In this wide-ranging interview, composer and performer Won Il reflects on his musical journey, Korean traditional sound, percussion and piri, experimental projects like Puri and Uhuhboo, and his vision for the National Orchestra of Korea ahead of its London debut. [Read More]
Category: Interviews and features (page 5)
Moon So-ri interview: feminism, craft and the changing landscape of Korean cinema
Moon So-ri reflects on choosing strong female roles, feminism in Korean cinema, and challenging performances such as Oasis. She discusses theatre versus film, physicality in acting, independent and commercial filmmaking, industry consolidation, collaboration with auteurs, and her belief in cinema’s power to broaden representation without being bound by markets or labels. [Read More]
Aashish Gadhvi assesses Korea’s poor performance against Croatia with the help of Ki Sung-yueng
South Korea were back in rainy old London Town to have their now annual friendly against Croatia at Craven Cottage, the home of Fulham FC. After previous visits to London to play Greece, Serbia and Ivory Coast, Korea has now made London a decent stop in their international calendar. Although some cynics would see these … [Read More]
Korea’s training day, and interview with Lee Chung-yong
When I first found out Korea were again coming to London to play a friendly against Croatia I was determined to report the match for LKL in the way I had done for their previous friendlies. This also reminded me of the training session the team had prior to the Ivory Coast friendly which I … [Read More]
Kim In-geun interview: creative life abroad — art, film, and living in London
London-based Korean artist Kim In-geun discusses his move from sculpture to filmmaking, the creation of his debut short One Fine Day, influences from Hong Sang-soo, collaboration across art forms, and themes of creativity, self-consciousness and everyday absurdity within contemporary artistic life. [Read More]
Choo Chang-min and Ryoo Seung-ryong interview: Masquerade – history with a modern voice
Director Choo Chang-min and actor Ryoo Seung-ryong discuss their involvement in Masquerade, exploring the appeal of period drama, the story’s modern relevance, casting well-known and emerging actors, artistic freedom, and the different challenges posed by physically demanding versus more restrained roles. [Read More]
Lee Byung-hun interview: “if you were a king, what would you do?”
Lee Byung-hun reflects on the appeal of Masquerade’s politically open-ended story, balancing humour with seriousness, and the challenges of acting across cultures in Hollywood. He discusses star power versus emerging talent, the value of criticism, and why Korean language and culture remain his strongest creative foundation. [Read More]
Director Jung Ji-woo interview: aging, desire and society in Eungyo
Director Jung Ji-woo discusses EunGyo as a way to explore unspoken desires, aging, and social restraint in Korea. He reflects on empathy, casting authenticity, adaptation from literature and manhwa, creative freedom, working with actors, and how human difference and collision drive his filmmaking. [Read More]
Kim Yoon-suk interview: from The Chaser to The Thieves
Kim Yoon-suk discusses his decision to focus exclusively on film, his collaborations with Na Hong-jin, and the appeal of socially grounded, hardcore thrillers. He reflects on the demands of The Thieves, the limits of TV drama production, and why intense genre films travel more easily than Korean comedy on the international stage. [Read More]
Choi Dong-hoon interview: “a genius storyteller”
Director Choi Dong-hoon discusses his move from acting to full-time directing, his approach to genre cinema, and why character matters more than message. He explains the creative choices behind The Thieves, casting Jeon Ji-hyun and Kim Hye-soo, working beyond heist films, and balancing Korean stories with growing international audiences. [Read More]
Im Kwon-taek interview: tradition, social norms, and a life in Korean cinema
Im Kwon-taek reflects on depicting women’s suffering, Confucian traditions, and communal rituals in Korean society. He discusses pansori and cultural transmission, artistic freedom, life experience as the basis of filmmaking, his long career of 101 films, and his belief that Korean cinema evolves alongside national history. [Read More]
Jeon Kyu-hwan interview: marginal lives, independent filmmaking, creative survival
Director Jeon Kyu-hwan discusses realism and graphic content, his focus on marginalised lives, and the making of low-budget films outside Korea’s commercial system. He reflects on creative independence, financial precarity, narrative experimentation, the Town trilogy, and his belief that cinema must embrace diversity beyond standardised genres. [Read More]
Han Yeo-reum interview: Samaria, The Bow, and working with Kim Ki-duk
Actress Han Yeo-reum discusses her path into acting, roles in Kim Ki-duk’s Samaria and The Bow, performing without dialogue, female sexuality on screen, and working across film and television. She also explains her approach to controversial projects, international recognition, and selecting roles based on story, character, and collaborators. [Read More]
Director Lee Yoon-ki interview: intimate storytelling
Lee Yoon-ki discusses his unconventional path into filmmaking, his focus on quiet, time-compressed stories of relationships, and adapting short fiction. He explains his actor-centred working methods, restrained use of music, influences from American indie cinema, funding challenges for non-commercial films, and his view of cinema as a universal language. [Read More]
Lee Hyeon-seung interview: feminism, symbolism and genre experimentation in Korean cinema
Lee Hyeon-seung discusses subconscious symbolism in Il Mare, feminism and female-centred narratives, sexuality and gender politics, and the expressive use of colour. He reflects on genre experimentation, global consciousness, industry constraints, and his return to directing with Hindsight as a blend of romance, action, and generational dialogue. [Read More]
Yi Seung-jun interview: different ways of feeling the world
Director Yi Seung-jun discusses Planet of Snail, his documentary on a deaf-blind man and his wife, focusing on alternative forms of communication, shared loneliness, love, and everyday life. He also addresses filmmaking beyond pity, differences between TV and cinema documentaries, and his ongoing work with unseen minorities. [Read More]