Hwang Jung-Min 황정민 [Upcoming Movies: “12.12: The Day”, “Mission Cross”, “Veteran 2”, “Hope”]

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November 20, 2015

All best actor nominees a 'no show' at Daejong awards

SEOUL, Nov. 20 (Yonhap) -- All best actor nominees for South Korea's oldest film awardshow this year will not be attending the event on Friday, as the institution remains mired in controversy.

This year's best actor nominees for the Daejong Film Awards are Hwang Jung-min of "Ode to My Father," Son Hyun-joo of "Chronicles of Evil," Yoo Ah-in of "The Throne," and Ha Jung-woo of "Assassination," all of whom will be absent, the organizers said.

The five best actress nominees -- Kim Yun-jin of "Ode to My Father," Jun Ji-hyun of "Assassination," Kim Hye-soo of "Coin Locker Girl," Uhm Jung-hwa of "Wonderful Nightmare," and Han Hyo-joo of "Beauty Inside" -- will also miss the event.

The same goes for Kim Soo-hyun and Gong Hyo-jin who have been chosen as best actor and actress by an online vote.

Most cited scheduling conflicts and overseas business trips as the reason, but the Daejong Film Awards has recently suffered a blow to its image as the most prestigious movie honors in South Korea.

Last month, the awards committee announced it would rescind the honors if the winners were absent at the ceremony, causing backlash from the acting community.

The paid nature of the online voting system also raised concerns that the committee was exploiting movie fans for profit.

The logistics side of the organization proved problematic after the committee flip-flopped on its decision to create a new awards category. It also listed the profile of another actress as that of a best new actress nominee.

But organizers remained firm in their policy and vowed to go ahead with the ceremony.

"The Daejong Film Awards is an honor given out by our citizens," Cho Geun-woo, the awards' business manager, said. "I think the nominees who decided not to come have the wrong attitude."

   The 52nd Daejong Film Awards will be broadcast live on KBS 2TV from 7:20 p.m.

sojungpark@yna.co.kr

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November 21, 2015

'Ode to My Father' sweeps through Daejong Film Awards

SEOUL, Nov. 21 (Yonhap) -- "Ode to My Father" has earned 10 trophies at Daejong Film Awards, taking biggest prizes for the best film, directing and actor, though the country's most prestigious award show lost luster over the absence of key nominees.

During the 52nd edition of the Daejong (Grand Bell) Film Awards taken place in Seoul on Friday, the film on the country's modern history grabbed 10 awards out of 24 categories, including the best picture, the best directing (Yoon Je-kyoon), the best actor in a leading role (Hwang Jung-min) and the best actor in a supporting role (Oh Dal-soo), its organizer said Saturday.

Shown is a poster at a movie theater in Seoul on Jan. 14, 2015, of "Ode to My Father." (Yonhap file photo) Shown is a poster at a movie theater in Seoul on Jan. 14, 2015, of "Ode to My Father." (Yonhap file photo)

It depicted the story of an ordinary father who sacrificed himself to support his family through the country's turbulent modern history from the 1950-53 Korean War till recently.

Jun Ji-hyun of "Assassination" was chosen as the best actress in a leading role, and Kim Hae-sook of the period drama, "The Throne," won the best actress in a supporting role.

Hallyu star Lee Min-ho received the prize for the best rookie for his role in the action film "Gangnam 1970," and Kim Soo-hyun grabbed the honor of the most popular actor.

"I had kept thinking of how to have everyone understand each other when making the film," director Yoon said upon receiving the prize. "I sincerely hope people in the film industry to be in harmony, putting themselves in someone else's shoes."

   His remarks reflected long-drawn controversies surrounding the country's oldest film awarding event, with actors harboring discontent with the organizing committee over its way of managing the show.

This year, in particular, all of the candidates in the best actor and actress categories failed to show up. Of the 24 categories, 11 honors were given on their behalf.

Though the committee vowed a policy of "no show, no award," no such withdrawal took place.

