As the mercury rises in the summer, more and more people scurry indoors to the comfort of an air-conditioned movie theater, and what better place to catch a movie than the Puchon International Film Festival, otherwise known as PiFan.
Park Ji-won reports.
This is the 18th annual edition of PiFan, one of the nation's largest film festivals along with others in Busan and Jeonju.
But PiFan sets itself aside from the pack by being Asia's largest genre film festival, one that specializes in more diverse films ranging from fantasy and sci-fi to horror films.
"I am a big movie fan, and this is my third time at PiFan. Although I'm not into thrillers, this film festival has its own unique attractions and colors which is why I'm back again this year."
"I'm a horror movie fan. I watch every horror film I can find, especially anything Korean or Asian, and this is a good place to watch films like that."
Film director Kim Seung-hyuk, whose thriller "Nothing Lost" made this year's World Fantastic Cinema section at PiFan,... is thrilled just to be there.
"It's an honor that my film is being presented in PiFan's World Fantastic Cinema section,... which introduces the newest genre films. I used to be a big fan of genre films and never imagined my film would be shown here."
Pifan this year will feature 210 films from 47 countries.
In its main competition section, 12 films are up for the Puchon Choice award.
A melodramatic horror film from Argentina called, "Darkness by Day," and a Chinese film delving into the world of hypnosis called, "The Great Hypnotist" are two being featured.
And the American film, "Time Lapse," is highly imaginative.
It's about a camera that takes pictures 24 hours in the future.
"The list of fantastic film festivals begins in Europe. PiFan is similar in size to Spain's Sitges Film Festival,... and we have an amicable relations with them. This year, we focused on discovering and introducing genre films from Latin America, China and Southeast Asia."
Of the more than 200 films at the festival..., 43 are world premieres, and 68 of them are Asian premieres.
Park Ji-won, Arirang News.
