Sponsored by

A Message from the Directors

We are pleased to bring greetings to everyone attending the very first Toronto Korean Film Festival, sponsored by GOLFZON Canada Inc. Toronto Korean Film Festival (TKFF) is a publicly attended film festival to be held at Innis Town Hall in University of Toronto from June 22nd to July 1st, 2012. Founded by Kitaek Hong and June Kim in 2012, the launch of TKFF promotes the exposure and recognition of Korean culture, especially Korean films to Toronto. The Festival aims to celebrate the cultures of both Korean and Korean-Canadian communities. For this inaugural year, TKFF is proud to present a rich and diverse programming. Worldly-acclaimed Korean films such as: A Tale of Two Sisters, Mother, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, and Old Boy along with Korean indie shorts and Korean-Canadian shorts programs will provide a large array of films to choose from. We would like to send our sincere thanks to our volunteers, staffs, and sponsors for their invaluable contribution dedicated to this years festival. The Festival would not have been possible without every one of you. Without any further ado, let the Festival begin!

Eugene Kitaek Hong Founder & Executive Director, Toronto Korean Film Festival

June Kim Director, Toronto Korean Film Festival

Table of Contents
A Message From the Directors Table of Contents Sponsors Partners / Supporters Congratulatory Letters Staff List / Special Thanks Ticketing Info & Box Office Location Festival Schedule Festival Programming Index

2 3 4 5 6 9 10 11 12 30

Sponsors
Major Sponsor

Main Sponsor

Partners

Yorkville Popart

Congratulatory Letters

< > . . , . , . 11 . . . . .

Greetings from chairman of Korea town BIA. I would like to extend my wholehearted congratulations on the first annual Toronto Korean Film Festival. I would like to thank you for your steadfast effort into making such a wonderful tradition to be. As Korean Canadian living in such tremendously diverse city with rich in its own cultural heritage, it gives me such pleasure to see Korean cultures prospering and enjoyed by many Canadians through K-pop music, shows and dramas. Now because of the Korean Canadian film festival, Korean movies made locally and from Korea will also be loved by many Canadian who have not yet had chance to taste it. On behalf of Korea Town BIA, I would like to thank the founder and executive director, Kiteak Hong and entire staff who have put do much effort into making this festival success, and I wish this event everlasting progress and prosperity. Sincerely, Joseph Kang Chairman, Korea Town BIA

< > 50 . . . . 21 . . , , . . . , . . In celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Canada, I would like to congratulate all those associated with the first Toronto Korean Film Festival. Also, I believe that this festival will be the best way to introduce the excellence of Korean culture in Toronto. Since the two countries established diplomatic relations, we have reinforced their economic cooperation and promoted cultural exchanges. Our cooperative activities through distribution of outstanding screen achievements and invitation of film festivals have been great chances to understand Korean and Canadas different cultures. I think this opening ceremony of the first Korean Film Festival in Toronto is the success of efforts by many people who want to develop cultural relationships between Korea and Canada. The popularity of leading Korean music, movies and TV shows has spread throughout Asia and expanded more rapidly over all countries. This influence created Korean Wave which is mega trend in centre of the world. Especially, Korean movies have been highly regarded as impressive movies at many major film festivals of the world. This contributes to the development of a Korean movie industry and international friendships with other countries. From this perspective, the Toronto Korean Film Festival is invaluable as an opportunity to bring together diverse people who love Korean movies. I hope the festival can be a great event which many people will be impressed by. I would also like to thank everyone for showing great enthusiasm to prepare this event and for those involved in making it such a success. Thank you.

Danger After Dark congratulates the 2012 Toronto Korean Film Festival. We are honored to have the Jung Brothers film, Epitaph, be an official selection of the Festival. May your event be filled with excitement, joy and invigorate audiences with the best in Korean film! Sincerely, Lewis Tice of Danger After Dark.