As South Korea's equivalent of the Academy Awards, the Daejong was launched in 1962 to boost the quality of Korean films and to support the industry.

graceoh@yna.co.kr

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November 21, 2015

Jun Ji-hyun, Hwang Jung-min win top awards at 52nd Daejong Film Awards

Actors Jun Ji-hyun ("Assassination") and Hwang Jung-min ("Ode To My Father") carried off top awards at the 52nd Daejong Film Awards held in Seoul on Friday. 

The two, however, opted out of attending the ceremony, citing pregnancy and conflicting schedules. 

This year, the vast majority of award winners did not turn up at Korea's oldest film festival, an apparent boycott which came after the announcement made by the organizers that actors who do not attend the ceremony would not receive honors. 

This year’s best actor nominees for the Daejong Film Awards are Hwang Jung-min of “Ode to My Father,” Yoo Ah-in of “The Throne,” Ha Jung-woo of “Assassination” and Son Hyun-joo of “Chronicles of Evil,” all of whom were absent from the event. 

The five best actress nominees -- Jun Ji-hyun of “Assassination,” Kim Hye-soo of “Coin Locker Girl,” Han Hyo-joo of “Beauty Inside” Kim Yu-jin from “Ode to Father” and Uhm Jung-hwa of “Wonderful Nightmare” -- did not turn up, either. 

By Ko Ji-seon (jiseonko@heraldcorp.com)

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November 21, 2015

'Ode To My Father' garners 10 awards @ 'Big Bell Awards'

Source: STARN News

Director Yoon Je Gyun's 'Ode To My Father' garnered 10 awards at 'The 52nd Big Bell Film Awards.'

On November 20th, 'The 52nd Big Bell Awards' was held at KBS Hall in Yeouido, Seoul.

The 'Best Film Award' was given to director Yoon Je Gyun's 'Ode To My Father,' which attracted 10 million viewers.

'Ode To My Father' also garnered 'Best Director Award,' 'Best Main Actor Award,' and 'Best Supporting Actor Award.'

'Ode To My Father' also received 'Best Recording Award,' 'Best Technology Award,' 'Best Editing Award,' 'Best Filming Award,' 'Best Production Award,' and 'Best Scenario Award.'

Director Yoon Je Gyun said, "I do not think that I received all of these award with my own talent. Hwang Jung Min, Kim Yoon Jin, Oh Dal Soo, and all of the other actors, actresses, and staffs earned these awards together. I would like to express sincere gratitude to each and every one of them."

Director Yoon added, "I also hope that everyone would show deep understanding for all of the actors, actresses, and staffs who could not attend this awards for many different reasons. I will keep doing my best to continue making contributions to Korean film industry."

Meanwhile, all of 'Best Main Actor' and 'Best Main Actress' nominees did not attend this year's 'Big Bell Film Awards.'

/Reporting by Lee Mi-Ji en@starnnews.com

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November 22, 2015

Stars absent from Daejong Film Awards

The 52nd Daejong Film Awards on Friday were not quite a star-studded affair as the nominees for top prizes, including Best Actor and Actress, skipped the annual ceremony. 

Although many nominees who did not attend gave reasons such as scheduling conflicts, others openly boycotted the awards, criticizing the organizing committee for poor management and lack of independence from the government.

The Daejong Film Awards organizers announced at a press conference on Oct. 14 that attendance at the actual ceremony would be prerequisite for winning awards, immediately provoking accusations it was giving out “attendance awards” to try to coerce stars into coming to the event. 

Soon after the announcement, all nine of the nominees for Best Actor and Best Actress said they would not be attending the ceremony for various reasons. The nominees included Hwang Jung-min (“Ode to My Father”), Ha Jung-woo (“Assassination”), Son Hyun-ju (“Chronicles of Evil”) and Yoo Ah-in (“Veteran,” “The Throne”) for Best Actor and Jun Ji-hyun (“Assassination”), Kim Yun-jin (“Ode to My Father”), Kim Hye-soo (“Coin Locker Girl”), Uhm Jeong-hwa (“Wonderful Nightmare”) and Han Hyo-joo (“The Beauty Inside”) for Best Actress.

Hwang Jung-min and Jun Ji-hyun were named the winners, but neither were present to accept the awards. They were not alone; a total of 11 categories found their winners absent from the scene. Kim Soo-hyun and Gong Hyo-jin, who had been voted Most Popular Actor and Actress, respectively, also did not attend to accept -- ostensibly because of complaints over Daejong’s decision to charge a fee to fans who voted. 

