Cinephiles in Korea now have a novel way of enjoying a film festival in a novel way ― completely paperless and online.
“The objective of the MyFrenchFilmFestival.com is to take fully into account the evolution of cultural consumption and to reach a new audience for French cinema abroad,” said Audiovisual Attach at the French Embassy Daniel Kapelian.
Film lovers anywhere in the world will be able to access selected films and vote for their favorites online.
Organized in partnership with UniFrance and Allocin, with the support from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this new and unique event runs until Jan. 29 on selected websites.
There are 10 feature films (first and second films recently released in France) and 10 short films, as well as a classic film.
A scene from “Turk’s Head” by Pascal Elbé
The films are available by video on demand (VOD), in original version and subtitled in Korean and several other languages such as German, English, Arabic, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Russian.
The festival’s website offers free access to the trailers and to many exclusive online interviews.
In Korea, the festival is supported by Korea Telecom and can be accessed via QOOK IPTV’s website at www.ollehmarket.com and http://zone.qook.co.kr.
KT IPTV or mobile phone customers can vote for their favorite films.
Three prizes will be awarded at the end of the festival: an audience prize, a prize for foreign bloggers and an award from the international press.
Some of the films to look out for are “The Other One” by Patrick Mario Bernard and Pierre Tridivic with Dominique Blanc. The story is about Anne-Marie, who leaves Alex when she realizes they no longer have the same aspirations. He wants to settle down, she wants to keep her freedom. But when Alex finds a new mistress, Anne-Marie becomes crazy with jealousy.
“All About Actresses” by Mawenn with Karin Viard and Charlotte Rampling showcases today’s top French actresses all in one film. The film portrays a director’s documentary film about actresses. The director shows all their personalities: manipulative, fragile, deceitful but quickly gets involved in their little games, for better or worse.
Pascal Elb’s “Turk’s Head” with Roschdy Zem and Ronit Elkabetz tells the tale of a 14-year-old, an emergency room doctor, a cop looking for revenge, a mother fighting for her family, a man crushed by his wife’s death and their destinies linked after an accident.
Two films not in competition but worth a look are the 1955 film by Jean Renoir “French Cancan” with Jean Gabin and “Battered” by Louise de Prmonville which made its Korean debut at the Asiana Film Festival two months ago.
Since 1949, the Unifrance organization has been promoting French cinema around the world and conducts studies to provide French film professionals with a wide range of information concerning the international film market. It also organizes events and festivals to facilitate the exposure of French cinema to new audiences while supporting the distribution of French films abroad.
Allocin is the most popular French website for information about cinema. Created in 2003, it provides quick access to a rich database concerning film releases, DVDs and film professionals (directors, actors, etc.)
For more information visit www.myfrenchfilmfestival.com or www.ollehmarket.com. They are also located on Facebook at MyFrenchFilmFestival.
By Yoav Cerralbo (yoav@heraldcorp.com)
