8th London Asian Film Festival, opening film 'Boys' and closing film 'Concrete Utopia'

At the 8th London Asian Film Festival, director Jeong Ji-young's 'Boys', director Eom Tae-hwa's 'Concrete Utopia', and director Kang Je-gyu's '1947 Boston'. 16 Korean films were invited, including director Kim Chang-hoon's 'The Hwaran'.

The 2023 London Asian Film Festival will open on the 18th (local time) at the Odeon Lux Theater in Leicester Square, the No. 1 film industry district in London, England, and begin a 12-day Asian film festival until October 29. We invite 49 of the most notable films from eight Asian countries, including Korea, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, and the Philippines, to enjoy and exchange Asian culture through movies.


◆ Opening film ‘Boys’, Closing film ‘Concrete Utopia’

This year's London Asian Film Festival begins with the opening film, 'Boys' by director Jeong Ji-young. 'Boys' is the story of a detective who begins a reinvestigation into three boys who were accused of being the culprits of a robbery and murder case that occurred in a small local city. Based on a true incident that occurred in 1999, director Jeong Ji-young's powerful directing and heavy perspective are included. In particular, 'Boys' will be released first in the UK ahead of its release on November 1st.

The closing film is ‘Concrete Utopia’ directed by Um Tae-hwa. The film conveys the message of human egoism and coexistence through various groups of people living in a world in ruins after a huge disaster strikes. It was also selected as a Korean film entry in the international feature film category at next year's Academy Awards. Director Uhm Tae-hwa and lead actor Park Bo-young plan to talk about the film with British audiences.

The London Asian Film Festival said, "This year marks the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and England, and director Jeong Ji-young is a master director who has directed films continuously for 40 years of that time. The fact that his new work is being released for the first time in London is meaningful. Concrete Utopia ' is a masterpiece that poignantly expresses perspectives on individuals and society, while also depicting our selfishness prevalent in capitalism, and deals with topics that can be discussed with the audience during the film festival."


◆ Retrospective exhibition of director Jeong Ji-young

This year, as a special section, a retrospective exhibition of director Jeong Ji-young is planned, and eight of his representative works are introduced to the UK for the first time. In this retrospective, planned in collaboration with the Korean Film Council, films including 'Confederate Army' (1990), 'White War' (1992), and 'Broken Arrow' (2012) were digitally restored by the Korea Film Archive and presented as world premieres. It includes 'Life of a Hollywood Kid' (1994), which is being released for the first time.

Director Kang Je-gyu's '1947 Boston', Hong Sang-soo's 'Our Day', and Lee Won-seok's 'Killing Romance' were invited to the LEAFF Official Selection. In the competition section, which introduces 10 films by the most shining directors in Asia, director Kim Chang-hoon's 'Dwarfflower', starring Song Joong-ki and Hong Sa-bin, and director Kim Seong-hwan's 'One Thousand Seconds', starring Joo Jong-hyuk, were invited side by side. Director Ha Myung-mi's 'Her Hobbies' will be released as the opening film in the Story of Women section, which looks more deeply into women's stories.

Jeon Hye-jeong, executive director of the London Asian Film Festival, said, "This year, we would like to summarize the history of Korean cinema and introduce it to the UK through works that provide a glimpse into the current state of Korean cinema. In celebration of the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and the UK, Jeong Ji-young, who has been continuously active for 40 years, Starting with the director's retrospective, director Kang Je-gyu, who led major Korean films in the 1990s and 2000s, director Hong Sang-soo, who presents his works every year amid endless love calls from world film festivals, and director Lee Won-seok, who tells stylish stories, will be selected as Korea's representative film at next year's Academy Awards. “We hope to promote the past, present, and future of Korean cinema to the UK through the works of director Uhm Tae-hwa, who was selected for , director Kim Chang-hoon, who entered Cannes with his debut film, and newcomer Ha Myung-mi,” he said.


◆ A new venue for planning and production exchange for Asian films

There will also be a Korean and Hong Kong film talk with Sanai Pictures CEO Han Jae-deok and film noir legend Go Cheon-rak, a leading Hong Kong actor and producer. A symbolic venue where producers leading the Asian film trend focus on the ‘noir’ genre and tell diverse stories with British audiences.

We also created a section to share contemporary concerns, such as respect for the environment and diversity. Director Hwang Yun's environmental documentary 'Sura', which captures the last tidal flats of Saemangeum, was invited to the Cherish the World category, and in the LGBTQIA+ category, works from Japan, Hong Kong and Macau, including 'Deer Night' starring Fan Bingbing and Lee Joo-young, will be introduced.

Asian films that received attention at major film festivals around the world, such as Cannes and Berlin, will also be introduced to British audiences through the London Asian Film Festival. These include director Hirokazu Koreeda's new film 'The Host' and director Zhang Lu's 'Top of Shadows'. Among the invited works, 12 will be released as world premieres and 25 will be released as UK premieres.

Reporter Ha-neul Lee, Ten Asia greenworld@tenasia.co.kr