Festival dedicated to shorts returns as Gwanghwamun International Short Film Festival

South Korea’s best-known short film festival returns under a new name this year. The 19th Gwanghwamun International Short Film Festival is being held at Cinecube in Jongno-gu, Seoul, from Thursday to Oct. 19. A total of 84 movies from 36 countries will be screened during the festival. Opening the event is Elvira Lind’s “The Letter Room,” about a kindhearted prison officer who is transferred to the mailroom to monitor the prisoners’ correspondence. While doing hi

Oct. 13, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] Lee Hyori to be MAMA’s first female host

Lee Hyori will become the first female host of the Mnet Asian Music Awards, Mnet announced Wednesday. 　 She will be the messenger that links artists and music fans across the world at the 2021 MAMA, slated for Dec. 11, it said. Titled “Make Some Noise, this year’s annual music award ceremony aims to deliver the power of music through respect for differences and to challenge prejudice, it added, describing her as the “singular person” who is aligned with the ideas. 　 MAMA

Oct. 13, 2021

Jazz fests to add autumn ambience with in-person concerts

Two jazz festivals, held as either online or hybrid events last year, are scheduled to return with in-person performances. After adjusting the schedules to comply with the extended social distancing guidelines, the final lineup and dates for the annual music festival at Seoul Forest were announced in early October. The 5th Seoul Forest Jazz Festival, originally planned for Oct. 15-16, will now take place Oct. 30-31 featuring leading musicians, including violinist Danny Koo, trumpet player Damo

Oct. 13, 2021

Epik High to return with a new single ‘Face ID’

Hip-hop trio Epik High is set to drop its new single “Face ID” on Oct. 25, ahead of the release of its 10th full-length album in 2022, according to the group’s agency Hours Entertainment. “Face ID” is the group’s first new song in four months after “Rain Song,” in June. The track will be a pre-release single from the upcoming album “Epik High Is Here Part 2.” The other tracks are scheduled to be released next year. Epik High’s

Oct. 13, 2021

Concert to present climate change-affected 'Four Seasons'

A beloved Antonio Vivaldi piece has been reinterpreted with an AI-twist, imagining and rearranging “The Four Seasons” of the year 2050. “The (uncertain) Four Seasons,” a global music project calling attention to climate change and the loss biodiversity, will go onstage Oct. 20 at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul. Developed by composers, musicians, climate and computer scientists using geospatial climate predictions, the project is an algorithmic rearrangement of Vivaldi&rs

Oct. 13, 2021

'Squid Game' watched by 111m households on Netflix

The smash-hit Korean-language drama series "Squid Game" has been watched by 111 million households around the world on Netflix, becoming its most successful original content, the US streaming giant said Wednesday. Since its first release on Sept. 17, the nine-part survival drama has topped the popular Netflix TV show charts in 94 countries, including the United States, Britain and France, according to Netflix. In the US, in particular, "Squid Game" has become the first non-

Oct. 13, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] Twice hits Billboard 100 at No. 83 with new single

Twice entered Billboard 100 at No. 83 with its first English-language single, “The Feels,” according to the newest tally from the publication that became available on Monday in the US. 　 This is the first time the female band hit the chart although its 10th EP, “Taste of Love,” ranked No. 6 on Billboard 200. Twice became the fourth K-pop band to make it on the singles chart, after Wonder Girls, BTS and Blackpink. 　 The single positioned itself as No. 10 and No. 12 on Bil

Oct. 12, 2021

Enhypen aims for the top with ‘Dimension: Dilemma’

Rookie boy band Enhypen dropped the group’s first full-length album “Dimension: Dilemma” on Monday. During a press conference in Seoul a day ahead of the album’s release, the bandmates spoke of their shared goal to become the No. 1 K-pop group with the new album. “Many call us fourth-generation K-pop icons, but we’d like to go beyond that title to become the most aspiring among all K-pop idol acts,” Jungwon said during the media event, which was lives

Oct. 12, 2021

‘Blue Bayou’ director aims to spotlight US policies on adoptees

Director Justin Chon says he created his new film, “Blue Bayou,” to bring attention to “unfair” policies regarding adoptees in the US. “I saw an issue that was happening in the United States that I felt was very unfair,” Chon said at an online press conference held as part of the 26th Busan International Film Festival on Tuesday. As well as directing, Chon appears in the film as protagonist Antonio LeBlanc, an ethnic Korean adoptee raised in a small town i

Oct. 12, 2021

‘Perhaps Love’ promises to be a heartwarming rom-com

The upcoming comedy-drama “Perhaps Love,” directed by Cho Eun-ji, revolves around a bestselling author whose life changes dramatically when he falls in love. “The cast and the crew, including myself, were always laughing while shooting. I actually got a note of warning from the sound recording director because I giggled too much even in a serious scene,” Cho said in an online press conference Tuesday. “We were able to finish our project with a lot of laughs. I am c