The ceremony was filled with awkward silences as the few stars who were present accepted trophies on the winners’ behalf. Director Lee Byoung-heon (“Twenty”), who was nominated for Best Director, was asked to accept the award for fellow nominee Baik (“The Beauty Inside”), although according to Lee the two directors had never met. 

The tension only escalated as the night progressed when it turned out that “Ode to My Father” won 10 categories, including Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Photography and Best Editing, leading director JK Youn to apologize out of embarrassment for coming up on stage so often during the event.

By Won Ho-jung and news reports (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)

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November 23, 2015

Red Faces at Daejong Film Awards as Stars Stay Home

Source: The Chosun Ilbo

What was touted as Korea's most prestigious movie awards turned into a farce Friday evening as none of the nominees for best actor and actress turned up. 

The nine nominated stars cited a variety of reasons for their absence from the annual Daejong Film Awards, from prior engagements to being out of the country, but it looked suspiciously like an organized boycott. 

But several others did criticize the organizers for poor management and lack of transparency.

Nominated for best actor were Hwang Jung-min in "Ode to My Father," Ha Jung-woo in "Assassination," Son Hyun-joo in "Chronicles of Evil," and Yu A-in in "Veteran" and "The Throne." 

For best actress they were Jeon Ji-hyun in "Assassination," Kim Yun-jin in "Ode to My Father," Kim Hye-soo in "Coin Locker Girl," Uhm Jung-hwa in "Wonderful Nightmare," and Han Hyo-joo in "The Beauty Inside."

The live broadcast on KBS 2TV occasionally cut to an empty front row, while those who did turn up looked none too happy when yet another winner's award was accepted on their behalf by someone else. 

The controversy over this year's awards began on Oct. 14, when the organizing committee warned in a press conference that actors would have to turn up if they wanted to win the award, and that if the winner failed to turn up the prize would go to the runner-up. 

The attempt at arm-twisting quickly backfired and soured public opinion against the organizers, who were accused of turning a prestigious award into a prize for turning up. 

First awarded in 1962 by what is now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the awards are now handled by the Motion Pictures Association of Korea. With a history of more than 50 years, they have been one of the largest celebrations for those working in the film industry but their reputation has been tarnished for some time. 

Cho Keun-woo of the organizing committee still refused to accept responsibility and said the fault lies with the actors' "attitude." 

Industry insiders said the scandal was a long time coming. Myung Films founder Shim Jae-myung said, "The Daejong Film Awards have had constant problems over the years, and their amateurish administration has finally blown up in the organizers' faces." 

"This is an opportunity to seriously and calmly look at the significance and reputation of the Daejeong Film Awards and think hard whether it needs to keep existing at all."

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November 25, 2015

Who will smile at Blue Dragon Awards?

The 36th Blue Dragon Film Awards, one of the major film award ceremonies in South Korea, will see 2015’s hit films contend for the top prizes on Thursday. 

Song Kang-ho, Yoo Ah-in, Jung Jae-young, Lee Jung-jae and Hwang Jung-min (OSEN)

Other annual awards include May’s Paeksang Arts Awards and November’s Korean Association of Film Critics Awards and Daejong Awards.

For the upcoming event, films “Ode to My Father,” “The Classified File,” “Assassination,” “Veteran” and “The Throne” were nominated for the Best Film Award.

“Assassination,” directed by Choi Dong-hoon and Caper Films production, drew attention this time as it boasts the highest number of cross-field nominations ? best film, director, main actor, main actress, supporting actor, filming, technique, script and more ? which came to a total of 12 nominees across 11 categories. 

“Veteran” was listed in 10 categories, “The Throne” in nine and “Ode to My Father” in eight.

The directors of the films -- Choi Dong-hoon of “Assassination,” Ryu Seung-wan of “Veteran,” Gwak Gyung-taek of “The Classified File,” Lee Joon-ik of “The Throne” and Yoon Je-kyoon of “Ode to My Father”-- will vie for the Best Director award. 