Dear Film Lovers, Welcome to the inaugural Toronto Korean Film Festival. Over the next 10 days, film lovers will be treated to several screenings of Korean films and Korean-Canadian shorts. As a Korean Canadian I am deeply proud of my roots. Korean culture, cuisine, art, technology, fashion and film has always been on the cutting edge. This festival will showcase the best of the best in Korean film and celebrate their accomplishments. I would like to congratulate Kitaek Hong and June Kim, founders of the Toronto Korean Film Festival, for seeing their hard work come to fruition. I would also like to congratulate the many volunteers who helped put this event together. Bravo!

Jee-Yun Lee of CP24

1 . , . Hotdocs , . . . 10, 100 , .

2012 6 22

Steven Jinsoo Lee President of KCCA

Toronto Korean Film Festival Staff

Annie Park Celin Jung Chris Kim Christian Tian Cynthia Dasom Kim Daniel Hojun Kim DongHwan Cho Eugene Kitaek Hong Heeryung Lee Jaewoo Park John Yohan Lee Jude Inwook Hwang Julie MoonOk Hong June Balgeum Kim Kyubum Lee Michelle Park Nicole Angelucci Nuo Chen Peter Bansuk Lee Peter Chang Regina Boram Kim Sangback Lee Sarah Kim Sooeun Lee Trudy Goun Kim Vino Hanvin Kim

Special Thanks to...

Angela Kim Cameron Bailey Cecilia Kim () Chris Kim (KOFIC) Cindy Zimmer Colin Geddes Chris K Kim Euna Lee Eyan Logan Jason Min Jay Park Jaybe park Jee-Yun Lee Jihae Jeong Jongha Chun Justin Moon Juyoung Kim Kate Won Katy Fahimi-Manzari Lewis Tice Luke Kuplowsky Maria Won (Hallyu) Minna Rhee Mingu Kim Misook Choi Nathaniel Warsh Peter Kuplowsky Rob King Terry Kim Vicky Lee Zi Wang (at9film) (Korea Town BIA) (Korean Town BIA)

Jury Members
Christina Sit-Yee Grace Wang Peter Kuplowsky

Ticketing Information & Box Office Location

10

Festival Schedule

11

12

Secret Sunshine

7:00pm

ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Drama DURATION: 141 Minutes YEAR: 2007 DISTRIBUTION: IFC Films DIRECTOR: LEE Chang-dong () CAST: JEON Do-yeon, SONG Kang-ho, JO Young-jin, KIM Young-jae Sin-ae (JEON Do-yeon) moves to her late husbands hometown with her young son in an effort to start over and rebuild their lives. Just as she starts thinking that her life is settling down in Milyang, her son is kidnapped and her world turns upside down once again.

Opening Party
Please join us for a night of K-pop mixed by DJ Jaybe at Lees Palace!
LOCATION: Lees Palace ADDRESS: 529 Bloor Street W, Toronto, ON SUBWAY STOP: Bathurst Station RATING: 19+ TICKETS AT THE DOOR: $10 MUSIC BY: Jaybe Doors open at 10pm. Please note that your ticket stub for the opening film will allow you free entry. Otherwise you will be chareged $10 at the door.

Opening Night
13

June 22

Friday

14

Epitaph

6:00pm

TORONTO PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Horror DURATION: 98 Minutes YEAR: 2007 DISTRIBUTION: TLA Releasing DIRECTOR: JUNG Bum-sik(), JUNG Sik () CAST: JIN Goo, KIM Tae-woo, LEE Dong-kyu, KIM Bo-kyung In the early 1940s of Kyung-sung (present day Seoul), Anseng Hospital is the most modernized hospital in the country. In-Young (KIM Bo-kyung) and DongWon (KIM Tae-woo) return to Korea from studying medicine in Tokyo and are admitted as new doctors at Anseng. They meet Soo-In (LEE Dong-kyu), a genius colleague, and Jung-Nam (JIN Goo), an intern. The future looks bright and promising for Jung-Nam since he had been arranged to marry the daughter of the hospitals director, but he soon faces unexpected twists in life and love. While the news of a serial killer spreads in Kyung-sung, a ten-year-old girl who survives a car crash that killed her entire family is admitted to the hospital, along with a corpse of a girl who committed suicide. Slowly, fear laced with love emerges at the hospital.

