Seoul Horror Story (Director: KIM Hyunjin) was selected by the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFAN, Festival Director SHIN Chul) as this year’s Fantastic 7 project. Fantastic 7 is a program designed by Cannes Film Festival’s Marché du Film to promote genre films. Director KIM Hyunjin will be pitching Seoul Horror Story in front of filmmakers from all over the world, who have a great interest in the selected projects, at the Marché du Film on May 22.

 

¡ã Director KIM Hyunjin

-Are the preparations going well?
“I’ve been working hard to get prepared. In addition to putting together a concise presentation and a short video, I’ve been ruminating over the meetings I’ve had with the many foreigners I met at the BIFAN Project Market and other places. I intend to highlight what kind of story Seoul Horror Story tells, and what differentiates it from other horror films.

-What kind of horror film is it?
“It’s the first horror film with the city of Seoul itself as its main character. Three different scary stories (“The Ghost Station,” “The Lost Face,” “The Two Worlds”), each with their own color and set in the regions of Sinseol-dong, Gangnam, and Noryangjin, will be told in an omnibus format.

-What is the plot of the movie?
“The story is told in the form of a ‘Seoul Horror Tour.’ Three foreign students of a Korean language school in Seoul, led by a mysterious tour guy named K, visit Sinseol-dong, Gangnam, and Noryangjin, where they get to indirectly experience the horror and uneasiness triggered by those regions (Seoul).

“The Ghost Station” is about the horrors of working overtime and power abuse. The Ghost Station is a gaming hall that fuses reality with games. “The Lost Face” tells a story of the horrors of plastic surgery. People who have lost their sense of self, along with their faces, roam around Gangnam, making it a hotbed of doppelgangers. “The Two Worlds” is about the horrors of job seeking. Noryangjin, where young people stricken with fear and anxiety over unemployment gather in droves, is a platform where the “real world” and the “spirit world” co-exist.

-What differentiates it from other horror films?
“In addition to having a city as the main character, the film doesn’t just stop at evoking fear. It gives an insight into modern life by using shocking ideas to depict the anxiety and fear felt by modern Seoulites. The project has been praised for being ‘very creative’ and ‘having the competitive edge of K-content.’ It has also been acknowledged as being international in scope and a story that could spawn a series of follow-ups, with horror stories featuring New York, London, Paris, etc.”

 

¡ã Screenshot of Director KIM Hyunjin’s Fantastic 7 pitch.
With the high-tech city of Seoul as its subject, Seoul Horror Story captures the three colors of horror hidden within the city.
Three regions in Seoul, Sinseol-dong, Gangnam, and Noryangjin, are colored in different hues, and the story is told in an omnibus format in order to vividly depict the uneasiness and fear felt by people in the modern age.

Seoul Horror Story was an official Project Spotlight Korea selection for the 24th BIFAN’s NAFF Project Market in 2020. It received planning and production support from the Korean Creative Content Agency, Gyeonggi Film Commission, and the Korean Film Council. And now, it is BIFAN’s official selection for the 2022 Fantastic 7 program.

-Why didn’t you enter the project for the Fantastic 7 program in 2021?
“I was sick for about a year and a half after the 24th BIFAN. I was sick for a long time, and in the midst of it all, I was hard at work supplementing and revising the script. I was eager to carry on the success I had following the 2020 NAFF (Network of Asian Fantastic Films). Fortunately, I continued to have good results, and I’m quite proud of getting to go to Cannes with a project that was chosen as BIFAN’s official Fantastic 7 selection. I have to work even harder now.”

Until now, the project has been awarded more than 200 million won (approx. $158,000). Seoul Horror Story will be presented at the 75th Cannes Film Festival’s Marché du Film along with other official selections from Sitges – International Film Festival of Catalonia, Toronto International Film Festival, South by Southwest, Guadalajara International Film Festival, Cairo International Film Festival, and the New Zealand International Film Festival. The directors of the Fantastic 7 selections will be participating in an on-site pitching session, business meetings, and a fantastic mixer networking event, where they will meet filmmakers and industry professionals from around the globe.

-Are you particularly fond of the horror genre?
“I like romance too. At one time, I thought about naming my film company ‘Flowers and Blood.’ Flowers represent life and love; blood represents death and fear. Because it was too literal, I changed it to Mayjune. The name encompasses two meanings. It signifies a fresh and beautiful season, and also the Korean proverb, ‘If you harbor a grudge, frost can fall even in May and June.’ Anyway, I want to direct films and alternate between horror and romance.”

-Can you tell us your favorite horror films and directors?
“I like horror stories that are intimately connected to people’s lives. Films like, Hereditary (Director: Ari ASTER), one of the best-known giallo films, Suspiria (Director: Dario ARGENTO), and its remake of the same title by Luca GUADAGNINO, and the Korean films Epitaph (2007) and Svaha: The Sixth Finger (2019). I really like David LYNCH. Lost Highway (1997), Twin Peaks (1992). Among Korean films, I like The Wailing by Director NA Hongjin.”

-What’s the appeal of horror movies?
“In life, there is joy, hope, pain, unease, and fear. We live on the border between two lives. We encounter fear when we’re anxious in life. Those are the times when I often get ideas for films that magnify those emotions. Horror films give you a cathartic experience, as if you’re riding on a roller coaster or exploring highlands or the ends of the earth.”

-How did you come up with the idea for Seoul Horror Story?
“Each city has its own color. What’s Seoul’s color? What image does it bring to mind? Foreigners call Seoul ‘the city that doesn’t sleep for 24 hours.’ On the one hand, that sounds quite dynamic and fascinating. On the other, it sounds frightening. The starting point for the project was my desire to use a city tour for foreigners to tell a story about a city where people have to stay awake for 24 hours and compete against one another endlessly, and to depict the uneasiness and fear in such a place.

 

¡ã On the set of Director KIM Hyunjin’s (on the right in both photos) Mahong’s house.
His directing credits include short films such as Response and Strange Day,
as well as the independent feature, Mahong’s house.
Most of his screenplays have been for thrillers or horror films.

-What are your plans for the future?
“After coming back from Cannes, I plan to make more revisions to the script, start filming in July, and finish filming before winter. I want the rough cut of the film to be out by the end of the year.”

After graduating from the Korean Academy of Film Arts, KIM Hyunjin first stepped foot into the world of Korean films as an assistant director to Director LEE Changdong. Working alongside Director Kim on the Seoul Horror Story project is REDPETER Films CEO, LEE Dongha. LEE has produced films such as the Best Screenplay Award winner at the 63rd Cannes Film Festival, Poetry (2010), and Hwayi: A Monster Boy (2013). He has executive produced films such as Train to Busan (2016) and Peninsula (2020). He was also the only Asian producer to be named by Variety as one of the top 10 producers to watch out for at the 70th Cannes Film Festival. There are high expectations for Director KIM Hyunjin’s appearance at the 75th Cannes Film Festival, as well as for the future of Seoul Horror Story.

The 26th BIFAN is scheduled to be held from July 7 to 17 as an online-offline hybrid event. Films will be screened at theaters in Bucheon and via OTT services, and events with audiences and residents will be held in the streets, parks, and shopping centers of Bucheon.