Thought Leaders' Corner: Remakes of Korean films

This months edition of the Thought Leader's Corner concerns remakes of Korean films. An increasing trend as Korean cinema emerges on the world stage, there are some varying opinions on how this could benefit or negatively effect the local Korean industry. Read on below to read my thoughts on this trend. You can read the full April thoughts here from a variety of Korean film experts worldwide.

MKC Thought Leaders' Corner: April 2013

How do you feel about remakes of Korean films?

Thought Leader's Corner: Streamlined Productions

I recently took part in a new initiative set up by Pierce Conran over at Modern Korean Cinema. It's a great monthly piece that asks those in the know about Korean film some thought provoking questions that cover trends, developments or concerns facing the industry today. 

I was very happy to be included as one of the thought leaders, who trace their origins from all around the world to give a well rounded opinion. I think they are all worth a read, and you can see the full January entry here. Below I have posted my personal response to the question that was posed. Hope you find it interesting and if you have any thoughts of your own feel free to reply in the comments section!

 MKC Thought Leaders' Corner: January 2013

Given the enormous success of Korean cinema in 2012, is there any cause for concern over a rise in streamlined productions as quality gives way to financial interests?

The 120 Korean Films I Watched in 2012

Other Articles
2010 Year in Review: Film Log, Year in Review: At the Cinema, Year in Review: Top 10 

2011 Year in Review: Film Log, Year in Review: At the Cinema, Year in Review: Top 10

2012 Year in Review: Film Log, Year in Review: Korean Cinema, Year in Review: Top 10

Below is a list of all the Korean films I watched in 2012, some new, some old. Films here refers to feature films only, and while I did manage to see a good amount of shorts I haven't included them here. 

This year I managed to balance work with watching films like I used to a few years ago, so I managed to get in a few more films this year. I will be doing a list of my top 10 shortly, so stay tuned for that. I already have a huge stack of Korean films to watch in the New Year, so here's to more Korean film in 2013! 

Yearly Film Stats
2012: 184 films watched, 120 of which were Korean films (representing 65%)
2011: 125 films watched, 73 of which were Korean films (representing 58%)
2010: 125 films watched, 22 of which were Korean films (representing 18%)

The 120 Korean Feature Films I Watched in 2012

Korean Film Log: December

Well the year is over and so here is my final film log for 2012. Well not quite, this will be the final monthly entry, but I will shortly post a full year round-up, which will also include some top tens and any interesting statistics. Look out for it shortly.

I will aim to continue this in 2013 and hopefully even have time to expand up it by writing mini reviews of the films rather than just posting ratings. Anyway for now check out the final 11 films I watched in 2012.

December

110. Friend (친구)


111. Family Ties (가족의 탄생)

Korean Film Log: November

The year is almost over and November saw my Korean film log pass the century mark. I should have a bit of free time to watch a few more in December, where I will do my final film log blog and a Top 10 of the year. Enjoy!

Korean Film Log 2012
31 films in January (#1-31)
3 films in February (#32-34)
7 films in March (#35-41)
16 films in April (#42-57)
5 films in May (#58-62)
7 films in June (#63-69)
4 films in August (#70-73)
3 films in September (#74-76)
19 films in October (#77-95)
14 films in November (#96-109)

November

96. Haeundae (해운대)


97. Miss Conspirator (미쓰 GO)

Korean Film Log: October

Well the yearly film log has almost hit the century of Korean films, with this months intake boosted by my trip to the Busan International Film Festival. Hopefully I haven't left any out as there were quite a few i saw. Some of the newer films dont have posters yet but when they become available I will edit this blog and update them. Enjoy!

Korean Film Log 2012
31 films in January (#1-31)
3 films in February (#32-34)
7 films in March (#35-41)
16 films in April (#42-57)
5 films in May (#58-62)
7 films in June (#63-69)
4 films in August (#70-73)
3 films in September (#74-76)
19 films in October (#77-95)

October

77. Beyond School (학교너머)

 
78. Sunshine Boys (1999, 면회)

Korean Film Log: September

I was mostly busy with KOFFIA in Melbourne and Brisbane in September, but did manage to catch a few films at ACMI through the Melbourne Cinematheque line-up. The Korean film log continues, so enjoy!

Korean Film Log 2012
31 films in January (#1-31)
3 films in February (#32-34)
7 films in March (#35-41)
16 films in April (#42-57)
5 films in May (#58-62)
7 films in June (#63-69)
4 films in August (#70-73)
3 films in September (#74-76)

September

74. Peppermint Candy (박하사탕)

Busan Film Festival 2011: The Reviews

In October 2011, just upon the completion of running a festival in 2 states and working for 75 days in a row for about 15 hours a day, I decided to take a rest. By watching endless films in Busan!!! So no, it wasn't really a rest but it was a great experience and was the first time I have attended the Busan International Film Festival, so I thought I would recap my experience here on the blog.

I am going to be doing 2 entries to cover my experience, 1 in terms of reviewing the films I saw, and 1 of the experience of the festival and country itself. (The 2nd entry will likely be posted post-blogathon). If you are involved with Asian cinema or festivals it is highly recommended to attend, what has become the biggest film festival in Asia, sometime in your lifetime. Read on to see my thoughts on the films, guests and festival happenings! (apologies for my piss poor blackberry photos!)

