing to the Sewol ferry sinking disaster. Through a press release the organizing committee said JIFF has made the decision “to modify and cancel some of the programs to express its condolences.”

Among the changes include the red carpet events for the opening gala and awards ceremony along with the receptions that take place afterwards, which have all been cancelled, while 31 performances by 20 groups have also been cancelled. Additionally, the official trailer before each screening will include a message of condolence for the victims and the bereaved.

The Jeonju International Film Festival takes place from May 1st – 10th.

Jason Bechervaise is a movie columnist for The Korea Times. ― ED.