LOS ANGELES - American film director Martin Scorsese and British artist David Hockney were honored at the Art + Film Gala, an annual gathering that aims to bring the art and movie industries of Los Angeles closer together.
In a Saturday night event heavy with Hollywood actors and studio executives at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, or LACMA, the Oscar-winning director Scorsese was praised for helping save the museum’s film program when it was nearly scrapped during the financial crisis, and for his work on film restoration.
Hockney, a multimedia artist who lived and painted for decades in Los Angeles, was recognized for the way he captured the city, from swimming pools to Mulholland Drive - images that came to define Southern California.
LACMA has played a leading role in the burgeoning art scene in Los Angeles. The gala raised $4.1 million for LACMA’s film program.
Son Hyun-joo (l) and Jeon Mi-seon head the cast of tense thriller Hide and Seek
The eighth London Korean Film Festival opens this week, offering UK audiences the chance to see a number of titles that have enjoyed unexpected box office success in their home country.
They include festival opener Hide and Seek, a low-budget home invasion thriller that reached five million ticket sales in less than three weeks, despite having no established stars.
Also on the line-up is The Flu, a disaster movie about an influenza epidemic that had a similarly strong reaction in South Korea last August.
Secretly, Greatly - a comedy about North Korean spies stationed in the South that enjoyed the biggest opening weekend for a domestic release last June - is another crowd-pleaser to feature in the programme.
The event will also screen Wish, whose dramatisation of a real-life child abuse case that became a cause celebre in South Korea saw it top the country's box office chart last month.
The resurgence of home-grown product has not gone unnoticed, with Variety's Patrick Frater remarking this week that "things are looking up for Korean cinema".
"This year has seen a succession of local stories that emerged from indie roots... films made by first or second-time directors... and pic[ture]s that became hits without recognisable stars," the journal's Asia correspondent said.
Earlier this year, Screen Daily reported South Korea's box office hit a record high in the first half of 2013 with 98.5 million admissions.
More than half of these admissions were for local films, a factor that led Variety to suggest Korean cinema was "on the cusp of a new golden era".
The Flu depicts the deadly after-effects of a viral epidemic
Its prediction appears to be borne out by Snowpiercer, an ambitious sci-fi epic whose $40m (￡24.8m) budget makes it the most expensive South Korean release ever.
The English-language film, whose international cast includes Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton and John Hurt, has made almost $60m (￡37m) in South Korea since opening in August according to Box Office Mojo.
It has since opened in France on 300 screens - the widest release ever in that country for a Korean film.
Where the film goes from there remains a moot point, though, amid reports the film is to be substantially cut before distribution worldwide.
The launch of this year's London Korean Film Festival conveniently coincides with a state visit by Park Geun-hye, South Korea's first female president.
Cultural collaboration
The president's visit will include a special preview of Hide and Seek, to take place in London later ahead of the festival's official launch on Thursday.
The South Korean leader was in Paris earlier this week and made a point of highlighting Snowpiercer as an example of cultural collaboration between her country and Europe.
"It is my hope that such similar collaborations can take place in terms of cultural content and technology, and furthermore contribute to cooperative relations," she said on Monday.
Lee Byung-hun (centre) was seen this year in Red 2 alongside John Malkovich and Bruce Willis
Her attendance later will bring an additional charge to an event that has some experience when it comes to attracting high-profile guests.
Last year's closing night gala, for example, saw Bruce Willis, John Malkovich and Dame Helen Mirren come out in support for Korean actor Lee Byung-hun, with whom they were shooting action sequel Red 2 at the time.
Following this year's events in London, the 2013 Korean Film Festival - which features no films from North Korea - will present highlights from its programme in Oxford, Bradford and St Andrews.
It will, however, have to compete for audiences with other specialised showcases of international cinema that are running concurrently.
The capital is also playing host to the UK Jewish Film Festival, which is holding events in London, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Glasgow until 17 November.
This week also sees the launch of the 21st UK French Film Festival, which will bring a selection of Gallic offerings to London, Warwick and eight locations in Scotland until 7 December.