Oct. 12, 2021

London Korean Film Festival to be held in November

Korean Cultural Centre UK announced that it will hold the 16th London Korean Film Festival for two weeks from Nov. 4 to 19. The festival organizer said it will screen 35 Korean films of diverse genres including independent films, classic films, animation and shorts. Last year, the annual event was held as an online-offline hybrid festival due to the pandemic, but this year all of the films will be screened at nine local theaters in London. “Escape from Mogadishu” directed by Ryoo

Oct. 11, 2021

[Newsmaker] ‘Squid Game’ pokes at the far side of Korea

　Everyone from the “Squid Game” has good reasons to win it all: 45.6 billion reasons to be exact. But some have problems that are mirrored from real-life version of the society they are in. 　Part of why Netflix’ record smashing hit drama has resonated with so many people is that it is also a social commentary on the actual incidents that had occurred in Korea, and perhaps the problems prevalent in the modern society. 　Young, smart, broke and from N.K. 　Jung Ho-yeon portraye

Oct. 10, 2021

Actress Jeon Jong-seo visits Busan fest with her Hollywood debut film

South Korean actress Jeon Jong-seo said Friday it was a fresh experience to play a wordless character with supernatural powers as a foreign actor in her first English-language film "Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon." "This was my first American project, and it required all actors go through audition," Jeon said during a special talk session at the 26th Busan International Film Festival that kicked off Wednesday. "I also joined the cast through audition. I sent my clips to

Oct. 8, 2021

French director Denis Dercourt says creating thriller film, composing music were similar experiences

BUSAN -- For French director Denis Dercourt, who is also a musician, creating his new thriller, “Vanishing,” was similar to the experience of composing music. “You have to write a story with tension and then release the tension, exactly like composing music,” Dercourt said during a press conference organized by the 26th Busan International Film Festival at the Busan Cinema Center on Friday. From 1988 to 1993, he was a viola player with the French Symphony Orchestra and

Oct. 8, 2021

Hamaguchi planned to film Cannes-winning 'Drive My Car' in Busan

Award-winning Japanese film director Ryusuke Hamaguchi said Friday he had planned to shoot his latest project in South Korea to learn from the neighboring country's thriving cinema industry. He was in Busan, as his two films, "Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy" and "Drive My Car," were invited to the Gala Presentation section for introducing new projects of the world's renowned filmmakers at the ongoing 26th Busan International Film Festival. (Yonhap)

Oct. 8, 2021

[Today’s K-pop] Twice to release 3rd LP in November

Twice will come out with its third studio album, “Formula of Love: O+T=<3,” Nov. 12, announced label JYP Entertainment on Friday. 　 In the poster, the nine band members sit in rows of three at tables filled with lab equipment. Chemical symbols and formulas peek out from underneath the picture along with “You + Me -> Love.” 　 The release, along with the news of an upcoming tour, was hinted at in the video for “The Feels,” the band’s first English

Oct. 8, 2021

KNB to present Van Cleef & Arpels-inspired ballet

The Korea National Ballet is to present “Jewels,” choreographed by George Balanchine. The state ballet company will take to the stage with the 1967 ballet for the first time at the Seoul Arts Center from Oct. 20-24. Ballet legend Balanchine, recognized for his neoclassical style, created the work for the New York City Ballet of which he was the artistic director, inspired by the artistry of luxury jewelry house Van Cleef & Arpels. The three acts of the plotless ballet depict

Oct. 8, 2021

[Herald Interview] Conductor ready for new chapter on podium

Conductor Sung Shi-yeon is looking forward to exciting debuts in the European classical music scene during the 2021-22 season. On Nov. 5, Sung is to make her debut with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra based in Amsterdam with a world premiere by Tan Dun and works by Bartok, Verbey and Yun I-sang. Initially, Oscar- and Grammy-winning Chinese composer Tan Dun was to hoist the baton for the premiere of his new work with the RCO. However, the orchestra has replaced him with Sung as Tan Dun is

Oct. 8, 2021

[Newsmaker] ‘Squid Game’ sensation spreads to Korean content creators

International craze aside, the Netflix original series “Squid Game” is inspiring parodies and send-ups throughout the South Korean entertainment industry. Cable channel Channel A was one of the first to air a parody of the global megahit. “The Fisherman and the City,” a show featuring five Korean TV celebrities who are obsessed with fishing, introduced its cast as if they were “Squid Game” contestants, with tags like those used in the Netflix series. &ldquo

Oct. 8, 2021

KBS to air special documentary of BTS fans learning Korean

Public broadcaster KBS is scheduled to air a Hangeul Day special, “I Learned Korean Because of BTS,” on Saturday. The program centers around the globalization of Hangeul, the Korean writing system, fanned by the popularity of K-pop sensation BTS and its fandom, which it refers to as Army. While enjoying the band’s music, many members of Army also try to understand the meaning of the lyrics. Some fans are even commemorating Hangeul Day in their own ways, according to KBS. K

Oct. 8, 2021