Jurors for BIFF’s New Currents Award hope to discover revolutionary work

BUSAN -- Five jurors for the Busan International Film Festival’s New Currents Award – jury president Serge Toubiana, directors Alain Guiraudie and Kamila Andini, actor Ryo Kase and producer Lee Eugene -- said they are looking forward to discovering a rookie director's revolutionary work. “The most important standard when selecting a film is whether it can shake up our existing point of view,” Toubiana said during a press conference held at the KNN Theater in Busan on Th

Oct. 7, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Red Velvet’s Seulgi tops iTunes chart in 38 regions with solo album

Seulgi of Red Velvet claimed the No. 1 spot on iTunes albums charts in 38 regions with her first solo album. She stepped out on her own for the first time in eight years since debuting as a member of the quintet, with her solo EP “28 Reasons.” She is the third of the group to put out a solo effort, following Wendy and Joy. British music magazine NME summed up the six-track EP as “pure brilliance.” She “embodies a character who can switch between mischievous and inn

Oct. 6, 2022

Veteran co-ed group Koyote sends hopeful message to fans with ‘Hero,’ ‘Soulmate’

Koyote, a legendary co-ed Korean vocal group that boasts a career extending across 24 years, is back on the music scene with the new album “Let’s Koyote.” The band, consisting of Kim Jong-min, Shin Ji and Bbaek Ga, held its ever-first media showcase since debuting in 1998 in Seoul on Wednesday to unveil two new songs -- “Hero” and “Soulmate” -- and look back on a long-lasting career. The two-track album is the follow-up to upbeat summery song “Go,&

Oct. 6, 2022

Hong Kong movie star Tony Leung up for starring in K-drama

BUSAN--Hong Kong movie star Tony Leung Chiu-wai, attending the 27th Busan International Film Festival, said he is willing to perform in Korean drama series. “If there are roles for which I can overcome the language barrier, I would like to star in Korean drama,” the Hong Kong actor said in Cantonese during a press conference held at the KNN theater in Busan on Thursday.“I recently watched the film 'CODA.’ If there is a role that does not require me to speak like the cha

Oct. 6, 2022

BIFF holds grand opening ceremony

BUSAN -- The 27th Busan International Film Festival held its grand opening ceremony Wednesday night at the Busan Cinema Center. The film fest runs through Oct. 14 in Korea’s second-largest city. A total of 243 films from 71 countries will be screened through the course of the film festival. The festival in full will return to its pre-pandemic scale, according to the event organizer. The opening ceremony was hosted by actors Ryu Jun-yeol and Jeon Yeo-bin, who opened the ceremony by sharing

Oct. 5, 2022

27th BIFF opens with Iranian film ‘Scent of Wind’

BUSAN -- The 27th Busan International Film Festival kicked off Wednesday with the screening of Iranian director Hadi Mohaghegh's "Scent of Wind.” This is the Iranian director’s second visit to the Busan film fest, having taken part in 2015 with “Immortal,” which won both the New Currents and Fipresci prizes. During a press conference held at the Busan Cinema Center on Wednesday, the director said he was surprised to find out that his film had been selected as the o

Oct. 5, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] Ive did not blow off college festival: agency

Ive’s agency Starship Entertainment and Kyungpook National University are caught up in contentious dispute over the rookie sensation’s appearance at the school’s festival. The school’s student association first announced the group’s scheduled gig had been canceled due to visa issues. The agency refuted Wednesday with a statement saying that there was a proposal, but nothing specific had been discussed and no contract was signed. The association issued a rebuttal on

Oct. 5, 2022

[Herald Interview] ‘We Are the Zombies’ creator offers fresh twist on zombie apocalypse

BUCHEON, Gyeonggi Province -- From the webtoon series “All of Us Are Dead” (2009), “Dead Life” (2018) and horror thriller “Train to Busan” (2016) to the Netflix series “Kingdom” (2019), South Korea’s zombie content have become popular for their bone-breaking portrayals of the undead, thrilling action sequences and desperate survival stories. Author Lee Myeong-jae, however, impressed viewers around the world by presenting a new twist to the

Oct. 5, 2022

Annual performing arts festival explores changes in our times

The Seoul Performing Arts Festival, in its 22nd edition this year, will explore changes in our times with domestic and overseas projects that test the boundaries of performing arts, the organizers said during a press conference on Tuesday. The SPAF is an annual festival held in the Daehangno neighborhood of Seoul, considered the mecca of performing arts in Korea. It is co-organized by the Korea Arts Management Service under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Seoul Foundation for

Oct. 5, 2022

'BTS Exhibition: Proof' chronicles group's 9-year career

If BTS' anthology album "Proof" is a musical record documenting the act's nine-year career, "2022 BTS Exhibition: Proof" invites fans to immerse themselves in a visual trail of BTS' history. Upon walking into the Seoul exhibition at the Hybe Insight building, which opened on Sept. 28, visitors are greeted by gigantic concept images of the seven K-pop superstars from its latest album "Proof." The album, which dropped in June, wrapped up the 9-year-ol

