Korean Cinema with CIEE

A few days ago, when I arrived on campus, I noticed a big banner of film director Bong Joon-ho adorning the Baekyang Hall opposite the CIEE Center. It was congratulating him for his film “Parasite” winning the top prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Knowing that Yonsei University does not have a film-making department, I found it rather odd that the banner was there. After making some inquiries, I learned that Bong had graduated from Yonsei with a degree in sociology before attending the Korean Academy of Film Arts. Bong’s films include the highly popular monster movie “The Host”, the crime drama “Memories of Murder”, and the highly acclaimed sci-fi action thriller “Snowpiercer”. 

Another thing I learned about Bong’s new award-winning movie is that the subtitles were made by Darcy Paquet, a film critic, writer, cinema professor and sometimes actor, who has been a guest lecture for our CIEE programs for many years. I began having Darcy speak to CIEE students years ago because many students are interested in Korean drama and film. Also, because of their great interest in film, our fall mid-term overnight excursion is to the Busan International Film Festival and the excursion is always preceded by a lecture given by Darcy Paquet. We also provide information about various large and small film festivals held throughout the year so that interested students can attend.

Although  our partner school YonseiUniversity doesn’t have a film school, CIEE Seoul tries to provide our students with opportunities to learn about Korean film and the Korean film industry.