SWING KIDS to Compete at Fribourg International Film Festival

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SWING KIDS to Compete at Fribourg International Film Festival

Mar 09, 2019

Writer by Pierce Conran
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BONG Joon-ho Curates Section for Swiss Festival

The Fribourg International Film Festival, long a champion of Korean cinema, is staging an especially Korea-centric edition this year, which will include KANG Hyoung-chul’s Swing Kids (2018) in international competition. Director BONG Joon-ho was also invited to curate a section of films, and all told, FIFF will feature 13 films from Korea in its program.

Released in Korea last December, Swing Kids, the latest film from Sunny (2011) director KANG, is a tap dance-themed prisoner of war camp drama taking place during World War II. Previous Korean awardees in the international competition include Regard d’Or (Grand Prize) winners such as JEON Soo-il’s The Bird Who Stops In the Air (2002), PARK Ki-yong’s Camel(s) (2002), LEE Chang-dong’s Poetry (2010) and LEE Su-jin’s Han Gong-ju (2014).

Invited to the midnight screenings lineup will be LEE Kwon’s Door Lock (2018), YOON Jong-bin’s The Spy Gone North (2018) and PARK Hoon-jung’s The Witch : Part 1. The Subversion (2018). Meanwhile, LIM Charn-sang’s My Love, My Bride (2014) will be featured in a special sidebar section on romantic comedies.

This year, both Elisa Shua DUSAPIN, a French-Korean writer who lives in Switzerland, and director BONG Joon-ho were invited to program sections for the festival. For her section, DUSAPIN has included PARK Chan-wook's I'm a Cyborg, but That's OK (2006), LEE Il-ha’s Counters (2018), Hong Sangsoo’s On the Beach at Night Alone (2017), LEE Chang-dong’s Secret Sunshine (2007), Judy SUH’s USA-Korea co-produced short ExamiNation and both BONG Joon-ho’s Memories Of Murder (2003) and The Host (2006).

Director BONG selected some of his favorite films that he’s never had the chance to see on the big screen before. These include KIM Ki-young’s Transgression (1974) and several Hollywood, Hong Kong and Japanese classics. Unfortunately, BONG had to cancel his participation at the festival at the last minute, though the program will continue in his absence.

This year’s FIFF will take place from March 15 to 23.

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