Korea's biggest celebration of genre cinema kicked off last week and has been delighting
audiences with its mix of fantasy, horror, comedy and more.
The Pucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, or PiFan for short, is now in its 18th year
and will hand out its awards as well as screen its closing film later today.
However, the festival is still on throughout the weekend so there's still time to catch
some films.
Film lovers also seem to be excited about the latest local blockbuster to hit screens,
as period action film KUNDO: THE AGE RAMPANT opened to enormous numbers this week.
Joining us to share his experiences at PiFan and perhaps recommend a few films for the
remaining days of the event is our film critic Pierce Conran.
So, Pierce... it sure looked like the stars were out in force for the opening ceremony
last week... and the festival sure looks like it had a lot in store for this year.
First, how does it feel to be back at PiFan?
It feels great.
Though Busan is still the king of Korean festivals, PiFan remains my favorite.
It's the first festival that I attended in Korea and I've always been drawn to its casual
atmosphere and the fun films the fill the program.
That said, there's plenty of glitz on display as well, as last week's star-studded opening
night demonstrated.
I was able to get a glimpse of the opening ceremony last week-- and like I said, it was
definitely a star-studdeed event How was it?
Even more than usual, the event hall was filled with big names from the local industry.
Hyun Bin, Kim Woo-bin, Son Ye-jin, Shim EUn-kyoung and Cho Jin-woong were all on hand to
accept awards and they were joined by a coterie of other stars as well.
So, this unique film festival takes place nearby Seoul in Gyeonggi-do province and I
remember you telling me that PiFan is just the right place to beat the summer heat as
it presents the best in genre cinema for hungry cinephiles.
For those who are not so familiar with it, can you tell us a little about it?
Along with Busan and Jeonju, it is one of the biggest festivals in Korea and among fantastic
festivals, it's the biggest in Asia.
The focus is on colorful, experimental and fun
cinema.
Horror, thrillers, crime, high concept comedy and more fill out the program and there's
always something for everyone.
Going into its 18th year, the festival has lost none of its dynamism.
What are some of the things you were most looking forward to this year?
It's actually a little sad because there's always so much that I want to see that I know
I won't even get to half of them.
That said, I'm excited about a lot of the films in Puchon Choice, which is
the main competition section, such as Australian horror The Babadook, digital thriller Open
Windows with Elijah Wood or the trippy Thai film Hong Hoon.
Beyond that I'm eager to dig into some of the special programs this year, suchas the
Latin American genre cinema showcase, the Godzilla 60th anniversary program and a retrospective
on celebrated Italian erotica filmmaker Tinto Brass.
Film festivals tend to have various sidebar events such as contents markets and the like.
What about PiFan - What goes on beyond the films?
There are a lot of sidebar events but the most significant is the concurrent NAFF, which
is the Network of Asian Fantastic Films.
It's a project market where filmmakers can pitch their new ideas to potential investors
and distributors.
For example, last year's hit The Terror Live is a project that started at NAFF.
There are also various forums and discussions, a Fantastic School for budding filmmakers,
and of course, parties
But what about for viewers who aren't into gore or scary films, is PiFan a good destination
for them?
While there's plenty that may not appeal to certain viewers, the selection on offer is
broad.
Animation, romcoms, classics and a variety of milder genre films are available, making
it an ideal festivals for any kind of film lover.
More than other festivals in Korea, PiFan is really about having fun.
There are all-night midnight screenings, cosplay and some pretty wild things on offer in the
theaters.
I highly recommend it
All right.
Definitely one that's worth checking out.
Now, Pierce... on to one film that is just sweeping across the cinemas here in Korea...
Kundo: Age of the Rampant.
It opened this week and seems to be doing very well.
What do you make of its success?
It's a broadly appealing film with big names like Ha Jung-woo and Gang Dong-won, full of
comedy, action and period spectacle.
Following a rather slow period for local films, I think audiences were starved for a big domestic
release and this one comes at the right time.
I imagine it will continue to do well but with two more big-budget period films out
in the next two weeks, Roaring Currents and The Pirates, it will face some stiff competition.
Pierce, thanks for another very powerful REEL Talk session and we look forward to having
you back in the studio next Friday.
That was our film critic Pierce Conran live from the Puchon International Fantastic Film
Festival.