A Tale of Two Sisters

,

9:00pm

35MM ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Horror RATING: PG DURATION: 115 Minutes YEAR: 2003 DISTRIBUTION: Ultra 8 Pictures DIRECTOR: KIM Jee-woon () CAST: KIM Ghab-soo, YUM Jung-ah, LIM Soo-jung, MOON Geun-young After spending some time at a mental institution in the city, two sisters Soo-mi (LIM Soo-jung) and Soo-yeon (MOON Geun-young) return to their country home where their stepmother, Eun-joo, pretentiously welcomes them. Ever since their mothers death, Soo-mi has been trying to fill her place by taking care of Soo-yeon, but Soo-yeon is still overwhelmed in shock. The two sisters must endure Eun-joo who constantly harasses them, while their father Moo-hyun (KIM Ghab-soo) is negligent of the situation. Eun-joo progressively becomes mentally unstable and the family is faced with horrifying events as the truth about their birthmothers death is revealed. Inspired by a Korean fairy tale Jang-hwa Hong-ryun Jeon, A Tale of Two Sisters takes a quarrel between a child and a stepmother to the next level, where the family is torn away by secrets and death.

Horror Night
15

June 23
Saturday

16

Invasion of Alien Bikini

6:00pm

GENRE: SF, Comedy, Action DURATION: 75 Minutes YEAR: 2011 DISTRIBUTION: IndieStory DIRECTOR: O Yeong-du () CAST: HONG Young-geun, HA Eun-jung

Toronto Premiere English subtitles Co-presented by Toronto After Dark Film Festival

Young-gun (HONG Young-geun) is a self-titled city hero who is also a virgin. He is determined to protect his people even though no one has told him, or paid him to do so. During one of his nightly patrols, he saves a beautiful woman from suspicious men and ends up bringing her home. To his surprise, this beautiful woman named Harmonica (HA Eun-jung) is an alien who must collect sperm from earth and get fertilized before the break of dawn. Young-Gun is immediately attracted to Harmonica but he refuses to give his sperm since he has taken a vow of chastity until marriage. Will Young-gun be able to fight the temptation and protect the earth from Harmonica and her every move to seduce him?

Save the Green Planet!

!

9:00pm
GENRE: SF, Comedy, Action RATING: PG DURATION: 117 minutes YEAR: 2003 DISTRIBUTION: Ultra 8 Pictures DIRECTOR: JANG Joon-hwan() CAST: SHIN Ha-kyun, BAEK Yoon-shik

35mm English subtitles

Byeong-gu (SHIN Ha-kyun) is a young man who believes in alien conspiracy. He thinks that the earth will be in great danger if he doesnt find the prince from a planet called Andromeda before the total lunar eclipse. Byeong-gu abducts Man-sik (BAEK Yoon-shik) who he believes to be an alien, and demands that Man-sik take him to the prince of Andromeda. After series of unexplained torture and questions, Man-sik formulates a false testimony about Andromeda. In the meantime, former detective Choo tracks down Byeong-gus house after a private investigation. Will Byeong-gu be able to find the truth about Andromeda and save the planet before the lunar eclipse?

Sci-fi Night
17

June 24
Sunday

D.C. al Fine (2012)

WORLD PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 15 MINUTES DIRECTOR: LEE Bansuk () (Director in attendance) CAST: LEE Bansuk, PARK Yong-ho, KIM Hwi-young, PARK Jae-woo GENRE: Crime/Gangster Mr. Ji is a ruthless loan shark working for a Korean gang. While hes good at collecting money, his love for music leads him to become a sore eye for the gangs leader and trouble finds its way to break Mr. Jis hopeful dream.

A Drummers Passion (2010)

ENGLISH SUBTITLES 22 MINUTES DIRECTOR: KIM Mingu ()(Director in attendance) CAST: KWON Soon Keun GENRE: Documentary As the original member of ADD-4, KWON used to be an extremely famous drummer in Korea. After the break-up of the band and 50 years or so later, he now resides in Canada and leads a low profile life. However, his passion for drums persisted and he continued to play. When a YouTube video of his passionate performance goes viral, it captures the attention of millions of people worldwide, reviving his inner musician.

