Without our knowledge, EIDF(EBS International Documentary Festival), which has been 15 years old, has become settled well as a worldwide documentary festival, including Korea, as its name is.

At this time, the catchphrase of EIDF is ‘We will never stop! Documentary - Right to Fight’. It is said that it contains the volition that while conveying various voices through documentaries now and forever, EIDF, which has been growing for 15 years, ‘will continue to pursue the dream of creating a better future and a better world’. I have visited the EIDF press conference spot, full of the ‘Spirit and Matureness’, which is suitable for a 15-year-old one!

▲ 3 executive committee members

▲ A still cut of the opening film

The opening film of EIDF this time is the “Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist”, the work drawing a lifetime of Vivienne Westwood who is a famous fashion designer. She is well-known as an extraordinary figure who broke the glass ceiling in the conservative British society and the fashion world. It could be considered as the work that the social atmosphere was reflected in which the rights of women has recently more strengthened.

▲ Secretary General, Gunny Hyoung

Representing the documentary as a mirror reflecting the spirit of the times, ‘Secretary General, Gunny Hyoung’ stated that he scratched his head over various works in selecting the opening film at this time, but finally, became to pick out the work of “Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist”.

'Programmer, Kim Hye-min' mentioned that getting out of the conventional program where the classification has been performed by subject, she has prepared the section program for a total of 11 sections, including △ Kids Docs △ Old & Young, and △ World showcase, etc, expecting that the audience in each section could see the phases of the times through various characters, from kids to the elderly and the ‘Herstory” which contains the story of a woman standing against the world.

▲ A still cut of “Stronger than a Bullet” among Festival Choices

Do you know that the “Family in the Bubble”, directed by Director Ma Min-ji, who is a Korean female film director, was selected as the winner of Grand Prize?

In this 2018 EIDF, there are a total of 11 works as contenders, where outstanding works in 12 countries, including collaborating countries, have been submitted. They are the works that the subjects have been completely drawn in original styles through the characters from the boy in the Ukrainian conflict zone to the xiamen in a Chinese rural town and to the Korean dancer having retirement ahead. I am already wondering what work would be able to be selected as the winner of Grand Prize. ( https://www.eidf.co.kr/kor/movie#33 )

The keyword for the choice of this EIDF Festival is 'People'. Through the films, we will be able to not only shed light on each person, but also to have an insight into the society and to communicate with the whole world.

▲ A still cut of the “Family in the Bubble”

Fitting to the age of 15, EIDF this time took a big step toward the future, while keeping the glory of the past.

The biggest feature is the 'foundation of a Global Pitching Academy'. It is true that when going to the movies, commercial films occupy most screens; the moviegoers are far from finding and watching a good documentary film; and even if the movie theater screens it, there is a shortage of screening time.

In this EIDF, a program was planned to train 20 young artists, aiming to spread Korean documentaries to the whole world, by not only solving such problems but also improving the poor documentary production environment in Korea, by directly educating and supporting them.

▲ Senior Programmer Kim Hye-min

Senior Programmer Kim Hye-min spoke of her aspirations to increase the number of new documentary producers through the 'Global Pitching Academy', and to handle more Korean documentaries in connection with them. She also stated that the teams selected as the "Young Pitch" could be given various opportunities, including the support fund for documentary production, the participation in the ‘Korean Pitching Day’ at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), etc. ( https://www.eidf.co.kr/kor/festival/globalPitching )

In addition, she expected that the Global Pitching Academy as well as the 2018 EIDF would be a long-term foundation and alternative.

▲ EIDF communicating with the audience; outdoor screening in 2017

I think there is not anybody who does not know the fact that EBS has moved to Ilsan, right?

In addition to Ilsan, the main center of EIDF, you will be able to watch a total of 72 works of this EIDF at the Hongdae entrance branch of Lotte Cinema, which is a Hot Place in the downtown of Seoul, and even through EBS1 of the TV channel.

▲ A still cut of “Myeoneuri: My Son's Crazy Wife”

Outdoor screenings, which received the greatest response in the last 2017 EIDF, will also be held at Ilsan Lake Park. In the theater, 2 films are planning to be screened for 2 days: the “Myeoneuri: My Son's Crazy Wife”, which caused a great sensation in Korean society, and “The Distant Barking of Dogs”, showing the pain of the troubled region. It would be better to overcome the heat wave through the outdoor screening during the sultry summer.

▲ Chairman of the screening committee of EIDF 2018, Gordon Quinn

The Chairman of the screening committee of EIDF 2018 is Gordon Quinn, who has directed a lot of works, including “Home For Life”, “A Good Man”, etc. The other panels of judge are also gorgeous. A total of five judges will screen the Festival Choices: Ruby Chen, who responsibly produced 90 documentaries; Joost DAAMEN, the senior programmer of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, the world's most prestigious documentary film festival; Director Jeong Jae-eun, who directed “Take Care of My Cat”; and Head of department of EBS, Kim Hyeong-jun, who generally direct the “Docu-Prime”.

▲ TV Guide of EBS1 from Aug. 20 to 26

Suitable for one of the great features of EIDF, the "Documentary festival that can be seen through TV during the whole week", in this EIDF, you will also be able to see the documentaries of more than 50 pieces on EBS 1TV from Aug. 20 to 26.

On top of that, through D-BOX, which is the domestically unique documentary-exclusive VOD service, you can also watch the works in 2018 as well as those in 2017. ( https://www.eidf.co.kr/dbox )

▲ Executive Chairman, Lee Eun-jeong

Eun-Jeong, the Executive Chairman of EIDF, mentioned that this 2018 EIDF could not only reflect the documentary spirit of moving toward the world without stopping as it is, but also be an opportunity to participate in various events and to get familiar with the documentaries through TV.

I wish you will be able to enjoy the night of documentary, so that you can overcome the sweltering heat-wave through EIDF!

* Note : For one week, 72 movies from 33 countries are awaiting you on TV, in the theater, and at outdoor stages, etc. Selecting the movies you want to see through the website ( https://www.eidf.co.kr ), you can enjoy diversely them in a variety of places.

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