In South Korea, women have been voicing out loud through activist movements such as #EscapeTheCorset, #MeToo, #MyLifeIsNotYourPorn, and 4B (or Four Nos - no romance, marriage, sex and childbirth). The first feminist political party, the Women’s Party, has also been recently formed to fight for more influence in the development of the deeply patriarchal and conservative Korean society.

More prominent and realistic images of women have also appeared in Korean cinema. A growing number of women filmmakers are creating courageous and captivating works to make their views be seen and heard, and #SendingMySpirit also encourages people to buy tickets for films with greater female involvement. Proudly presented by the Hong Kong Arts Centre, the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival and the Seoul Independent Film Festival, the Women Direct. Korean Indies! – Korean Women Independent Film Series brings you on a journey to explore the recent wave of women independent cinema. Our selected works observe and delineate women’s places and emotions in the Korean society with great intimacy and delicacy, and will show you a diversity of women’s lives that you might not have experienced before.

This film series takes place from March to July 2021 under the signature programme of the Hong Kong Arts Centre, Independently Yours.

Screening Schedule:

Microhabitat

Director: Jeon Go-woon

Best New Director, Blue Dragon Awards 2018
Best New Director and Best Screenplay, Grand Bell Awards 2018
Best New Director and Independent Film Support Awards, The Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 2018
CGV Arthouse Award, Busan International Film Festival 2017
Tiger Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film, New York Asian Film Festival 2018
Ingmar Bergman Competition, Göteborg International Film Festival (Sweden) 2018

Her whiskey, cigarettes and boyfriend

26/6 (Sat) 7:30pm*
*With director's after-screening chat. Conducted in Cantonese and Korean.
Moderator: Patrick Suen (Film Critic/Columnist)

South Korea｜2018｜106 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Miso, an impoverished thirty-something former musician, makes a living as a housekeeper. When the government doubles the price of cigarettes, she gives up her house to keep the three things she likes - whiskey, cigarettes and her boyfriend, who is an unsuccessful comics artist. Now homeless, she finds her previous band mates to shelter her, but her friends criticise her for consuming luxuries like cigarettes and whiskey while living in poverty. Miso refuses to compromise and stays the way she likes. The Korean film title literally means “a little princess”.
Microhabitat is the debut feature of director Jeon Go-woon and was lauded with awards and a long festival run. Jeon’s previous films also won several awards and participated in many festivals. She co-founded KwangHwaMoon Cinema, an independent collective of filmmakers aimed at helping each other debut in the industry.

Untold

Director: Lee-kil Bora

Excellence Award, Persons with Disabilities Film Festival (South Korea) 2019
Mecenat Award Special Mention (Wide Angle - Documentary Competition), Busan International Film Festival 2018

Give me justice

27/6 (Sun) 7:30pm*
*With director's after-screening chat. Conducted in Cantonese and Korean.
Moderator: Steve Chung (Assistant Lecturer, Global Studies Programme, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

South Korea｜2018/2020｜79min｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

In the 1960s, South Korea fought against the communists as a US ally during the Vietnam War. A lot of atrocities were committed with civilians raped and killed by Koreans. Every February, many Vietnamese pray and offer incense to console the victims on an occasion called Dai Han (Korean) Commemoration. But in South Korea, the history of the massacre is admitted and the Vietnam War is officially documented merely as a contribution to South Korea’s rapid economic growth. As histories are fighting to be heard and justified, Vietnamese survivors travel to Korea to fight for their case.

Lee-Kil Bora dropped out of school at age 16, and travelled in South East Asia for volunteer work. The experience inspired her first documentary and she has been making films since. Her work has participated in the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival and Film Festival for Women's Rights (South Korea) amongst others.

For details of other screenings of this film series, click on the links below.

March 2021

A Boy and Sungreen (Director: Ahn Ju-young)
South Korea｜2018｜99 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Itaewon (Director: Kangyu Garam)
South Korea｜2016/2019｜98 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Click to know more about screenings in March 2021

April 2021

The Strangers (Director: Myoung So-hee)
South Korea｜2018｜81 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Escape the Corset (Director: Lee Mi-hae)
South Korea｜2020｜60 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Lucky Chan-sil (Director: Kim Cho-hee)
South Korea｜2019｜96 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Click to know more about screenings in April 2021

May 2021

maggie (Director: Yi Ok-seop)
South Korea｜2018｜89 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

For Vagina's Sake (Director: Kim Bo-Ram)
South Korea｜2017｜73 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Way Back Home (Director: Park Sun-joo)
South Korea｜2019｜114 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Click to know more about screenings in May 2021

July 2021

Movements (Director: Jeong Da-hee)
South Korea｜2019｜10 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Unpredictable Boy (Director: Goong Yu-jeong)
South Korea｜2019｜31 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Beginners’ Class (Director: Kim Hyun-jung)
South Korea｜2019｜50 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

The Pregnant Tree and the Goblin (Director: Kim Dong-ryung and Park Kyoung-tae)
South Korea｜2019｜115 mins｜DCP｜Colour｜In Korean with English subtitles

Click to know more about screenings in July 2021

Ticketing Information:

Individual tickets: $80 / $64*

*20% discount for tickets for full-time students, senior citizens aged 60 or above, and people with disabilities and the minder and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) recipients. Tickets for CSSA recipients available on a first-come-first-served basis.
*For each programme, 20% off for each purchase of 4 or more standard tickets.

Tickets are available on Hong Kong Movie now.