Oct. 5, 2022

Seulgi debuts solo after 8 years with '28 Reasons'

Seulgi of girl group Red Velvet on Tuesday dropped her first solo EP, "28 Reasons." Ahead of releasing the EP later that day, Seulgi conducted an online press conference in Seoul on Tuesday afternoon. Her bandmate Wendy emceed the event. Dropping her first solo album in the eight years since she set foot into the K-pop scene with Red Velvet in 2014, Seulgi said she thought "it was about the right time." "Although I'd been preparing for a long time, I officially kicked of

Oct. 4, 2022

High school student’s cartoon ignites debate on freedom of expression

A cartoon featuring a figure resembling the well-known British comic book character Thomas the Tank Engine, an anthropomorphic blue steam locomotive in the children’s television series “Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends,” found itself at the center of controversy over freedom of expression Tuesday after the Culture Ministry said it would look into how the work was selected for the top prize in a recent contest. Titled “Yoon Suk-yeol-cha,” the cartoon by a high

Oct. 4, 2022

[Today’s K-pop] AB6IX frees itself to ‘take a chance’ on 6th EP

    AB6IX held an online media showcase Tuesday to bring out its sixth EP, “Take A Chance.” The EP conveys the bandmates’ own stories and feelings, particularly “how opportunities are always close and how we are to prove it,” said Lee Daehwi. Jeon Woong admitted that he was under a lot of pressure preparing the album. Lee agreed, acknowledging that he has had a hard time writing music as he was caught up in the idea that he had to make something new.

Oct. 4, 2022

BIFF to return to pre-pandemic scale with 243 films

The 27th Busan International Film Festival, which kicks off Wednesday and runs through Oct. 14, is returning to its pre-pandemic scale. There will be no distancing in the theaters and the organizer is expecting around 170,000 total audience members this year. A total of 243 films from 71 countries will be screened during the film festival and Asian film support programs. The Asia Cinema Fund also will resume this year after a three-year hiatus, according to the BIFF organizer. Following an eve

Oct. 4, 2022

[Herald Interview] ‘Atomic Bomb’ writers delighted by their graphic novel’s international recognition

BUCHEON, Gyeonggi Province -- Writing about one of the most lethal weapon ever invented, Didier Alcante and Laurent-Frederic Bollee, the authors of “Atomic Bomb,” never expected to visit South Korea -- much less to win an award. “This was our first time to win an award outside of our respective countries. We won a prize in Belgium, Canada and France. It is very nice to get international recognition,” Belgian author Alcante said in an interview with The Korea Herald at

Oct. 4, 2022

Lim Yun-chan's 'Emperor Concerto' live recording to be released November

A live performance recording of Beethoven’s “Emperor Concerto” by Lim Yun-chan, the youngest winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, will be released in November, Universal Music announced Tuesday. Lim will take the stage with the Gwangju Symphony Orchestra, led by conductor Hong Seo-kwon, on Saturday at Tongyeong Concert Hall to perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73, known as the "Emperor Concerto." The album, to

Oct. 4, 2022

[Herald Interview] Versatile flutist Choi Na-kyung discovers new adventures during pandemic

On July 13, 2011, South Korean flutist Choi Na-kyung, also known as Jasmine Choi, played at a recital for the celebration of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s re-election. There she met people she considered to be truly selfless, people who live their lives for the purpose of tackling famine, climate change, improving women's rights and other pressing global issues. Unexpectedly, the joyful event made her depressed for months. “I love music so much, but I couldn’t help

Oct. 4, 2022

Treasure hopes 2nd EP ‘The Second Step: Chapter Two’ will be a present for fans

With much anticipation, Treasure is ready to hop on a new treasure hunt with its second EP, “The Second Step: Chapter Two,” making its grand return eight months since enjoying success with its first EP, “The Second Step: Chapter One.” Ahead of the album’s release on Tuesday, the rookie boy band’s members shared their thoughts and musical ideas that went into its forthcoming musical project via an official press release Q&A. Q. How does it feel to release a

Oct. 3, 2022

New multi-sensory webtoon experience with 4DX film ‘Moon You’

Vertically scrolling comics on smartphones are being brought to the big screen by CJ 4DPLEX, a tech subsidiary of CJ CGV, and Naver Webtoon. While retaining the webtoon format, including the typography, speech bubbles and cartoon layout, “4DX Moon You,” which opens in theaters Oct. 12, is "told" with motion seat action and environmental special effects, including wind, fog, snow and more. The result is a fully immersive experience for the upcoming 4DX webtoon’s audien

Oct. 3, 2022

[Herald Interview] ‘My goal is to hoist K-pop to be No. 1 in the world’

The ever-increasing success and popularity of K-pop is highly visible these days, with big-name artists such as BTS and Blackpink sweeping global music charts and taking home well-recognized awards. A seemingly never-ending stream of K-pop songs are released each week and make their way into the ears of fans worldwide, keeping them hooked and eager to hear what is next. Many of K-pop's biggest hits in recent years, including IU’s “Celebrity,” Oh My Girl’s “Du

Oct. 3, 2022