The BIFF history lines the beach front

The History of Korean Cinema .... on screen

The fact of the matter is, outside of Korea, Korean cinema is still a very 'new' thing. Generally most people may have seen your Oldboy's and My Sassy Girl's but outside of that the earliest film that those in the West will have likely seen would probably be JSA (2000) or Shiri (1999). This puts Korean cinema in an interesting position of only being around 14 years old (15 using the Korean birthday system!). For a national cinema so young, it really has come along leaps and bounds, but the more interesting thing to me is what was it like before this point.

Does anyone know who the fuck this chick is and what she 

has to do with Shiri? I still can't figure it out!

We produced a video montage in the lead up to the film festival last year (KOFFIA), which covered a short history of Korean cinema. It proved to be very popular upon release, both with local and international audiences. It was rare to see coverage of films prior to this BH date (BH: Before Hallyuwood). It was beautifully edited by Kevin Park and with an equally delightful score by Samuel Choi, both who were just beginning to ply their trades. I thought I would reproduce it here on the blog as it really deserves to get as much exposure as possible. And yes, even it reflects the state of Korean cinema exposure, given only 6 films featured were released before the BH point, and 10 after it. But it gives a short glimpse into the history and progress the Korean industry has made, and maybe one day an extrapolated version would be produced by others fans around the world. Check it out below!

'The History of Korean Cinema', Thanks Kevin and Sam

Korean Perspectives at Sydney Film School

To celebrate the festive season, in what is a time for sharing, I am going to share with you the speech I delivered earlier this month at the 15th Sydney Film School Festival. The speech mentions trends currently apparent in the Korean industry, but also aimed to hopefully inspire the graduating students by comparing the school to conditions in Korea with KAFA. You can read more about the developments of the famous Korean film school which I previously discussed with SBS and Sandy George, or in more recent developments, an update from CJ E&M, CJ CGV and KAFA about their partnership. It is an intriguing filmmaking process that Australia should look closer at. Otherwise, Merry Christmas and I hope you enjoy the speech! Thanks again to Ira Keller, Ben Ferris and SFS. 

"Good evening students, teachers, family and friends. I would first like to thank Sydney Film School for offering the Korean Cultural Office and myself to take part in today’s proceedings. I am speaking today on behalf of my Director Kim Young-soo, who is currently very busy preparing for the Closing Performance of the Australia-Korea Year of Friendship, which takes place this Friday. I have personally attended a number of Sydney Film School Festivals before which focused on other national cinemas, and I always wondered when would be the day that Korea cinema was the main event. Well today is that today and I am delighted to be standing here before you. (See the International Perspectives program on Korea here)

The Korean Industry Looks Beyond It's Borders

Below is an interview I had with Sandy George of SBS Film blogs, which was published around November in response to KOFIC's announcement of its plans for developing the Korean film industry. While I was speculating, I hope you find it interesting! You can read the original article here

Korea’s film expansion could 
flow through to Australia

04 November 2011 | Interview By Sandy George
A new 'mega-studio' in Korea looks to increase the country's international co-productions.

Artistic Director of the Korean Film Festival in Australia (KOFFIA), Kieran Tully, believes the ambitious new plan to expand the size of the South Korean film industry by 25% by 2013 can only be good for his festival and for building bridges between the Australian and Korean industries, and between Korean films and Australian audiences. “With a goal to be world class and to focus on supporting creative content, then this plan is surely a benefit for the films we can select for our film festival, film night or library database,” said Tully, who works out of the Korean Cultural Office in Sydney.

Tully's Tips: A Film Festival Story

As part of my Screen Culture course at AFTRS in 2010 I was required to conduct a creative project that in some way commented on an issue or contributed to a sector of the film and television industry. For this I chose to set out on a mission to establish a Korean Film Festival, partly due to my passion and knowledge of cinema from the Peninsula, but also because I couldn't believe a Korean Film Festival didn't currently exist. While the Japanese Film Festival had just completed its 13th Year, Korea was null and void and so I set out to change this fact.

After merging with a project team at the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea, which consisted of Kim Young-gu (a staff member of KOFIC, the Korean Film Council) and Jungyeob Ji (an experienced assistant director and crew member of the Korean Film Industry), what resulted was the 1st KOFFIA Korean Film Festival in Australia. The event had its ups and downs, successes and failures, but most important of all, it will return in 2011. Other forms of Korean Film Festivals had occurred in Australia before, but none returned for successive years. A primary difference for KOFFIA was that this festival was not just for the Korean community in Australia, but for everybody, and this was at the heart of its success.

Jung, Kieran and Young-gu at KOFFIA

Korean Film Downunder 1: Genre and Distribution

This post was originally published over on the KOFFIA Blog, Hungry for Drama?, as part of the Korean Blogathon. I've replicated it here as I feel its quite an interesting time to take a look at the state of Korean cinema in Australia, given it's presence here has not always been as good as it looks today. In this 1st edition I look at Korean DVDs, Genre and Co-productions. At this point in time almost 50 Korean films have been released on DVD, which may not be anywhere near the amount of Japanese films, but is gradually improving. 

 

Hungry for Drama? 1st Korean Film Festival

Over the last 18 months or so I have been involved with establishing the 1st KOFFIA Korean Film Festival in Australia. And now its just 3 weeks away! Its been a long and busy workload but the response we have had and the general interest in the festival is very pleasing. I invite everyone to come along to Dendy Opera Quays this October long weekend, and experience Korean cinema and culture.