Both Best Film and Best Director awards from the 52nd Daejong Awards on Sunday had gone to “Ode to My Father,” while “The Throne” took the Best Film title and Ryu Seung-wan of “Veteran” the Best Director honor at the 35th Korean Association of Film Critics Awards last week. 

The industry is keenly watching whether “Assassination” will be able to match its rivals at the Blue Dragon Awards. 

In the best actor category, Song Kang-ho and Yoo Ah-in, who were father and son in “The Throne,” will contend for the trophy. Lee Jung-jae from “Assassination” and Jung Jae-young of “Right now, Wrong then” and Hwang Jung-min of “Veteran” are also nominees for the prize. 

Hwang had won the equivalent award at the Daejong Awards, Jung at KAFCA and Lee at the Buil Film Awards held Oct. 2. 

In the best actress category, Kim Hye-soo of “Coin Locker Girl,” Lee Jung-hyun of “Alice in Earnestland,” Jun Do-yeon of “The Shameless,” Jun Ji-hyun of “Assassination” and Han Hyo-joo of “Beauty Inside” were nominated. 

Jun won the honor at Daejong, Kim at KAFCA and Jun at the Buil Awards. 

Kim Hye-soo, Lee Jung-hyun, Jun Ji-hyun, Jun Do-yeon and Han Hyo-joo (OSEN)

In the supporting actor category, Bae Sung-woo from “Office,” Yoo Hae-jin from “Veteran,” Jo Jin-woong from “Assassination,” Oh Dal-su from “Ode to My Father” and Lee Kyung-young from “Minority Opinion” were nominated. 

Oh won at the Daejong Awards and Lee in the Buil Awards. The two costarred in “Assassination.” 

In the supporting actress category, Moon Jung-hee of “Cart,” Jun Hye-jin of “The Throne,” Ra Mi-ran of “Ode to My Father,” Jang Young-nam of “The Classified File” and Jin Kyung of “Veteran” were nominated. 

Moon holds the trophy from the Buil Awards.

Lastly in the newcomer actor category, Park Seo-joon from “The Chronicle of Evil,” Lee Min-ho from “Gangnam Blues,” Kang Ha-neul from “Twenty,” Byun Yo-han from “Social Phobia” and Choi Woo-shik from “Set Me Free” were nominated.

The according prizes had gone to Lee Min-ho at Daejong Awards, Choi Woo-shik at KAFCA and Byun Yo-han at Buil Awards. 

For the newcomer actress category, Gwon So-hyun of “Madonna,” Lee Yoo-young of “Late Spring,” Park So-dam of “The Silenced,” Seolhyun of “Gangnam Blues” and Lee Yu-bi of “Twenty” were nominated. 

Gwon won the award at KAFCA, while Lee of “Late Spring” won at both the Buil and Daejong awards. However, for the Blue Dragon Awards, Lee was nominated for her other work, “The Treacherous.”

Winners will be announced for 18 categories. The decision will be based on the combined data from surveys carried out among film industry experts on movies released between Nov. 1, 2014, and Oct. 8, 2015. An online public poll will also be taken into consideration. 

The trophy-holders will be crowned on Thursday at the 36th Blue Dragon Film Awards to be held at Seoul’s Kyung Hee University. 

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)

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November 26, 2015

Can Hwang Jung-min attend Blue Dragon Awards?

(OSEN)

Actor Hwang Jung-min said he would join the 36th Blue Dragon Awards on Thursday if his rehearsal for musical “Okepi” finishes in time. Hwang is a strong candidate for the Best Actor award. 

Hwang told a local media outlet Wednesday that he would ”unfortunately be absent at the Blue Dragon Awards” due to the “Okepi” musical preparations. 

However, later on Thursday, his agency updated the news, saying the actor would try to make an appearance if circumstances allow. 

Hwang was already absent at Nov. 20’s Daejong Awards, where he won the highest acting award, because of “Okepi,“ for which he is the conductor. 

The 36th Blue Dragon Awards will take place from 8:45 p.m. on Thursday at Seoul’s Kyung Hee University. 

Actor Yoo Ah-in, one of the contenders for the Best Actor award and Hwang’s rival in the summer’s hit blockbuster film “Veteran,” confirmed his attendance for the ceremony at a fan event with Dutch tech company Philips on Tuesday. 

