KAFA stages largest-ever overseas showcase in Brazil, opens with 'Bleak Night'

[Provided by the Korean Film Council's Korean Academy of Film Arts]

The Korean Academy of Film Arts, known as KAFA and operated by the Korean Film Council, is staging its largest-ever overseas showcase in Brazil. The retrospective includes 20 feature films among a total of 45 titles and opens in São Paulo before traveling to major cities across Brazil through October.

KAFA announced Thursday that it is co-hosting the "15th Brazil Korean Film Festival — KAFA Special Exhibition" with the Korean Cultural Center in Brazil in São Paulo through Aug. 14, marking the 20th anniversary of its feature film program.

The showcase is part of the 15th Brazil Korean Film Festival, an annual event organized by the Korean Cultural Center in Brazil to introduce Korean cinema to local audiences, and is the largest overseas exhibition KAFA has ever mounted.

A total of 45 films are being screened — 20 features, including two animated works, and 25 short films. The feature lineup draws on titles that have defined KAFA's feature film program over the past two decades, among them "Alice in Earnestland," "The Shameless," "People in a Sealed-Off Space" and "The Square." The short film section is organized into five thematic categories to showcase the breadth and evolution of Korean filmmaking.

The opening ceremony, held July 30 at the São Paulo Cultural Center (CCSP), drew about 200 guests, including Brazilian film industry figures and local audiences. The opening film was "Bleak Night," directed by Yoon Sung-hyun, a graduate of the third cohort of KAFA's feature film program. The film probes the emotions of those left behind after loss through the story of three friends caught up in a classmate's death, and features standout early performances by Lee Je-hoon and Park Jung-min, both then-rookie actors.

The closing film will be "Two Women in the Same Underwear," directed by Kim Se-in, a graduate of the 14th cohort of the feature film program.

A range of events will run alongside the screenings. These include a director talk featuring Kim Se-in and Kim Bo-sol, director of "The Square," as well as a university-linked seminar introducing KAFA's education programs, including its global and AI curriculum.

On July 28, KAFA signed a memorandum of understanding with the University of São Paulo (USP) to expand cooperation in film education and academic exchange, laying the groundwork for joint film education programs, research collaboration and the development of film talent in both countries. The signing ceremony was attended by Kim Hye-kyung, the first lady of South Korea, and Janja Lula da Silva, the first lady of Brazil.

"This special exhibition is a meaningful occasion to share with Brazilian audiences the creative achievements KAFA has accumulated over the past 20 years, as we mark the 20th anniversary of our feature film program," KAFA director Jo Geun-sik said. "We hope to widely promote the diversity and potential of Korean cinema in Brazil, a strategic hub in South America, and look forward to even more active exchange and cooperation between the film communities of both countries."

balme@heraldcorp.com