2 weeks ago
Korean filmmaker Yeon Sang-ho has been engaged complete nan past fewer years. In summation to directing zombie thriller Colony – which premiered successful Midnight Screenings present successful Cannes – he directed 2 different movies past year, The Ugly and Revelations, and was a showrunner connected a Japanese bid that will soon driblet connected Netflix.
Colony, which Korean workplace Showbox has already sold to much than 124 territories, is portion of a long-overdue return to Cannes charismatic action for Korean cinema – on pinch Na Hong-jin’s Hope successful title and July Jung’s Dora in Directors Fortnight.
The movie stars Gianna Jun (Kingdom: Ashin Of The North) as a professor attending a biotech convention erstwhile a viral outbreak starts transforming nan attendees into Yeon’s trademark fast-moving zombies. However, successful a departure from Yeon’s erstwhile films, nan infected tin stock information, operating pinch a hive mind that enables them to collectively way down caller victims, alternatively than shuffling astir aimlessly. Go Soo (The Fortress), Ji Chang-wook (Revolver), Kim Shin-rock (Hellbound) and Koo Kyo-hwan (Parasyte: The Grey) also caput nan ensemble cast.
Although Yeon started his profession moving successful animation, he says he utilized minimal CGI to create his caller procreation zombies, alternatively relying connected beingness movements and typical effects. “I person thing against CGI and utilized it heavy successful Hellbound and Parasyte: The Grey, but for this movie I only wanted to usage it astatine nan extremity to create nan top number of zombies,” says Yeon, sitting down pinch Deadline successful Cannes. “For astir of nan movie, we relied connected choreographers, dancers, a stunt squad and of people besides nan actors. We had immoderate of the best modern dancers successful Korea moving connected nan film.”
By nan aforesaid token, Yeon says he besides didn’t usage immoderate AI exertion while making nan film, though he’s unfastened to seeing what it tin do successful nan future. He besides feels that nan communicative of Colony indirectly touches connected this (currently contentious) taxable because nan thought of a corporate hive mind is 1 of nan biggest fears that humans person astir AI.
“I was wondering what nan top fearfulness of our clip is, and I deliberation it’s nan utmost high-speed speech of communication, because exertion is now connecting each of our thoughts and AI is only going to accelerate that process,” says Yeon. “If we effort to specify AI, it’s a benignant of sum aliases universality of thought, and it’s processing very rapidly, but to the detriment of nan originality aliases personality of people.”
He besides feels that AI is making us, erstwhile again, mobility what creation is; recalling his experiences arsenic a Fine Arts student, erstwhile Marcel Duchamp’s The Fountain (an artwork consisting of a porcelain urinal) sparked a statement complete whether a readymade entity tin beryllium classed arsenic art.
“The world of cinema is very concerned pinch this mobility now. AI is generating caller images, but nan sum of these images is universal, and what defines creation is originality, thing that is individual to nan creator aliases nan individual, not universality. But astatine nan aforesaid time, nan large statement successful good arts complete The Fountain ended up enriching nan manufacture of art, truthful I deliberation we’re astatine a akin crossroads now.”
Not amazingly successful specified a high-tech nation, South Korea’s movie manufacture has already started embracing AI filmmaking – CJ ENM precocious released AI-human hybrid characteristic The House successful cinemas – but ironically it’s been bully old-fashioned quality movies that person precocious revived Korean cinema astatine nan section container agency pursuing a prolonged slump, not method wizardry. Showbox, nan workplace down Colony, precocious had a monolithic container agency deed pinch humanities play The King’s Warden, which has pulled successful $108M to go nan highest-grossing Korean movie of each time.
Yeon has famously worked crossed some theatrical and streaming content. His earlier zombie films – Train To Busan and Peninsula – were large hits successful Korea and crossed nan region. But he besides directed nan movie Revelations for Netflix, on pinch bid Hellbound and Parasyte: The Grey, nan second an adjustment of a celebrated Japanese scary manga.
“A batch of group said Korean cinema was going done a crisis, but I ne'er thought of it that way, I conscionable thought it was going done a transformation,” says Yeon, who past twelvemonth besides directed enigma thriller The Ugly, which was released successful cinemas partially arsenic an research to spot if low-budget filmmaking was a solution for Korean cinema.
“Streaming grew very quickly successful Korea, particularly during Covid, and past we had a business wherever young group were watching short clips and had a difficult clip enjoying long-form content.
“But now we person nan arena wherever young group person started going backmost to nan movie theatres,” Yeon continues. “Another absorbing inclination is nan emergence successful fame of GVs [guest visits]; in-person mobility and reply sessions pinch nan head and different talents aft nan movie has screened. It started astatine movie festivals, but we’re now seeing a batch of this during a film’s theatrical merchandise – audiences are demanding a batch of GVs.”
Of course, Colony will person nary problem reaching theatres. Following its Cannes premiere, nan movie will person its North American premiere arsenic nan opening movie of New York Asian Film Festival, up of a North American theatrical release. But Yeon says he’s besides willing successful moving pinch world collaborators to make contented that tin travel, either theatrically aliases connected streaming platforms.
Wow Point, nan Seoul-based accumulation institution that Yeon founded with producer Yoomin Hailey Yang, is processing a slate of projects pinch world partners, immoderate of which he will direct, while connected others he will service arsenic shaper aliases writer. These see sci-fi crime thriller Human Vapor, based connected a 1960 tokusatsu, directed by Shinzo Katayama and written and executive produced by Yeon. A co-production betwixt Wow Point and Japan’s Toho Studios, nan bid will watercourse connected Netflix from July 2.
“With Human Vapor, I was really attracted by nan taxable and nan mounting successful Japan,” says Yeon. “We talked a batch pinch nan Japanese head and shaper and astir nan differences successful nan ways that Japanese and Korean audiences person information. It was a refreshing acquisition and I’m really looking guardant to moving connected much projects for illustration this.”
He says that Alfonso Cuaron, who useful betwixt Mexico and Hollywood, had a akin acquisition erstwhile he came connected committee Revelations arsenic an executive producer: “He said it was absorbing to study astir nan taste differences. It’s a communicative group successful Korea but his viewpoint is very overmuch reflected successful nan movie. So I deliberation its ever an enriching acquisition to activity pinch overseas artists.”
As for different overseas filmmakers Yeon would for illustration to activity pinch – he drops 1 sanction that will person genre fans drooling: “Indonesia’s Joko Anwar is 1 head that I would emotion to activity pinch 1 day.”
Colony is produced by Wow Point, Smilegate, Midnight Studio and Showbox, which is handling world sales. The movie plays astatine NYAFF on pinch a 4K restoration of Train To Busan, some of which are being released theatrically by WellGo USA pursuing nan festival. Train To Busan will unfastened August 14, followed by Colony on August 28.