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)

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Hwang Jung Min's new musical featured at no.1 

Published on November 27, 2015 by K STAR 한류스타 리포트 & 생방송 스타뉴스

[Korean Stars Special] November fourth week BEST 5 news

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November 29, 2015

Police pick 'Veteran' as best film

SEOUL, Nov. 29 (Yonhap) -- Police officers in South Korea have chosen "Veteran" as the best movie of the year, a survey showed Sunday.

The domestic action film directed by Ryoo Seung-wan drew 1,753 votes in the poll joined by 2,104 police officers. The poll was conducted by the Police Training Institute through its internal online communication network from Nov. 9-25.

"Veteran" features a veteran detective who stands up to an arrogant and spoiled heir of a family-owned conglomerate as he investigates the mysterious death of a truck driver.

Starring Hwang Jung-min and Jang Yoon-ju, it was watched by more than 12 million people in South Korea. It has gained popularity abroad as well.

In the survey, Hwang and Jang were picked as the best-performing actor and actress, respectively, for their roles as police officers.

In last year's poll, ironically, Ryoo's 2010 movie "The Unjust" was selected as one of the worst movies ever here. It's about deep-rooted corruption in the nation's law-enforcement system.

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November 30, 2015

Local movies hit annual 100-mln-viewer mark for 4th year

SEOUL, Nov. 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's domestic films have drawn more than 100 million theatergoers so far this year, surpassing the landmark viewer mark for the fourth straight year, according to data on Monday.

Local films have drawn a total of 100,628,268 viewers to theaters as of midnight Sunday, according to the tally of ticket sales by the Korean Film Council.

With the latest feat, South Korea has surpassed the mark for the fourth successive year. The 100-million figure indicates that each of the country's some 50 million people has seen two locally produced movies.

A handful of hit movies released in the latter half of the year, including "Assassination" and "Veteran," helped overturn the grim performance in the first half.

The upbeat mood is expected to continue into early next year as blockbuster films like "Himalaya" and "The Tiger" are in the pipeline.

A total of 229 movies have been produced locally so far this year, which together accounted for 50.8 percent of total cinema ticket sales, according to the data.

A total of 198,116,819 viewers have visited theaters for local and foreign movies so far this year, coming close to 200 million.

If the annual number surpasses the 200-million mark this year, it will mark the third year the country has reached that figure.

pbr@yna.co.kr

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November 30, 2015

Three big Korean movies for December

The Korean box office is wrapping up a dynamic year of hugely successful films like “Assassination” and “Veteran“ as well as acclaimed smaller art-house films like “Alice in Earnestland,“ but there is little progress to show for mid-sized commercial films.

The last month of 2015 looks to be a continuation of that pattern. Three of Korea’s largest distributors -- CJ Entertainment, Next Entertainment World and Lotte Entertainment -- will be facing off in theaters for the holiday rush.

The Himalayas

Still from “The Himalayas” (CJ Entertainment)

Adventure. Directed by Lee Seok-hoon

Opening Dec. 16

CJ Entertainment presents “The Himalayas” directed by Lee Seok-hoon, an adventure film based on the true story of famous Korean mountaineer Uhm Hong-kil and his expedition team who climbed the Himalayas to retrieve the bodies of colleagues who had died on a previous expedition. 

Uhm is portrayed by Hwang Jung-min (“Ode to My Father,” “Veteran”), who is backed up by a cast including Jung Woo (known for the TV show “Reply 1994”) and talented supporting actors such as comic relief masters Kim In-kwon (“Clown of a Salesman,” “C’est Si Bon”) and La Mi-ran “Wonderful Nightmare,” TV show “Reply 1988”). 

With filming taking place on the actual routes along the Himalayan mountains and Mont Blanc in France, “The Himalayas” is a blockbuster-scale film -- the question is how it will measure up against this year’s American release “Everest” in its visual quality. 

“The Himalayas” will be CJ CGV’s second commercial release using its multi-wall Screen X technology following “The Priests.”

