JEONJU, North Jeolla Province -- Women’s ties to social institutions and the anxiety of modern society are two of the themes that stand out among films in the international competition category at the Jeonju International Film Festival’s 18th edition, which kicked off Thursday.

Compared to works in the Korean competition which took a more personal, microscopic approach, according to JIFF’s programmers, the international competition films explored human beings in a broader social context. 

JIFF, which lasts until May 6, is screening a record number of works this year -- 229 films from 58 different countries.

A diverse array of works hailing from the Americas, Europe and Latin America are competing in the international competition this year. Five among the category’s 10 films have been helmed by female directors.

Argentinian director Eduardo Williams’ first feature film “The Human Surge” adopts an experimental, hyperrealistic format to observe lives connected through the vast, anonymous network of technology.

The film begins with Exe, a young, struggling man in Argentina who has been laid off from his menial job. He and his friends livestream naked footage of themselves on the internet to earn money.

Exe later meets Alf, a boy from Mozambique who is also seeking to escape the banal constrictions of his life. Archie is another boy who has run away into the jungle.

“One part is thought out, the other is intuitive,” Williams said of his film after a screening at Jeonju CGV on Friday. Williams had scouted real life personalities to act out themselves for the film, he said.

The title was meant to indicate a “surge” in the human species and the digital environment that makes them thrive, though without prospering, according to Williams.

A segment follows underwater ants as they scurry through sand, and the films wraps with a digitalized voice repeating, “Okay.” 

“The Stairs,” a documentary by Canadian director Hugh Gibson, probes into the lives of former drug addicts, who are now working at a Toronto health care center.

The film’s principle narrator, Marty, speaks of how staircases in derelict buildings used to be his home at the height of his addiction to crack. He began to take control of his life after entering a program with the health care center, which offered educational training and a syringe kit for the clean, safe use of drugs.

“There are so many stories of sex workers and drug addiction out there,” Gibson said after a screening at Jeonju CGV on Friday. “We wanted to delve deeper into their lives.”

The film takes viewers through the day-to-day lives of people still struggling with addiction and the tedium of life. Their common suffering allows them to form stronger bonds. Some characters, such as Greg, still retreat into isolation for long periods of time.

Works by female directors such as “Casa Roshell” (Camila Jose Donoso, Mexico), “In Between” (Maysaloun Hamoud, Israel), “Son of Sofia” (Elina Psikou, Greece), “Barrage” (Laura Schroeder, Luxembourg) and “Boundaries” (Chloe Robichaud, Canada) speak of women’s struggle with sexuality, and their bond with social institutions and customs.

French director Damien Manivel’s “The Park” tells the story about a shy, young couple who experience budding love, then separation.

Brazilian director Davi Pretto’s “The Rifle” features rich landowners soaking up plots of land belonging to smaller-scale owners in southern Brazil.

A Korean submission, “Bamseom Pirates Seoul Inferno” by Jung Yoon-suk follows a raucous band that faces trouble after retweeting North Korean tweets in 2011. The film addresses Korea’s youth generation crisis and digital espionage while offering a music documentary about a punk band.

By Rumy Doo (doo@heraldcorp.com)