Nam Chan-woo: We seek to build bridges of communication that enhance the values of tolerance
The culture of Korea overlooks the world from the «Dubai Expo»
The festival's films express hope and resilience as the world faces difficult times.
From the source
Nam Chan-woo: "We need a way to exchange film experiences and get to know Emirati cinema closely."
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The Director-General of the Korean Cultural Center in the UAE, Nam Chan-woo, affirmed the depth of cultural relations between his country and the UAE, noting that the Korean pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai will witness activities aimed at introducing the goers of the World Expo to Korean culture.
In his interview with "Emirates Today", Nam Chan-woo said, "The Corona pandemic has posed a greater challenge and a problem that makers and investors in the film industry have not experienced before in Korea," stressing his confidence in the ability of workers in this field to overcome this crisis soon.
He pointed out that the Korean Cultural Center is doing its best, in cooperation with the UAE, to build bridges of cultural communication that enhance the values of tolerance and coexistence.
Nam Chan-woo explained that the consequences of the pandemic were behind the decision to hold the 2021 Korean Film Festival, virtually via the Internet, considering that the selection of films shown at the festival in its fifth session, whose shows extend from the 19th to the 28th of this month, include six diverse films and 18 cartoon films. A short animation, based on several criteria, most notably that it expresses the concepts of hope, perseverance and the ability to adapt in light of the world facing difficult times.
It was also chosen from recent films (most of them released in 2020) to express feelings under the current conditions, the natural environment and the cultural heritage of Korea.
joint invitations
The director of the Korean Cultural Center expressed his hope that relations between the UAE and Korea would be consolidated, and that the pandemic would end as soon as possible so that the two countries could hold film festivals, opening the way for visits by officials from both sides. He reviewed some of the joint activities in the field of cinema: “In the first half of this year, the Ministry of Culture and Youth organized (Emirati Film Week) for Korea, which for us was an event that meant a lot, because we needed a way to exchange film experiences and learn about cinema. UAE closely, and I hope this event continues year after year. By exchanging joint invitations to the Sharjah International Film Festival and the Busan International Film Festival, we will do our best to bring together filmmakers, producers and investors to build bridges of communication and exchange culture.”
He revealed more events that will be organized to celebrate the fiftieth year of the UAE and the Dubai Expo, as an expression of Korea's respect for the UAE leaders who spare no effort to achieve the best possible future for their people.
The Cultural Center was keen to do its utmost in cooperation with the UAE to build bridges of cultural communication that enhance the values of tolerance and coexistence in the country.
Among the most prominent of these events is the Korean Cultural Center's hosting of the Korea Festival in October, which will last for a month.
The Korean pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai will also present events aimed at introducing its visitors to Korean culture.
The Korean Cultural Center will be in the pavilion next January.
ingredients for success
Regarding the brilliance that Korean cinema is currently witnessing, in terms of popularity and mass turnout, or in terms of participating in international festivals and winning prizes, Nam Chan-woo considered that “there are several ingredients that have contributed to success. The public and their love.
He continued, “The film industry is the largest sector in the field of media in terms of size and influence.
If we look at the history of the Korean film industry in the past 100 years, we will see an era in which tight control and prohibition prevailed while investment and production were very difficult due to the success of foreign films in the domestic market.
But thanks to the efforts and passion of the filmmakers, as well as the huge government support, the industry has been able to overcome the challenges it has been through, increasing the people’s love for local businesses.”
He stated that "the Korean government allocated a huge budget to support local businesses, and also guaranteed freedom of expression, which expanded the horizons of creativity and imagination, which led to the entry of many creators into the field of filmmaking."
Ramifications
On the repercussions of the pandemic on cinema in Korea, Nam Chan-woo pointed out that in the 100 years since its inception, this industry has faced many difficulties and challenges, but the "Corona" crisis posed a greater challenge and a problem that did not pass on manufacturers and investors before, noting that the Despite government support through a special fund to mitigate the repercussions of the pandemic, the industry's recovery is not easy due to the successive disruptions. He continued, "It has been a long time since the last time the cinema achieved huge revenues, such as the movie (Mogadishu), which is currently shown in Korean cinemas, as it was watched by more than 2.5 million people." He expressed his confidence in the ability of the film sector in Korea to overcome the crisis, with the need for creators, those in charge of the film sector and the government together to recover from the damage and continue intensive production.
“We will come back stronger and with more sustainable growth,” he added.
As the proverb goes, with the steadfastness of the Koreans and their overcoming of various difficulties at any time and place, we will turn difficulties into new opportunities, as the UAE did, as I still remember this saying: (challenges do not stop us).
Variety
The Korean Film Festival, which celebrates the year of Emirati-Korean Cultural Dialogue 2020-2021, will present a group of films that have won wide popularity, and films that have won major local awards, including “The Book of Fish”, and “The Day of My Death”, in addition to the movie “Going Forward”, and "the leaders of Namsan".
The festival (in cooperation with the Korean Association of Independent Animation Filmmakers) also presents a variety of independent animation films.
• On the 28th of this month, the film festival that celebrates the year of Emirati-Korean cultural dialogue concludes.
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