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December 1, 2015

Local movies hit annual 100-mln-viewer mark for 4th year

Korea's domestic films have drawn more than 100 million theatergoers so far this year, surpassing the landmark viewer mark for the fourth straight year, according to data on Monday.

Local films have drawn a total of 100,628,268 viewers to theaters as of midnight Sunday, according to the tally of ticket sales by the Korean Film Council.

Visitors wait in line to buy tickets at a local cinema Nov. 30. South Korean films have surpassed the 100 million-viewer mark again this year, making it the fourth consecutive year the record has been broekn. (Yonhap)

With the latest feat, South Korea has surpassed the mark for the fourth successive year. The 100-million figure indicates that each of the country's some 50 million people has seen two locally produced movies.

A handful of hit movies released in the latter half of the year, including "Assassination" and "Veteran," helped overturn the grim performance in the first half. 

The upbeat mood is expected to continue into early next year as blockbuster films like "Himalaya" and "The Tiger" are in the pipeline.

A total of 229 movies have been produced locally so far this year, which together accounted for 50.8 percent of total cinema ticket sales, according to the data. 

A total of 198,116,819 viewers have visited theaters for local and foreign movies so far this year, coming close to 200 million.

If the annual number surpasses the 200-million mark this year, it will mark the third year the country has reached that figure. (Yonhap) 

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December 2, 2015

The main trailer of Hwang Jung Min & Jung Woo's 'The Himalayas' released

Source: STARN News 

The main trailer of Hwang Jung Min and Jung Woo's new film, 'The Himalayas,' was released.

On December 2nd, the main trailer of Hwang Jung Min and Jung Woo's new film, 'The Himalayas,' was officially released.

'The Himalayas' is going to show the story of mountaineer Um Hong Gil, who goes to the Himalayas with his expedition team to find the body of a Korean mountaineer who died while climbing at the Himalayas.

The main trailer shows Park Moo Taek (played by Jung Woo) getting sleepless because of anxiety and excitement before heading to the Himalayas, and Um Hong Gil (played by Hwang Jung Min) having a deep sleep.

The trailer also shows struggles that Park Moo Taek and Park Jung Bok (Kim In Kwon) go through while trying to join Um Hong Gil's expedition team, and the team members' strong teamwork.

The trailer moves on and shows Um Hong Gil getting prohibited climbing mountain due to his injury, and Park Moo Taek facing a fatal danger while climbing the Everest.

Meanwhile, 'The Himalayas' is a new film directed by Lee Suk Hoon, who had directed 'The Pirates' and 'Dancing Queen.' Other than Hwang Jung Min and Jung Woo, Cho Sung Ha, Kim In Kwon, La Mi Ran, Kim Won Hae, Lee Hae Young, and Jeon Bae Soo played in the movie as lead roles.

/Reporting by Lee Mi-Ji en@starnnews.com

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November 28, 2015

Report from the 48th Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia
KoBiz Reporter Pens His Report on World’s Premier Genre Event

by Pierce Conran / KoBiz

Early in October, the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia, the world’s oldest celebration of genre cinema, held its 48th edition. Packed to the gills with eclectic genre fare from all around the world, some of the planet’s most diehard fans filled the town’s film halls, ate lots of great seafood and popped more than a few bottles of Cava (the regional variety of sparkling wine). As always, Korean films were a popular choice at the event, with no less than a dozen titles on show, ranging from the year’s biggest films (Veteran, Assassination) to little-seen indie fare (Crimson Whale, THE MAIDROID).

This year, I had the pleasure to participate at the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia for the first time and the great honor to do so as a producer (for LEE Sang-woo’s Speed) and as a jury member for the Focus Asia and Anima’t sections, on which I served with actress Me Me Lai, known for her work in British and Italian horror films in the 1970s, and Thomas NAM, the Managing Director of the Network of Asian Fantastic Films (NAFF).

Located a 40-minute drive west of Barcelona along the coast, Sitges is a popular resort town along the Mediterranean filled with sinuous cobbled streets, rustic tapas bars and scenic trails along the beach. Centered around the Melia hotel, which rises above the area east of the center, the festival takes place all over town. The primary screen is the Auditori, a cavernous 1400-seat venue located at the bottom of the Melia. Beside it is the smaller Tramuntana (400 seats) and in town audiences can check out the recently renovated Cine El Retiro (600 seats), the converted old theater Cine Prado (450 seats) and the Brigadoon, which presents free screenings throughout the event.

