Paris Lights Up with Korean Cinema Retrospective
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A Korean film festival entitled "50 Years of Cinema Korea (50 Ans de Cinema Coréen)" is being held at Chaillot Palace in Paris until Feb. 26. The event features 50 Korean movies that represent and span the 50-year history of Korean cinema, from the 1950s film "The Free Woman" to recent movies made in the 2000s.
It is the largest event for Korean movies to be held in the French capital after a Korean film retrospective was staged at the Pompidou Center in 1994.
Jean-François Rauger of the Cinemathèque Française, who jointly planned the event with the Centre Culturel Coréen en France, is a Frenchman with a deep understanding of Korean movies.
He described them as having broken the prejudice that art movies were unpopular, adding that the success of Korean movies demonstrated that popular films could also be artistic.
Rosee first came into contact with Korean films when he saw director Im Kwon-taek's "The Surrogate Woman" at an Italian film festival.
Rosee himself selected the 50 Korean movies for the event based on his interest in, and understanding of, Korean cinema, and with the assistance of director Kim Hong-joon. He mainly selected works that have had a profound impact on Korean cinema and were highly polished or innovative movies, he said.
While praising the success of Korean films, Rosee also expressed concern about the potential problems their popularity may trigger. With greater public success, popular directors might monopolize all of the available capital and nudge independent movies and producers out of the market, he said.
Ultimately, the diversity of Korean movies might be threatened and Korean cinephiles could turn their backs on local films, he warned.
It is the largest event for Korean movies to be held in the French capital after a Korean film retrospective was staged at the Pompidou Center in 1994.
Jean-François Rauger of the Cinemathèque Française, who jointly planned the event with the Centre Culturel Coréen en France, is a Frenchman with a deep understanding of Korean movies.
He described them as having broken the prejudice that art movies were unpopular, adding that the success of Korean movies demonstrated that popular films could also be artistic.
Rosee first came into contact with Korean films when he saw director Im Kwon-taek's "The Surrogate Woman" at an Italian film festival.
Rosee himself selected the 50 Korean movies for the event based on his interest in, and understanding of, Korean cinema, and with the assistance of director Kim Hong-joon. He mainly selected works that have had a profound impact on Korean cinema and were highly polished or innovative movies, he said.
While praising the success of Korean films, Rosee also expressed concern about the potential problems their popularity may trigger. With greater public success, popular directors might monopolize all of the available capital and nudge independent movies and producers out of the market, he said.
Ultimately, the diversity of Korean movies might be threatened and Korean cinephiles could turn their backs on local films, he warned.
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