In Retrospect (2011)
3 MINUTES DIRECTOR: Chris K. Kim (Director in attendance) GENRE: Animation/Drama In Retrospect is an animated short about a man and a woman whose unexpected rendezvous with each other allows the two to re-examine their past relationship through a series of vignetted flashbacks.

Numbers (2012)
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 10 MINUTES DIRECTOR: Robert Hloz CAST: PARK Woo-gun, JUNG Hee-jin GENRE: Drama Strolling down the street looking for help, Nick meets a girl who shares the same problem with him. They know nothing about each other and seem to know everything about everyone else. Sometimes the less you know, the better. Sometimes, it can change your life

18

My Granpa (2011)
WORLD PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 11 MINUTES DIRECTOR: ZONG Eui-yong ()(Director in attendance) GENRE: Documentary A memorial tribute to the directors late grandfather. ZONG shows a very strong bond and relationship with his grandfather and revives him through the memories of the director and his family.

Open Invitation (2012)

ENGLISH SUBTITLES 11 MINUTES DIRECTOR: PARK Jaewoo ()(Director in attendance) CAST: SIM Kyu-young, LEE Bansuk, KIM Jae-young, SIM Bum-seok, Josse Masters-Leniveau GENRE: Drama Doo-young is a Korean international student in Toronto who is called for duty for the 2-year mandatory military service in South Korea. Will he be successful in changing his fate and escaping from serving his country?

Death Buy Lemonade (2010)

2 MINUTES DIRECTOR: LEE Kyubum ()(Director in attendance) GENRE: Animation An interesting turn of events happens at a little girls lemonade stand.

Korean-Canadian Shorts
Co-presented by Reel Asian International Film Festival 74 Minutes

19

7:00 pm Tuesday

June 26

Nan Jian Wan Zi (2012)

WORLD PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 18 MINUTES DIRECTOR: Moon Choi () CAST: Moon Choi, SON Sukku GENRE: Drama Making a plate of nan jian wan zi (a type of Chinese cuisine) means more than just preparing a meal to Bom. Hoping to impress her crush, she spends the entire morning of her birthday cooking a meal for him. This film elaborates on that last ingredient that completes any dish - love.

Ari (2011)
WORLD PREMIERE 3 MINUTES DIRECTORS: BAEK Ki-hwan (), LEE Sue-min (), CHOE Nuri () CAST: PARK Joo-hee GENRE: Drama A lyrical dance reflects a young woman escape to the world.

Etude Solo (2011)

ENGLISH SUBTITLES 19 MINUTES DIRECTOR: YOO Dae-eol () CAST: HWANG Kyung-min, SEO Ji-seung, CHOI Woo-sik GENRE: Drama A piano tuner is called to a childrens outdoor concert for tuning. There, he runs into his first love who he had played piano with in his childhood.

The Ordinary People (2011)

WORLD PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 19 MINUTES DIRECTOR: GO Tae-min () CAST: KWON Hyuk-soo GENRE: Drama/Mystery Sae-yoon lives an ordinary life as an office employee and leads a mundane schedule. One day, he starts to question the repetitiveness of his life, and finds himself being chased by those that were watching him.

20

Marks Festival
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 31 MINUTES DIRECTOR: JANG Yujin () CAST: Paul Stafford, Moon Choi GENRE: Drama Mark visits his girlfriend Jennys hometown, a remote countryside in South Korea for his holiday. During his stay, not only does he experience a culture shock, but also confronts the dilemma in his long relationship with Jenny. Their differences result in an argument that jeopardizes their relationship.