Psy, Lee Byung Hun and Korea's Hottest Stars Hit NYC for CJ Group's 60th Anniversary Party THE CJ ENTERTAINMENT 'SPOTLIGHT ON KOREAN CINEMA' EVENT ALSO INCLUDED HA JUNG WOO, GO SOO, GONG HYO JIN, LEE JIN WOOK, AND HWANG SO HEE
On Thursday, November 7 New York City welcomed some of Korea's hottest celebrities to the Spotlight on Korean Cinema red carpet event at the Museum of Modern Art.
The special event was hosted by CJ Entertainment in conjunction with the 60th anniversary of its parent company, CJ Group, and served to introduce promising young Korean directors, Moon Byung Gon and Jo Sung Hee, to influential members of the international entertainment industry through a special screening presentation of two films.
Also joining the screening to show their support for the new wave of Korean cinema were several of the country's leading actors and entertainers.
Entering MoMA on the red carpet at last night's event were international actor Lee Byung Hun and world mega star Psy, who served as representatives of the Korean entertainment field's increasingly globalized appeal.
Actors Ha Jung Woo, Go Soo, and Lee Jin Wook also joined actress Gong Hyo Jin and TV personality Hwang So Hee at the screening presentation.
Additionally, CJ Entertainment donated ten iconic Korean films from famed directors such as Bong Joon Ho and Park Chan Wook to The Museum of Modern Art's Film Collection "for the purposes of preservation and education" and in accordance with the "mission to expand the world stage for Korean film," explained the CEO Jeong Tae Sung.
CJ Entertainment, according to Jeong, is "embracing the future with fresh, young talents" and the celebrities in attendance "represent new energy and Korea's premium acting talent."
"Lee Byung Hun," said Jeong, "is carrying a banner for Korean entertainers in Hollywood." It is no surprise then, that with two US major motion pictures under his belt, the veteran actor was one of the night's biggest attractions.
"Gangnam Style" singer Psy also made a big impression on the crowd as a representative for the Korean Wave. "He is a man who needs no introduction. He single-handedly created a new category of international stars," explained Jeong.
Before the screening of his short film, Safe, up-and-coming director Moon Byung Gon modestly addressed the audience to introduce his creation and added, "the celebrities here tonight are very hard to meet in person even in Korea. So thank you all for coming out tonight."
Safe has earned Moon a great deal of international recognition, particularly after it won the Palme d'Or and several other recognitions at the 66th annual Cannes Film Festival.
The film is about a young college student who works as a cashier in an illegal gambling house until things spiral out of control.
The second screening of the night was of director Jo Sung Hee's critically acclaimed film End of Animal.
The post-apocalyptic film is dismal and quiet but masterfully put together despite Jo's assertion that it "is a little rough around the edges."
It was also revealed that the remake rights for End of Animal has been sold in the United States and that an full-length feature film version of it is in the works.
Both films were well received by the audience and the entire event gave some new insight into the Korean film industry and boosted the recognition of for many of the country's promising actors and influential stars.
CJ Entertainment was established in 1995 and since has become the nation's leading motion picture studio. Since its inception, the company has invested heavily in the Korean film industry making it the world's 8th largest.
LBH, LMJ's Congratulatory Wishes to KBS' Entertainment Weekly's 1500th episode
Source: OSEN l thanks to mistymorning for the translation ^^
Newlywed celebs Lee Byung Hun and Lee Min Jung who have been regularly featured on KBS entertainment variety show "Entertainment Weekly" have conveyed their best wishes to the program's 1500th episode.
Lee Byung Hun said, "30 years means this show is senior to me. Senior, I wish you to be healthy and loved by many. "
Lee Min Jung said "My sincere congratulations. Please be a long running program and I'll be an avid watcher.
