Film Festival Director, Ms. Ngo Phuong Lan, takes a photo with Head of the Jury Jang Joon-hwan.
Director Jang Joon-hwan is a famous filmmaker of Korean cinema, with many prestigious film awards.
This year, he attended the Da Nang Asian Film Festival as the Chairman of the Jury of the Asian Film Competition Category. Interestingly, two years ago, at the 1st Da Nang Asian Film Festival in 2023, his wife, actress Moon So Ri, who participated in the film “When Life Gives Us a Mandarin”, was also present and held the role of Head of the Jury.
Sharing with the press at the opening film screening for the Korean Cinema Spotlight program, director Jang Joon-hwan said that Korean cinema is very proud to bring films spanning many historical periods to introduce to Vietnamese audiences within the framework of the 2025 Da Nang Asian Film Festival.
He also felt very happy to see that Vietnamese audiences really like Korean films. The director joked that it was a "big deal" for Korean artists and filmmakers here and for the entire Korean cinema industry.
Director Jang Joon-hwan believes that the Da Nang Asian Film Festival is a great opportunity for filmmakers to meet and seek opportunities to collaborate with each other. “We have many opportunities to meet and discuss filmmaking, maybe in Vietnam, in Korea, in Da Nang or Busan, and one day we can work together on a film. I hope so,” he said.
Commenting on the Da Nang Asian Film Festival, director Jang Joon-hwan said that this year, many international films chose DANAFF as their premiere venue. This means that DANAFF is developing very quickly and attracting the attention of Asian filmmakers. Therefore, he also hopes that DANAFF will continue to develop faster and stronger, soon becoming a large and attractive film meeting place for Asian filmmakers.
The director also emphasized that the most important thing is that the Film Festival needs to pay attention to the audience of the whole continent. If DANAFF has enough films that are attractive to audiences across Asia, it will develop very quickly and will become one of the major film festivals in Asia like the Busan International Film Festival.
“Because there are so many Asian films premiering at DANAFF, the festival is clearly growing and becoming more well-known in the world . I am very excited to see new talents, new stars shine with films from all over Asia,” the Korean filmmaker shared.
Director Jang Joon-hwan, actress Moon So Ri and director Kang Je Kyu interact with the audience at Le Do theater. (Photo: Organizing Committee)
Talking about his wife, actress Moon So Ri, coming to DANAFF in 2023 as the Head of the Jury, the director said that it is also a great pressure for him, and he will try his best to find good films. He said that the Jury consists of experienced members who are all experts in the field of cinema, so he will listen to their opinions to find the best films at the Film Festival.
During his time at the Da Nang Film Festival, the Korean director made many interesting discoveries about this coastal city, especially its cuisine . Jang Joon-hwan said he tried many different dishes and was very impressed with Vietnamese family dishes: “I found that Vietnamese food has some similarities with Korean food. There is a braised pork dish that is quite similar to a Korean dish, but the ingredients and spices are a bit different, very interesting.”
Director Jang Joon-hwan. (Photo: Organizing Committee)
For Jang Joon-hwan, attending the Da Nang Asian Film Festival was also an opportunity for him to discover more about Vietnamese cinema. He said that in Korea, Vietnamese films are not very famous, but on the way to Da Nang, he watched the Vietnamese film “Coolie Never Cries”.
“This film festival also has a program of screening Vietnamese films. Many of the films are famous in the world. I really look forward to having the opportunity to discover more about Vietnamese films when coming to the film festival” – said the Head of the Jury.
LINH KHANH
Source: https://nhandan.vn/director-of-the-chau-a-da-nang-film-festival-jang-joon-hwan-film-festival-is-getting-more-and-more-manh-post890896.html
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