Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo will be honeymooning in Europe after their wedding on Oct. 31, according to reports Monday. The wedding is set to take place at 4 p.m. at The Shilla Seoul’s Yeong Bin Gwan, a Korean-style banquet annex. The ceremony will be open to friends and family only. A longtime friend of Song Joong-ki will officiate the wedding, the reports said.  Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo star in “Descendants of the Sun.” (KBS)Singer-turned-musical actress Ock Joo-hyun, a longtime frien

Television Oct. 23, 2017

Experts in the artificial intelligence and content industries gathered to address the impact of new technology on culture at the Next Content Conference on Monday. The conference, hosted by the Korea Creative Content Agency and the Culture Ministry, is taking place at Coex in southeastern Seoul through Tuesday. New media theorist and computer science professor Lev Manovich addressed the potential of Korean content in the international market. “With the rise of K-pop from around 2009, Korea’s con

Culture Oct. 23, 2017

Kim Soo-hyun began his mandatory military service without a ruckus Monday.　The actor entered an army training center located in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, around noon. 　Kim arrived at the site in a black van and entered the center without addressing the crowd of some 40 international fans, who had been waiting at the entrance of the center since morning. 　Kim’s management agency Keyeast Entertainment had previously said that Kim did not plan to address fans or the media prior to the start of his s

Television Oct. 23, 2017

A number of film festivals with themes as diverse as animation and elderly life are taking place in the coming weeks, starting with the Bucheon International Animation Festival, one of Asia’s key animation events.The 19th BIAF, which runs through Tuesday, opened with the Asian premiere of French director Benjamin Renner’s “Ernest & Celestine.” 　 "Ernest & Celestine" (Bucheon International Animation Festival)The international competition section will see seven films including Sunao Katabuchi’s “I

Film Oct. 22, 2017

Yeongeun jorim is a popular fall side dish that’s made with lotus roots. It’s sweet, savory, and crunchy! It surely deserves a spot on your favorite basic side dish (mitbanchan) list.To make the dish, you first peel and slice the lotus roots, and then pre-boil in water with a little bit of vinegar before braising. This is a technique Korean home cooks use to reduce the starch level and remove any bitterness from the lotus root.  Yeongeun jorim (sweet soy braised lotus root)As for the braising li

Food Oct. 20, 2017

Mother!(US)Opened Oct. 19Psychological horror. Directed by Darren Aronofsky A couple lives inside an idyllic country mansion surrounded by fields. The wife (Jennifer Lawrence) is a homemaker intent on fixing up the rustic house, content on living in isolation amid nature. The husband (Javier Bardem) is a once-famous poet with writer’s block, struggling to find inspiration for the next story. A visitor, a doctor and fan of the poet’s work (Ed Harris) visits the couple’s home one day. The poet wel

Film Oct. 20, 2017

The new crime-solving drama series “Witch at Court” has topped ratings for the 10 p.m. time slot on Mondays and Tuesdays.　Tuesday’s episode reached 12.3 percent of viewership, Nielsen Korea said Wednesday.　The drama series stars Jung Ryeo-won as Ma I-deum, an ambitious ace prosecutor renowned for her aggressiveness and ill temper. 　 Jung Ryeo-won stars in “The Witch at Court.” (KBS)Yoon Hyun-min stars as Yeo Jin-wook, a former psychiatrist-turned-rookie prosecutor who graduated at the top of his

Television Oct. 19, 2017

The film remake of the webtoon “Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds” has been sold to 12 countries at the Asian Film Market.The film directed by Kim Yong-hwa is a story about a person’s journey into the afterlife and the judgment faced in seven hells, led by the angel of death. It stars Ha Jung-woo, Cha Tae-hyun and Ju Ji-hoon. Ju Ji-hoon (left) and Ha Jung-woo star in “Along with the Gods.” (Lotte Entertainment)A 12-minute highlight reel was screened for buyers at the Asian Film Market to enthu

Film Oct. 18, 2017

Director Oliver Stone met with reporters Tuesday at the Busan Cinema Center to discuss his impression of Korean cinema’s current mood. Stone commented on the jury’s review of the New Currents category, of which he is head juror this year.　“The jury saw ten films and I have to say we commented last night and made our choices which will be announced Saturday night. The whole jury commented on the despair and lack of hope that was evident in the ten films we saw, from not only Korea but China, Taiw

Film Oct. 17, 2017

Female actors and directors are being spotlighted at the 22nd edition of the Busan International Film Festival this year.For the first time in the festival’s history, both the opening and closing films -- Shin Su-won’s “Glass Garden” and Sylvia Chang’s “Love Education” -- have been helmed by female directors. “Glass Garden” features actress Moon Geun-young as its lead, while “Love Education” tells the stories of Chinese women.BIFF’s leader Kang Soo-youn, a veteran actress and the first female ex

Film Oct. 17, 2017

A romance film titled “Let Me Eat Your Pancreas” has become one of the most talked-about films among festivalgoers at this year’s Busan International Film Festival.The Japanese film directed by Sho Tsukikawa and starring Minami Hamabe, Takumi Kitamura and Shun Oguri, is based on a 2015 novel of the same titled by Yoru Sumino, which became a bestseller in Japan. In the film, the protagonist, a high school student, discovers that his popular classmate Sakura is suffering from a pancreatic disease

Film Oct. 17, 2017

BUSAN -- Virtual reality has been grabbing attention as the “next big thing” in film. Busan International Film Festival is operating a VR theater this year; Venice’s Biennale became the first major film festival to incorporate an award category for VR films.　Eugene Chung, VR filmmaker and CEO of Penrose Studios, believes the new medium will impact the film industry in profound ways. 　“My entire life I was very interested in the idea of how art forms change over time. But I never thought I’d live

Film Oct. 17, 2017

BUSAN -- Independent filmmakers from around Asia have high hopes for the Busan International Film Festival’s newly launched feature Platform Busan, they said Sunday.The platform, in commemoration of the late BIFF executive programmer Kim Ji-seok, seeks to provide a network and community for indie filmmakers throughout Asia, who often struggle from lack of funding and producing in their respective countries. Its blueprint was designed by Kim years before his death. “During a lunch last year, Kim

Film Oct. 16, 2017

BUSAN -- The 22nd Busan Film Festival has seen numerous celebrities attending its events this year. Here’s a look at the stars that have been seen in the southeastern portside city so far. Moon Geun-young participates in an open talk with filmgoers about BIFF’s opening film “Glass Garden,” in which she plays an anxious and isolated scientist, at the Busan Cinema Center Sunday. Japanese actress Minami Hamabe, who stars in “Let Me Eat Your Pancreas,” greets audiences at the Haeundae BIFF Village S

Film Oct. 16, 2017

BUSAN -- This year’s Asia Film Market kicked off to a promising start Saturday, with keen interest from Asian buyers and producers seeking out new stories to turn into films. 　Some 1,250 participants are attending this year from 45 countries, up 30 percent from last year. 　Seventy Chinese film executives attended despite dampened Korea-China cultural exchange due to diplomatic disputes over the placement of the US’ Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system in Korea, such as Victori

Film Oct. 16, 2017