In this interview, Carolyn speaks with Park Sun Young, Programmer of Asian Cinema at the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), about the importance of promoting Asian cinema at international festivals for local and visiting international guests and industry insiders.
As a programmer Park and her team have a very difficult job of sifting through hundreds of submissions each year to decide on their final selections for platforms such as the A Window on Asian Cinema platform, the New Currents platform which highlights first and second films of up-and-coming filmmakers like Pawo Choyning Dorji (The Monk and the Gun), and Yeon Je-gwang whose film The Guest premiered at the festival.
One other category Park references was the Jiseok platform, a competition program which was created in honor of the late Kim Ji-seok. Kim, who passed away in 2017, was the Deputy Director, an executive programmer and one of the founders of BIFF.
Park also spoke about how the similarities in the history of all Asian countries contributes to the universality and relatability of the stories presented, making them compelling for not only audiences, but also programmers like herself.
Despite her academic background focused on the comedic film history of Korean cinema, Park is especially drawn to films with more dramatic themes as a festival programmer which makes for an interesting perspective, and a great example of how film is a medium of storytelling brings out new sides to those involved in all aspects of the film industry, including festivals.
Carolyn Hinds
Freelance Critic, Journalist & Podcaster
African American Film Critics Association Member, Tomatometer-Approved Critic
Co-Host & Producer So Here’s What Happened! Podcast
Bylines at http://Authory.com/CarolynHinds
Twitter & Instagram: @CarrieCnh12
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