KIXFF kicks off Oscar fever in Seoul

By Celeste Kriel

KIXFF founder Kevin Lambert at its first pre-Oscars party fundraiser

Oscar fever has begun. To celebrate this year’s Academy Awards to take place on Sunday in Hollywood, the Korea International Expat Film Festival (KIXFF) team will host a pre-Oscars party at Emu Artspace in Gwanghamun, Seoul, Saturday, with a best-dressed award and live performances by expat and Korean musicians.

KIXFF is a nonprofit organization established in 2015 by Kevin Lambert, a director in the expat theater and film community. It relies on donations for its operation, so the party serves as a fundraiser as well as spreading awareness about the KIXFF film festival to be held in September. “Our festival will screen movies that have never been seen by a big audience in Seoul and therefore we want people to come and enjoy them with us when the time comes,” said Lynne Lambert, the KIXFF marketing and events coordinator.

KIXFF aims to bring films with an "expat perspective" to Seoul. “It is an important festival because it became apparent to Kevin that the experience of the expat, not just in Korea but of those living all over the world, is a unique one and films that come from this point of view deserve to be celebrated,” Lynne Lambert said.

Guests in attendance can expect eclectic entertainment of the highest quality with a performance by renowned cellist Kim Lucia Won-Jung from Moment House Music accompanied by Jung Chang-hyeon on piano. Kim Schroeder and Sean Levitas will sing and play ethereal folksie jams, while Boomba Entertainment and beatboxer Park Sang-don provide hip-hop.

Lambert recommends guests come “red carpet ready” as the dress code is “formal with a touch of gold.”

There will be prizes for best-dressed guests and the winners of two games: an Oscar winners prediction contest and a fake acceptance speech contest. This year’s pre-Oscars party will be in celebration of women in film with all-women presenters and hosts, with Greta C. Wink as emcee. Performers from the House of Tease, a burlesque troupe based in Seoul, will lend glamor and extravagance to the event by presenting awards and previews of the 2018 Best Picture nominees as a prelude to the real Oscars ceremony the next day.

Guests can have their picture taken on the red carpet by photographer Robert Evans. Meal delivery service and catering company Sprout will provide vegetarian finger food for the evening, and of course no Oscars party would be complete without “goodie-bags,” sponsored by CLIO cosmetics, Seoneemall and Healience.

The party is from 7 p.m. to 12 a.m., and tickets are 25,000 won or 30,000 won at the door. Visit Facebook.com/kixff for more information.