Co-Presented by the Hong Kong Arts Centre, DMZ International Documentary Film Festival and Seoul Independent Film Festival, and in collaboration with the Korean Cultural Center in Hong Kong, the tickets for the Women Direct. Korean Indies! – Korean Women Independent Film Series are for sale on Hong Kong Movie now! The programme in June includes Microhabitat (Director: Jeon Go-woon), a story about a woman's refusal to compromise her way of life despite criticisms; and Untold (Director: Lee-kil Bora), a documentary about a group of Vietnamese survivors of the Vietnam War travel to Korea to fight for their case to be heard and justified.
Directors of Microhabitat and Untold will meet the audience virtually at an after-screening talk.
Microhabitat
Director: Jeon Go-woo
South Korea｜2018｜106 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles
Date & Time: 26/6 (Sat) 7:30pm – With virtual after-screening director's chat. Conducted in Cantonese and Korean.
Moderator: Patrick Suen (Film Critic/Columnist)
Best New Director, Blue Dragon Awards 2018
Best New Director and Best Screenplay, Grand Bell Awards 2018
Best New Director and Independent Film Support Awards, The Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 201
CGV Arthouse Award, Busan International Film Festival 2017
Tiger Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film, New York Asian Film Festival 2018
Ingmar Bergman Competition, Göteborg International Film Festival (Sweden) 2018
Miso, an impoverished thirty-something former musician, makes a living as a housekeeper. When the government doubles the price of cigarettes, she gives up her house to keep the three things she likes – whiskey, cigarettes and her boyfriend, who is an unsuccessful comics artist. Now homeless, she finds her previous band mates to shelter her, but her friends criticise her for consuming luxuries like cigarettes and whiskey while in poverty. Miso refuses to compromise and stays the way she likes. The Korean film title literally means “a little princess”.
Microhabitat is the debut feature of director Jeon Go-woon and was lauded with awards and a long festival run. Jeon's previous films also won several awards and participated in many festivals. She co-founded KwangHwaMoon Cinema, an independent collective of filmmakers aimed at helping each other debut in the industry.
Untold
Director: Lee-kil Bor
South Korea｜2017｜73 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles
Date & Time: 27/5 (Sun) 7:30pm – With virtual after-screening director's chat. Conducted in Cantonese or English and Korean.
Moderator: Steve Chung (Assistant Lecturer, Global Studies Programme, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)
Excellence Award, Persons with Disabilities Film Festival (South Korea) 2019
Mecenat Award Special Mention (Wide Angle – Documentary Competition), Busan International Film Festival 2018
In the 1960s, South Korea fought against the communists as a US ally during the Vietnam War. A lot of atrocities were committed with civilians raped and killed by Koreans. Every February, many Vietnamese pray and offer incense to console the victims on an occasion called Dai Han (Korean) Commemoration. But in South Korea, the history of the massacre is admitted and the Vietnam War is officially documented merely as a contribution to South Korea's rapid economic growth. As histories are fighting to be heard and justified, Vietnamese survivors travel to Korea to fight for their case.
Lee-Kil Bora dropped out of school at age 16, and travelled in South East Asia for volunteer work. The experience inspired her first documentary and she has been making films since. Her work has participated in the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival and Film Festival for Women's Rights (South Korea) amongst others.
Venue: Louis Koo Cinema, Hong Kong Arts Centre (UB, Hong Kong Arts Centre, 2 Harbour Road, Wanchai)
Tickets are available on Hong Kong Movie now!