With showtimes kicking off well before 9 a.m. on opening day (October 9th), the festival wasted no time to get going and once the ball started rolling, it didn’t abate, with non-stop screenings all the way through till late the following Sunday (October 18th). The screening schedule includes all-night marathons which kick off at 1 a.m. and presents anywhere from 2-5 films every day.

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VETERAN Wins the Focus Asia Award

Speaking to people around town about what their most anticipated titles revealed a lot of interest in Korean films, which have been prevalent in Sitges lineups for many years. Only one title from the peninsula has picked up the fest’s Best Film award, and it may come as little surprise that the film was PARK Chan-wook’s modern genre classic Old Boy, which picked up the prize in 2004, a few months after its Grand Prize win at the Cannes Film Festival.

However, Korea’s history of awards stretches back much further, as YOUN Yuh-jung earned a Special Mention for Best Actress for KIM Ki-young’s Insect Woman in 1972. In fact, that film’s only remaining print with English subtitles was the one made for the festival.

In recent times there has seldom been an edition when a Korean film hasn’t walked away with an award and this year was no different, as the jury I served on gave the Focus Asia Award to RYOO Seung-wan’s Veteran. Not only a critical darling (the film has met with rave reviews from foreign and local press), RYOO’s rip-roaring action-comedy has been a smash hit with domestic audiences, reaching 13.41 million admissions (USD 92.39 million), the all-time third highest haul for a Korean film.

Demonstrating the popularity of Korean films in the seaside Catalonian town, the Focus Asia prize has been clinched by a Korean film no less than four times in the last six years. Among those prize-winners, two names stand out. RYOO already won it in 2011 for his action-thriller The Unjust and again last year for the 3D omnibus MAD SAD BAD, which he contributed to, along with KIM Tae-yong and HAN Ji-seung. Also a recurring name is actor HWANG Jung-min, one of the leads of The Unjust, Veteran and also PARK Hoon-jung’s gangster saga New World, which picked up the award in 2013.

Veteran may have been the only Korean prize-winner this year, but many of the other hopefuls were strongly received. Viewers were particularly impressed by the spectacle of CHOI Dong-hoon’s period action-drama Assassination and the female-driven gangster tale Coin Locker Girl by HAN Jun-hee, with many highlighting the performances of leads KIM Hye-soo and KIM Go-eun in the Cannes-invited film. Another popular Cannes import was HONG Won-chan’s Office, a workplace satire that functions both as a thriller and a slasher.

Joseon Era period films, which have been in the midst of a boom in Korea during the last few years, were also popular picks in Sitges. MIN Kyu-dong’s erotic picture The Treacherous got a strong response just as it did in Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas in September, as foreign audiences seemed to have warmed more to it than audiences did back in Korea, where it met with a muted commercial run.

The same could be said of LEE Won-suk’s The Royal Tailor, which served as the closing film of the New Visions Plus section and has recently earned awards at the Udine Far East Film Festival and screened at numerous high profile film jubilees, such as the Busan, Fantasia and Vancouver International Film Festivals. Other major commercial films that fared poorly at home but found audiences in Sitges were KIM Gwang-tae’s Brothers Grimm fairy tale update The Piper and YOO Ha’s 1970s-set gangster epic Gangnam Blues.
 
Rising of Korean Independent and Low-budget Movies

Recently, Korea’s independent sector has increased its visibility at the festival, with YEON Sang-ho’s The Fake taking the Anima’t prize for Best Animation in 2013, followed by JANG Hyung-yun’s The Satellite Girl and Milk Cow. Also last year, low-budget Korean titles earned top honors in both the fiction and non-fiction sections of the New Visions category, with LEE Su-jin’s HAN Gong-ju and JUNG Yoon-suk’s Non Fiction Diary triumphing, respectively.