Sera (2011)
NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 10 MINUTES DIRECTOR: LIM Woo-seong () CAST: SONG Ji-un, KIM Eun-seok Genre: Drama/Fantasy Sera sensed that tonight wasnt going to be the same. When she tells her middle-aged lover about how she felt, he asks her if she would like to start over with him. As shes questioning the meaning of this suggestion, the man receives a text

Metamorphoses (2011)
CANADIAN PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES 29 MINUTES DIRECTOR: OH In-chun () CAST: YOO Jeong-ho, SONG Jae-hee, DONG Hyeon-bae GENRE: Action/Horror/Fantasy RATING: 18A Sung-gil is a budding comic artist in slump and goes to a park to relax. One day, he follows a charming girl from the park and gets lost in the woods. Then one guy comes up to him and suggests Sung-gil to pitch. When Sung-gil tries to stop pitching, the guy threatens him and Sung-gil must fear for his life.

Co-presented by Reel Asian International Film Festival 129 Minutes

Korean Indie Shorts

21

7:00 pm Wednesday

June 27

416-306-1875 Commerce Court East Tower, Concourse Level (near King subway south exit) Open Monday to Friday from 8:00am - 6:30pm
Sweet Exchange has been the premier candy shop in the PATH since 2006. With an array of delicious candy options ranging from Jelly Beans to Altoids, Gummy Bears and chocolate bars, Sweet Exchange has exactly what youre craving! Come and also see our confectionery selections all the way from the United States and the United Kingdom!

22

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring

7:00pm

GENRE: Drama RATING: 14A DURATION: 105 Minutes YEAR: 2003 DISTRIBUTION: Mongrel Media DIRECTOR: KIM Ki-duk () CAST: O Yeong-su, KIM Ki-duk, KIM Young-min, SEO Jae-kyeong

ENGLISH SUBTITLES CO-PRESENTED BY REEL ASIAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

In an isolated Buddhist monastery that floats on a lake, a young boy (KIM Young-min) is raised by a Buddhist master. When the boy turns 17, a girl comes to the monastery for recuperation, and he falls madly in love with her. Unable to fight his growing affection, the boy leaves the monastery in search for her when she returns home. Years later, the boy has grown into a man accused of murder. Chapters of the boys life are portrayed through the changing seasons while lust, love, crime and punishment are interwoven into his interactions with his surroundings.

Art film
23

June 28

Thursday

24

Planet of Snail

6:00pm

ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Documentary DURATION: 85 Minutes YEAR: 2010 DISTRIBUTION: Kinosmith DIRECTOR: YI Seung-jun () CAST: CHO Young-chan, KIM Soon-ho Deaf-blind Young-chan often compares himself to a snail since he has to rely on his wife and soulmate, Soon-ho, to slowly communicate with the world through finger Braille. Soon-ho herself has a spinal disability and often needs a foot stool to carry out her daily chores. In their world, a simple task such as changing a light bulb requires a great amount of teamwork and patience, but this does not mean their lives are any different from others.

Mother

9:00pm

ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Drama RATING: 18A DURATION: 128 minutes YEAR: 2003 DISTRIBUTION: Mongrel Media DIRECTOR: BONG Joon-ho () CAST: KIM Hae-ja, WON Bin, JIN Goo, YOON Je-moon A widowed mother lives with her shy son, Do-joon (WON Bin), by selling medical herbs in a small town. Do-joon has an intellectual disability and can be quite handful at times, but he means a world to her. When Do-joon is accused of murdering a young girl, his mother is determined to prove his innocence at any cost. Distrustful of the police and lawyers, Do-joons mother decides to take matters into her own hands with the help of Jin-tae (JIN Goo). As she scours the town and starts uncovering salacious details of the murdered girl, the mother discovers the hidden truth.

