Kang Soo-yeon, Veteran Korean Actor, Dies at 55

Broker, starring singer-actress IU, was given a 12-minute standing ovation at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival.Broker, the first-ever Korean-language film by Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda, recently premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival on May 27. Once the screening had concluded, the fil received a 12-minute-long standing ovation from those in-attendance, according to a report from Korean news outlet Edaily.The publication also claimed that the standing ovation began with Cannes Film Festival’s executive director, Thierry Frémaux.

“It’s rare when the thing that you’re working on so deeply reaches in your own life, your own history, your own family,” says director J.D. Dillard, whose forthcoming “Devotion” is as much a historical drama as it is an exploration of his own ancestry and childhood.

When the Cannes Film Festival lineup was announced on April 14, Twitter positively exploded with excitement over the news that Lee Ji-eun would make her Riviera debut with Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Broker in Competition. The Korean actress, singer and songwriter—popularly known as IU—has a legion of fans, including 26 million followers on Instagram, and has been described as a national treasure at home. She may now be well poised for crossover success with her first commercial film.

Kang Daniel recently offered his insight on the creative process behind his recent release, ‘The Album’.In a recent interview with Rolling Stone India, the soloist talked about taking more creative liberties on his first-ever studio album ‘The Story’, which dropped earlier this week, instead of leaning toward mainstream trends with his work, following the release of his ‘Color’ trilogy in 2021 and 2020.“I think that every artist who is appealing to mass culture comes across that dilemma every once in a while,” the singer explained. “I think it’s that intricate balance between creativity or the mainstream or the message of whatever the fans want, and what to give more weight to in terms of priority.”The singer elaborated that, this time around, he followed his “gut feeling and just went with the flow” while working on the record.

JAY B has shared how it doesn’t feel real to have finally reunited with boyband GOT7 and released a brand-new project after being apart for so long.Yesterday (May 23), the septet returned with their brand-new self-titled EP, which featured the title track ‘NANANA’. The project marks GOT7’s first official comeback since departing long-time agency JYP Entertainment in January 2021, after which the seven members embarked on solo careers.“We told each other that all seven of us should be part of our new mini-album, but it is still surreal to see that we have actually made this happen,” JAY B said of ‘GOT7’ during a recent press conference for the release, per The Korea Times.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefSurprising as it may sound, the Korean film industry has had a rough time over the past couple of years. Get ready for a comeback.Just at a moment when Korean film producers might have expected to capitalize on the unprecedented multi-Oscar success of “Parasite” (and the previous year’s Korean-language “Minari,” COVID closed down Korean cinemas , stifled production and extinguished Korean audiences’ willingness to venture into cinemas.

Sony Pictures International Productions (SPIP) is set to remake Ariel Winograd’s Argentinian comedy Mama Se Fue De Viaje (Ten Days Without Mom) in Turkey and South Korea.

Rebecca Souw Four films, “Decision to Leave,” “Broker,” “The Hunt” and “No Return” selected for this year’s Cannes Film Festival shed rays of hope for a positive uptake in the Korean film industry, severely damaged due to the COVID pandemic. Juxtaposed against a fruitful run in 2019, the year Bong Joon Ho’s “Parasite” won the Palme d’Or, the massive slow down of the industry saw box office sales plummeting, sizable shrinking of the business, theater closures and a backlog of unreleased filmsAt last year’s Busan Film Festival’s Asian Contents & Film Market veteran film director Park Chan Wook said the release date for “Decision to Leave” was uncertain and as no one is rushing, the team is constantly retouching parts of the film.

Peter Debruge Chief Film CriticOn Oct. 26, 1979, South Korean president Park Chung-hee was assassinated by the chief of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency — a coup that ended the autocrat’s 16-year grip on a country that has wrestled with corruption and scandal ever since.

First, there was Parasite, shaking up the global film sector and snatching Oscar glory. Then, there was Squid Game.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefTV series adaptations of “Fearless” and “Cold War,” two of the highest-profile Hong Kong action movies of the 21st century, are now in development.The shift into TV represents a major expansion and diversification for Edko Films, the studio headed by legendary producer-financier-executive Bill Kong (“Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon,” “Monster Hunt,” “Mulan”).The original 2006 “Fearless” was an iconic portrait of martial arts ace Huo Yianjia that was directed by Ronny Tong and starred Jet Li. It received studio-level distribution in many territories through Buena Vista, UIP and Sony Pictures Releasing.“Cold War” is a 2012 crime action film involving a mole inside the Hong Kong police.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefEpic Pictures Releasing has licensed North American rights to Korean action film “Hot Blooded,” from leading Seoul-based film sales agency Finecut. The deal is one of several struck by the agency ahead of Cannes, where it is also launching sales on Critics’ Week title “Next Sohee.”Starring Bae Doona and Kim Si-eun, “Next Sohee” is directed by Jung July, whose acclaimed “A Girl at My Door” played in Un Certain regard in 2014.

India is the country of honor at the Cannes Film Market and consequently a massive contingent from the country is descending upon the Croisette. Variety understands that some 400 attendees are winging their way from India, and that French embassies across the country were working at capacity to issue visas.That stands in contrast with the attendance from other parts of Asia, further East.

B.I is back!

Oh Sae Bom is opening up to his following.

admitted to a hospital in Seoul on Thursday (May 5) following a sudden cardiac arrest.Kang’s memorial service has been set up at Samsung Medical Center in Seoul. Her funeral ceremony will be held on Wednesday (May 11) and will be broadcast live through the Korean Film Council’s YouTube channel, according to a report from The Hollywood Reporter.The funeral committee will be led by Kim Dong-ho, former chairperson of the board of the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF).“Kang broke boundaries with her fearless performances.

Kang Soo-youn, who won South Korea’s first acting award from a Big Three film festival when she took home Best Actress honors at the Venice Film Festival, died Saturday, two days after suffering a cardiac arrest. She was 55 and her family said she died of a cerebral hemorrhage at 3 PM at a hospital in southern Seoul.