LIMITED SERIES A NEW WAVE OF K-CINEMA:
KOREAN WOMEN DIRECTORS JUN 8–29, 2023
Waikiki Brothers Thu, Jun 8 | 7:30pm | TMT
Korea’s #MeToo movement was first introduced in art and cultural institutions and industries in 2016 and soon expanded to more mainstream outlets of society. The growth of the movement generated platforms for feminism to release itself from misjudgment and stereotypes and move away from its distorted public perceptions within Korea. This screening series, which consists of contemporary films directed by Korean women, opens with two works by Yim Soon-rye, a prominent director and an advocate for women in film. The films explore the complexities of diverse conditions, including the trauma of domestic violence, investigations into gender and class politics, humanity’s relation to nature and the environment, and love and friendship. Each film in the series conveys its narrative through the unique lens of its director’s keen perception, remarkable sensibility, and earnest engagement with its subject(s), for a 10-film tour through this new wave of Korean women directors.
Programmed and notes by Hyesung ii.
This program is made possible in part by a grant from the Korea Foundation.
Waikiki Brothers Thu, Jun 8 | 7:30pm | TMT
synonymous popular manga series by Daisuke Igarashi, Yim’s film is a soothing entity that gently guides one through the landscape of beauty and happiness to realize the simple value of daily life. Little Forest encourages us to perceive our lives, and indeed the world, with an eye toward modest mindfulness. DIRECTED BY: Yim Soon-rye. WRITTEN BY: Hwang Seong-gu. WITH: Kim Tae-ri, Ryu Jun-yeol, Moon So-ri, Jin Ki-joo. 2018. 103 min. Korea. Color. Korean. DCP.
Yim Soon-rye’s second feature received incredible critical response upon its release in 2001, establishing Yim as one of Korea’s most significant directors. Seong-woo, lead singer and guitarist of Waikiki Brothers—a band originally formed with his friends back in high school—returns to his hometown with his bandmates in the hopes of sustaining their fragile lifeline. Unsurprisingly, the band stagnates, and Seong-woo is torn between the dream that’s out of reach and his thin grasp on reality. Yim’s insightful and humane perception of the cruel split between reality and dream in Korean modern society permeates this portrayal of her sympathetic and intricate characters. DIRECTED/WRITTEN BY: Yim Soon-rye. WITH: Lee Eol, Hwang Jung-min, Park Won-sang, Park Hae-il. 2001. 109 min. Korea. Color. Korean. DCP.
Kim Ji-Young, Born 1982 Sun, Jun 11 | 3pm | TMT
Kim Do-young’s debut feature is based on Cho Nam-ju’s bestselling novel of the same name. Upon its 2016 publication, the book prompted controversy among men in Korea, a phenomenon that deepened the valley between women and men in the country and added fuel to the hostility against feminism. Ji-young is an ordinary woman in her late 30s who tries her best to ensure everyone’s happiness, all the while subconsciously unleashing accumulations of repression, discrimination, and self- abandonment that manifest in metaphysical forms. This film may be about one woman, but it is also about the rest of us. DIRECTED/WRITTEN BY: Kim Do-young. WITH: Jung Yu-mi, Gong Yoo, Kim Mi-kyung. 2019. 118 min. Korea. Color. Korean. DCP.
Little Forest Sat, Jun 10 | 3pm | TMT
Kim Tae-ri ( The Handmaiden ) plays Hye-won, a young woman who returns to her childhood home in the country to escape the disappointments of city life, where she is greeted by an empty house and “Little Forest,” her mom’s old garden. Based on the
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