Korea film festival held in Lagos
Korean wave is rising and fast indeed; as Korean pop culture, TV dramas, films and music are now in high demand in Asia, the Middle East, South America and is also gradually entering Africa, particularly Nigeria. To expose more Nigerians to Korean culture and movies, the Korean Cultural Centre in Nigeria staged a film festival […]
Korean wave is rising and fast indeed; as Korean pop culture, TV dramas, films and music are now in high demand in Asia, the Middle East, South America and is also gradually entering Africa, particularly Nigeria.
To expose more Nigerians to Korean culture and movies, the Korean Cultural Centre in Nigeria staged a film festival at the Genesis Cinemas in Lagos. The festival drew audience from businessmen, diplomats, students, entertainers, journalists and movie lovers generally.
Suh Jeong Sun, the Director of the Korean Cultural Centre, Nigeria called for the cooperation between the Nollywood and Hallyuwood.
He explained that in Korea, films have developed on the strength of incessant creativity, despite challenges from international film markets like Hollywood.
With the emergence of young talented film directors and the liberalization of the market, he said, Korean movies began to occupy a major share of the domestic market and Korean film exports began to grow. All these have laid the foundation for the Korean Wave and the subsequent popularity of Korean films all over Asia and the world.
The movies screened at the Lagos Korean film festival include; Take Off; Barefoot Dream; Hwang Jin-Yi; Speedy Scandal and Le Grand Chef.
Take Off and Barefoot Dream, told compelling stories about Korean strong and determined spirits, movies they have used to celebrate the hosting rights they won to host the 2012 Winter Olympics in Pyeonchang. Hwang Jin-Yi and Speedy Scandal show cases Korean traditional and modern society while Le Grand Chef is based on Korean food and culture.
Fidelis Duker, the Director, Abuja Film Festival said for two years running, there have been cooperation between both film festivals.
He also announced a collaborative effort between the Nigerian and the Korean movie industry to draw synergies from both.
He noted that though there is much creativity in Nigeria movie industry, a few lessons could still be leant from the Korean experience where they use their movies to launder the image of their country and sell their culture.
He used the opportunity to drum for more support and investment by government and the private sector into the Nigerian movies.
It was also an evening with networking opportunities from participants – typical of any good film festival.