An EverythingLBH.com sharing
Fan-clip featuring Byunghun & Minjung
Forever gratitude to neelia at LBH-soompi for the lyrics of Stay (IRIS OST Japan)
STAY ~ Lee Byung Hun
Everytime I see your face I see heaven in your eyes
Everytime I hear your voice I hear the waterfalls
You're the only one who makes me wanna dream away
But I know it's too late to go on
I close my eyes & think of you and the moments that we shared
A haze of our memories still so clear it's hard to bear
Nothing in this world could ever be the same again
You left me all alone out in the rain
**
Can't you stay for a little more time
I don't wanna lie I don't wanna cry
I need you in my life
Can I stay I need a little more time to be alright
I just wanna dry my lonely tears then I'll leave it all behind
Everytime you hold my hand I feel your heart with mine
Everytime you call my name you take my breath away
You're the only one who makes me live another day
Now you know why I can't let you go
**repeat
Wooo.....hoooo......
Nothings gonna change
The way I feel for you, my love
You're my life
Can't you stay
Can't you stay by my side
I don't wanna lie I don't wanna cry
I want you in my life
Can't you say
Can't you say that our love will be alright
Please don't say goodbye
To all the love we built this far
To all the time we spent together
Come on back & take my pain away
Nominees for Best Performance by an Actor, in addition to Adam Bakri (Omar) and Yerbolat Toguzakov (Shal / The Old Man), are Lee Byung-hun for Masquerade (Republic of Korea), Tatsuya Nakadai for Nippon no higeki (Japan’s Tragedy, Japan) and Aaron Pedersen for Mystery Road (Australia).
Our gratitude to the fan-sharing at tumblr <3 who spotted Storm Shadow and his wife! Byunghun and Minjung were in NYC recently as they attended the CJ Group's 60th Anniversary "Spotlight on Korean Cinema" Event at MoMA.
This made my night came to drop off my parents and while we’re walking in I realized that my family and I are walking in with the one and only Storm Shadow from G.I. Joe rise of cobra. I know the pic is a bit blurry but I was like oh my god it’s storm shadow. And I yelled out hail cobra
Korea’s Stars–Photographer Eric Guillemain (2b Management) is enlisted by L’Uomo Vogue to shoot their new portfolio featuring Korean personalities. Talking about their craft, whether it is posing in front of the camera as a model or starring in a new television series or movie, Kim Woo Bin, Lee Yong Woo and Lee Byung Hun appear before Guillemain’s lens in striking fall/winter 2013 fashions.
The Asia Screen Pacific Awards have announced their nominees for its 7th edition and among them, a trio of Korean films has been selected. 39 films from 21 countries were nominated in various categories.
KANG Yi-kwan’s Juvenile Offender was nominated in the Best Children’s Feature Film category. Among other nominees was Wadjda, the first Saudi Arabian film directed by a woman, which served as the closing film of this year’s Jeonju International Film Festival.
YEON Sang-ho’s The Fake was selected for the Best Animated Feature Film section. YEON’s dark animation has been getting a lot of attention since its bow as part of the Toronto International Film Festival’s Vanguard section back in September. Among others, The Fake will go up against MIYAZAKI Hayao’s final feature The Wind Rises.
LEE Byung-hun was nominated in the Best Performance by an Actor category for his dual-role in the hit period drama Masquerade. Directed by CHOO Chang-min, the film collected over 12 million admissions last fall.
Last year, four films were nominated in various categories while CHOI Min-shik earned Best Actor for Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time and CHO Min-soo picked up the Screen International Jury Grand Prize for Pieta. The 7th Asia Pacific Screen Awards will take place in Brisbane’s City Hall on December 12th.
Along with other Korean celebrities and personalities, actor Lee Byung Hun sent his handwritten congratulatory message to Asia Today on the media portal's 8th anniversary.
Byunghun wrote: Congratulations on Asia Today 8th anniversary (cr: mistymorning@LBH Skype)
Some of South Korea’s A-list entertainers—Won Bin, Lee Bo Young, Lee Byung Hun, Kim Rae Won, Ahn Sung Ki, and Kim Hye Soo—are also UNICEF’s special ambassadors, and to commemorate the 20th anniversary of their country’s committee for the organization, they participated in a photoshoot for InStyle Korea’s December issue.
Ahn Sung Ki, in particular, has been working with UNICEF for over 20 years, and in his interview, he felt encouraged and grateful to be involved in the project and the shoot with his juniors.
Author
An EverythingLBH.com sharing
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