Documentary & Thriller

25

June 29
Friday

128 Queen S Mississauga Ontario L5M 1K8 905-858-1590 www.worldsfinest.goldbook.ca

26

Leafie, A Hen Into the Wild

6:00pm

ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Drama, Adventure, Family DURATION: 93 Minutes YEAR: 2011 DISTRIBUTION: 108 Media Corp. DIRECTOR: OH Sung-yun () CAST: MOON So-ri, YOO Seung-ho, CHOI Min-sik, PARK Chol-min Leafie the hen (MOON So-ri) always dreamed of raising her own eggs, but she is not allowed to incubate them at the chicken farm. Her dream comes true when she successfully escapes from the farm with the help of a duck, Wonderer (CHOI Min-sik). Leafie finds and incubates an egg in the wild and the egg hatches into a duckling, Greenie (YOO Seung-ho), who thinks Leafie is his mother. Now Leafie must teach Greenie how to be a duck while trying to survive in the wild. Leafie and Greenie explore the ideas of indifference, growing up, and the meaning of family.

Failan

9:00pm

TORONTO PREMIERE ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Drama, Romance DURATION: 116 Minutes YEAR: 2001 DISTRIBUTION: 9ers Entertainment DIRECTOR: SONG Hae-sung () CAST: CHOI Min-sik, CHEUNG Cecilia, SON Byung-ho, KONG Hyung-jin Kang-jae (CHOI Min-sik) is a third-rate gangster in Incheon with a modest dream of returning to his hometown in glory. His lowly life takes an unexpected turn when an old gangster friend, Yong-sik (SON Byung-ho), calls him out for a drink and makes him an offer. Kang-jae is forced to make a decision of a lifetime and receives a letter from a Chinese woman named Failan (CHEUNG Cecilia) whom he had married through a broker for money. Although he has never met Failan in person, her letter changes his life forever.

Family
27

June 30

Saturday

28

Sympathy for Lady Vengeance

6:00pm

35MM ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Drama, Thriller RATING: 18A DURATION: 112 Minutes YEAR: 2005 DISTRIBUTION: Alliance Films DIRECTOR: PARK Chan-wook () CAST: LEE Young-ae, CHOI Min-sik, GWON Ye-yeong, KIM See-hoo Sympathy for Lady Vengeance is the third installment of PARK Chan-wooks The Vengeance Trilogy. Geum-ja (LEE Young-ae) is a beautiful woman who is convicted of child abduction and murder at the age of twenty. During her thirteen-year imprisonment, she is known as the kind-hearted Geum-ja among the inmates and the guards, while in fact, she had been planning her revenge in secret. Once she is released, she goes on search for Mr. Baek (CHOI Min-sik), the actual murderer, with the help of her former inmates to take the ultimate revenge.

Old Boy

9:00pm

35MM ENGLISH SUBTITLES

GENRE: Drama, Thriller, Mystery DURATION: 120 Minutes YEAR: 2003 DISTRIBUTION: Alliance Films DIRECTOR: PARK Chan-wook () CAST: CHOI Min-sik, YOO Ji-tae, KANG Hye-jung, KIM Byung-oc Old Boy is the second installment of PARK Chan-wooks The Vengeance Trilogy. Dae-su (CHOI Min-sik) is just an ordinary man with a loving wife and a young daughter. On his daughters birthday, Dae-su is mysteriously abducted and imprisoned. When he is suddenly released after fifteen years, he sets out to find his unknown captor to take revenge. He meets Mido (KANG Hye-jung) who works at a Japanese restaurant and they instantly feel a strong attraction towards each other. When Dae-su finally faces his captor, Woo-jin (YOO Ji-tae), he is made an offer which reveals secrets from the past.

PARK Chan-wook Night

29

July 1

Sunday

Index to Film Titles

A Ari 18 D D.C. al Fine 16 Death Buy Lemonade 17 Drummer's Passion, A 16 E Epitaph 13 Etude Solo 18 F Failan 25 I In Retrospect 16 Invasion of Alien Bikini 15 L Leafie, a Hen into the Wild 25 M Mark's Festival 19 Metamorphoses 19 Mother 23 My Grandpa 17
30

N Nan Jian Wan Zi 18 Numbers 16 O Old Boy 27 Open Invitation 17 Ordinary People, The 18 P Planet of Snail 23 S Save the Green Planet! 15 Secret Sunshine 11 Sera 19 Spring, Summer, Fall, Winterand Spring 21 Sympathy for Lady Vengeance 27 T Tale of Two Sisters, A 13

INDEX

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