This year, festival attendees were treated to the Korean Academy of Film Arts-produced animation Crimson Whale from PARK Hye-mi, NO Zin-soo’s B-movie THE MAIDROID, and prolific indie maverick LEE Sang-woo’s Speed, following his presence at Sitges last year with Dear Dictator. Rounding out the section this year was a late festival appearance by Hungarian filmmaker György Pálfi’s Free Fall, which was co-financed and presented by the Jeonju International Film Festival last year.

It’s with a heavy heart that I left Sitges last year, but one filled with great memories. And while I’m not guaranteed to return year after year, you can be sure that Korean films will be in droves and local audiences will as ever be eager to sample the best which the industry has to offer in the charming Mediterranean retreat for years to come.

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December 3, 2015

The hardships faced while filming in "The Himalayas"

Source: Asiae via Hancinema.net

Stills and pictures of actors of the movie "The Himalayas", show them going through a difficult time.

"The Himalayas" is the quest of Eom Hong-gil and his team of men who put their lives on the line for no honor or indemnity to find the body of a fellow climber who died in the Himalayas.

This movie is directed by Lee Seok-hoon and the cast includes Hwang Jeong-min, Jeong Woo, Jo Seong-ha, Kim In-kwon, Kim Won-hae, Lee Hae-yeong, Jeon Bae-soo and more. The cast are personally experiencing the hardships of mountain climbers; they climbed walls and ice walls, crossed a crevasse which no one knows the depth of and the cast couldn't even wash for 7 days while walking the Himalayas' 4,200 meter track.

The cast have become the expedition themselves and have been put through training which taught them how to put on the safety gear and climbing mountains with their bare hands. In the pictures, each actor is carrying heavy equipment, roping themselves together and trek the Namche Bazar which all trekkers need to go through first before going up the Everest.

Hwang Jeong-min is also seen clearing snow with a shovel with the staff. He looks responsible and determined like the leader he is in the drama. He is also seen hitting the slates with messy hair as if he just got out of bed or he is covered in snow while monitoring himself on the screen.

Lee Seok-hoon said, "The staff and cast of "The Himalayas" did their best to make the best out of this movie. We had to walk 3 days even with heavy equipment on our back but we all supported and helped each other".

Hwang Jeong-min said, "I went up a mountain for 3 nights and 2 days with Jeong-woo before filming the movie. I think the Himalayas has trained me well to be able to climb any other mountain in Korea easily".

"The Himalayas" comes out on the 16th.

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Published on December 1, 2015 by CrashTFH

The Himalayas - Trailer (히말라야 예고편)

 

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December 7, 2015

Hwang Jung Min Raises His Thumb Up

Source: BNTNews

[by Woorim Ahn, photo by Kim Chi Yoon] Movie ‘The Himalaya’ held its press conference and premiere at Wangsimni CGV in Sungdong-gu, Seoul on December 7.

‘The Himalaya’ is about Uhm Hong Gil (Hwang Jung Min) who is on his trip with his exploring team to find his colleague’s body without record, reputation and reward. Hwang Jung Min, Jung Woo, Cho Sung Ha, Kim In Kwon and others appear in it.

Meanwhile, ‘The Himalaya’ will premiere on December 16. (photo by bntnews DB)

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December 7, 2015

[V Report Plus] Meet the cast members of musical ‘Orchestra Pit’

A special talk show for the musical “Orchestra Pit” will go live on the V app on Dec. 16, two days before the musical’s opening night. 

It is the first time for the app to broadcast a musical-related show. 

Poster of musical "Orchestra Pit" (SEM Company)

All the cast members of the “Orchestra Pit” will appear on the broadcast, including actor Hwang Jung-min, who is also directing the musical, and Oh Man Seok. The actors will talk about the upcoming show and unveil the music and highlight video of the musical during the broadcast. TV personality Park Kyung-lim will host the show. 

The Korean-language rendition of “Orchestra Pit” was originally written by popular Japanese playwright Koki Mitani. “Orchestra Pit,” directed by Hwang, centers on the ups and downs of 13 musicians that accompany performers in a musical. 

“Orchestra Pit” will be staged at LG Arts Center in Seoul from Dec. 18 through Feb. 28. 

Naver’s real-time broadcasting app V allows fans to interact with their favorite K-pop stars through live broadcasts. The app is available for Android and iOS. For more information, visit www.vlive.tv.

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)