80th Venice International Film Festival: “GOD IS A WOMAN” Review

Warning: Spoilers ahead. Just off the coast of Panama, in the indigenous Guna Yala province, sits an island town vibrant with colourful clothes and happy faces. Ustupo is home to a community of some 2,000 Guna people, whose rich culture and pride in their community is kept well alive to date. 50 years ago, French…

80th Venice International Film Festival: “Yurt” Review

In the year 1996, against the backdrop of Turkey’s escalating tensions between religious and secular ideologies, a poignant and thought-provoking film, Yurt, takes us on a journey through the life of a fourteen-year-old boy named Ahmet (Doga Karakas). Raised in a secular environment, his world is upended when his recently converted father (Tansu Bicer) decides…

Ryoo Seung-wan’s “Smugglers” Review

Ryoo Seung-wan has done it again with his twelfth feature – albeit in terms of commercial, rather than critical, success. His latest film Smugglers has earned nearly £30 million since its July 26 premiere in South Korea, making it the fourth-highest grossing film of the year in the country and the summer box office champion….

Harmonising Cultures – In Conversation with CelloGayageum

The story of CelloGayageum began in 2016 in Berlin, Germany. Comprising two gifted musicians, Kim Sol Daniel (cello) and Yoon Dayoung (gayageum), the duo crossed paths at a concert organised by the Korean Cultural Centre in the aforementioned city. Drawn together by their mutual curiosity, they struck up a conversation and soon discovered a shared…

80th Venice International Film Festival: “Making Of” Review

Warning: Spoilers ahead. A fantastical orchestral piece plays over a black screen. The opening credits introduce us to Making Of before throwing us into a rain-doused action scene. Without looking at the blurb one might’ve easily assumed this was the movie they were watching, but before too long, a cameraman is angrily pushed away and…

Lim Youngmin: A Journey of Challenges and Redemption in the K-Pop World 

In the dynamic and competitive world of K-pop, the journey of an artist is often marked by triumphs and tribulations, with each chapter contributing to their growth and evolution. Lim Youngmin‘s journey was filled with many ups and downs, and, although the journey wasn’t the easiest one, Youngmin showed that with patience, determination, and willingness…