| Poster for 2022 KF World Cinema Week '60 Years of Friendship: Our Journey through Latin America' / Courtesy of Korea Foundation |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
A variety of Latin American cinema works are being shown in Korea as part of efforts to bridge Korea and Latin American countries through culture in celebration of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties.
The Korea Foundation (KF) opened the KF World Cinema Week, Friday, with diplomats from the 12 Latin American and the Caribbean states as well as distinguished guests such as Mexican TV personality Christian Burgos.
Titled "60 Years of Friendship: Our Journey through Latin America," the event features 12 films from the 12 countries ― Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama and Paraguay.
KF president Lee Geun said the foundation is honored to present a diverse range of films from Latin America during the opening ceremony at Jeongdeong 1928 Art Center in central Seoul, Friday.
"I believe, as a big fan of cinema, that movies play an important role as a channel through which we document and communicate aspects of the lives of people in different countries and cultures," Lee said.
"In this regard, it is my utmost hope that 2022 KF World Cinema Week to be a platform for you to feel the Latin American culture in multiple genres representing different countries."
Colombian Ambassador to Korea Juan Carlos Caiza delivered congratulatory remarks on behalf of the participating countries, highlighting that the films will give Korean audiences an opportunity to discover Latin American cultures and learn more about the countries.
"Cinema as a cultural activity is not only entertaining but also presents opportunities to generate knowledge and to unite cultures," Ambassador Caiza said.
"Each film we're going to present reflects part of our culture that will allow us to identify our difference, but you will also be able to discover what unites us ― not only in Latin America, but also with a country like South Korea."
"Days of Light," a film co-directed by six directors from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, was chosen to be the event's opening film.
The KF World Cinema Week programmer Park Jin said the film portrays how different people made it through an unprecedented blackout of five days caused by a solar storm.
"Through a variety of people from a pilot suffering injuries from an accidental landing to a girl whose 15th birthday party is ruined, the film tells the universal truth of life ― there is light at the end of the tunnel," Park said.
Other films of the event include "90 Minutes" from Honduras, "The Gold Seekers" from Paraguay, "Time of Women" from Ecuador, "Nahuel and the Magic Book" from Chile, "Tomorrow Don't Forget" from the Dominican Republic, "Martin & Margot" from Guatemala, "Impossible Things" from Mexico, "Something Blue" from Panama, "Zama" from Argentina, "Jerico, the Infinite Flight of Days" and "Pablo's Word" from El Salvador.
The films are available through Naver TV's KF World Cinema Week channel and Metaverse Mozilla Hubs for free through Aug. 18.