The 20th London Korean Film Festival Opens to a Full House

The Korean Cultural Centre UK officially opened the 20th London Korean Film Festival (LKFF) with a sold-out screening of its opening film Someone Beyond the Misty Window at the British Film Institute (BFI) Southbank’s main theatre.

This year’s festival programme features the Opening Film Someone Beyond the Misty Window; the Closing Film Harbin; and key strands including Cinema Now, Women’s Voices, Special Screening, and a special section commemorating the 80th Anniversary of Korea’s Liberation – Dramas of Resistance. The Cinema Now strand was curated by critic and programmer Dr. Anton Bitel, who teaches classical literature and languages at the University of Oxford.

Director Seunghye Sun reflected on the artistic spirit of the festival: “‘All that is called is love.’ This is a phrase that emerged as I contemplated Korean aesthetics. Art is ultimately another name for love, and cinema is an art of love at its core. The human condition is the expression of longing—an inherent incompleteness that compels us to create stories. Cinema is where the emotions and desires born from that incompleteness meet technology. Korean cinema has transformed these wounds and dreams into art, growing into a universal language and one of the defining art forms of our time.”

Opening Film: Global Premiere and Full House

Kim Jong-kwan’s Someone Beyond the Misty Window—an omnibus film set in the atmospheric neighbourhood of Seochon, Seoul—had its world premiere at the festival, selling out all 450 seats. Director Kim Jong-kwan and actor Yeon Woo-jin attended the opening, joining the audience for the screening followed by an engaging Q&A session, where they met British fans and discussed the film’s creative process.

Both guests expressed their excitement at meeting UK viewers and their appreciation for the global interest in Korean cinema.

Director Kim Jong-kwan said: “It is an honour and a thrill to have our film open the 20th London Korean Film Festival. Screening it at the iconic BFI and meeting British audiences is deeply meaningful. I hope this small but heartfelt film finds its way from London to many more viewers around the world.”

Actor Yeon Woo-jin said: “I grew up influenced by British culture in many ways—from Oasis and British pop to UK films and dramas. It is a joy to greet audiences here with a project I participated in. It is an honour to be in London with a director I greatly admire, and I sincerely congratulate LKFF on its 20th anniversary. I hope to contribute to the growing exchange between Korean and British culture.”

The Q&A session after the screening further revealed the high level of interest in Korean cinema among London audiences. Director Kim expressed his wish to create a film for every season, while Yeon Woo-jin responded to enthusiastic fan questions about the unique appeal of Korean films.
A special reception followed, celebrating the festival’s 20-year history and looking ahead to the next two decades of Korean cinema.