This Year’s JEONJU Cinema Project: The Man with High Hopes, HUG, Outside Noise, and A Flower In the Mouth

Including two Korean films showing how individuals cope with society and two international films with stunning formal beauty and experimentalism

Under the slogan “Film Goes On,” the JEONJU International Film Festival (JEONJU IFF, Festival Director LEE Joondong) sets off to prepare for this year´s festival on April 49, unveiling four JEONJU Cinema Project titles for this year. JEONJU Cinema Project is revealed before any other sections of the 22nd edition.

JEONJU Cinema Project is a significant section of JEONJU IFF, which provides production support for creative and experimental features and documentary films. Completed projects are world premiered at JEONJU IFF each year. For this year, two Korean and two international films were selected as JEONJU Cinema Project titles: The Man with High Hopes directed by MIN Hwan-ki, HUG directed by IM Heung-soon, Outside Noise directed by Ted FENDT, and A Flower In the Mouth directed by Eric BAUDELAIRE.

MIN Hwan-ki’s The Man with High Hopes is a documentary film about the late Korean politician ROH Hoe-chan, who devoted his life to social justice. The film tells us stories about his passion, philosophy, and perseverance as an activist and politician. This project is co-produced by Myung Films and Roh Hoe-chan Foundation. The director’s unique gaze and directorial mastery stand out in this documentary film. Director MIN received Jury Special Mention for Sogyumo Acacia Band´s Story (2009) at the Korean Competition section of the 10th JEONJU IFF.

HUG is a new directorial project by IM Heung-soon, an artist and filmmaker. His film projects include Factory Complex (2014), which won Silver Lion at the Venice Biennale, Ryeohaeng (2016), and Things That Do Us Part (2019). The first scene of HUG shows someone waking up from a dream upon hearing that the coronavirus is finally conquered. This experimental film shows scenes featuring filmmakers’ lives intersected with interesting images of dreams. Director IM mentions in his proposal that he aims to talk about the future world where the artists, who are currently suffering from the pandemic, can freely express their imagination, savoring the ordinary, mundane, and precious moments.

Two international titles, Outside Noise directed by Ted FENDT, and A Flower In the Mouth directed by Eric BAUDELAIRE, are on the line-up of JEONJU Cinema Project. Outside Noise was pitched at JEONJU Project (previously JEONJU Project Market) in 2019 and awarded JEONJU Cinema Project investment fund. Director Ted FENDT has mesmerized viewers at diverse venues including Berlinale Forum and Vancouver International Film Festival. The film is his fourth feature film about a female protagonist Daniela, who suffers from insomnia and anxiety issues, running into unexpected situations on her way home. She comes across different people, engages herself in winding conversations, and finds herself constantly changing into a new self. The director captures such changes in fine and exquisite details. Outside the boundary of normality, Daniela finds what she truly loves. Her route is delivered in an analog form in this film, thus rendering Outside Noise a great title that resonates with JEONJU IFF’s vision and takes a further step into new perspectives.

The last title of the JEONJU Cinema Project is A Flower in the Mouth by a well-established visual artist and filmmaker, Eric BAUDELAIRE. This unique film unfolds in a radical diptych format, observational documentary in part and fiction in part. The film starts from vivid close-up scenes from the world’s largest flower market in Aalsmeer, Holland. Later, it unfolds into an adaptation from The Man with the Flower in His Mouth (1922) by Luigi PIRANDELLO. The two intertwine intriguingly, displaying BAUDELAIRE’s exceptional craftsmanship and artistry. His earlier project, Also Known as Jihadi, Walked The Way Home, and Un Film Dramatique were screened at the 19th and 21st editions of JEONJU IFF.

These four JEONJU Cinema Project titles show a great diversity ranging from a bibliographical journey, an imagination sprouted from the current context surrounding the pandemic to the experimental films featuring unique artistry. This selection delicately reflects JEONJU IFF’s vision of promoting diversity and inclusion. JEONJU IFF Programmer Sung MOON mentioned as follows: “The selected titles will show a wide range of films. In this industry and under the current system, only very few films tend to get the spotlight. The ones that are under the spotlight and talked about most tend to be large-scale projects. We aim to select film projects to sustain more diverse voices. JEONJU Cinema Project will continue supporting projects with artistic aspiration and creativity, regardless scales of the projects. So please look forward to JEONJU Cinema Project titles.”

As a final note, there will be a major change in JEONJU Cinema Project from this year. The submission will be open throughout the year to expand opportunities and to better assist filmmakers in finding production support. Selected titles will receive investment fund as well as an opportunity to world premiere their work at the 23rd JEONJU IFF. More details about the call can be found at the JEONJU IFF website, Call for Submissions page at http://entry.jeonjufest.kr/. For more information, you can contact JEONJU Project Team at j_project@jeonjufest.kr.