This film festival sponsored by CJ entertainment and CJ CGV, prepared a total of 16 Asian movies, especially those that were made so that there is a mutual understanding between cultures. It also provides a chance to come in touch with Indie movies that have high artistry.

There are four categories of movies. They are: humanitarian movies, top performance movies, movies celebrating hope in the human spirit, and finally, the family movie.

Among 16 movies, three movies are introduced below.   

“I grow up” - Poet of the Wastes

Street Teheran, is gloomy. Iran faced with unemployment for about 30,000 people, has a very hard situation. The people have to pass a very difficult test to obtain a minial job such as a street cleaner. However, the hero wants to be a poet.

Though he works receiving all kinds of contempt, he does not loss his innocent heart. One day, he is telling a story of fortune with his colleagues using evidence from trash he collects, and discovers a note written by a poet.  The note is from the poet to her brother. He falls in love by only reading this one note. He has energy for his life.

A poet who cannot go out because of fear of murder, and a woman who morns an engaged person killed by terrorist. They express the gloom of their life’s period. At the end of the story, the poet is eventually killed, a witness of his times, and depressed, because he could not send his thoughts to a woman that he likes.

He stands in a position of weakness, but he keeps innocent. He always thinks about his poetry through continuous meetings with another poet. He sends this poem to her to consol her sorrow. Watch carefully he loves silently, but truly.

This movie does not use a lot of dialogue but emotions are delivered with strong performances. The director speaks through the movie without the use of special technical skills, and the camera caught all proper scenery in the lens. Although whatever the imminent situation maybe the characters are face with, they stepped forward for a dream and inspires the audience. 

 

“Miracle of my life” - Kamimaze Girls

The movie starts are the end, because a girl who seems to be the movie’s hero breaks out of a truck running along the road on a scooter. This movie starts somewhat unusually. It is about stories from Momoko’s viewpoint. This movie also shows stories in a unique visual method. Many spectators can feel that it seems to be a little unfamiliar.

Momoco wants to live in a Rococo period, which pursues only beautiful things and she manages to go to an extremely splendid one in the eighteenth century through traveling in her imagination. She is happy to buy beautiful dresses, and she goes to Tokyo directly for more than two hours. Her father was a scamp and sold counterfeits. He is not a very able parent. Her mother was advised by her mature daughter to run away. Momoco indulges in her own inner world for happiness.

As her father loses his job, she faces up to the crisis that she cannot get the money to buy dresses with the brand name ‘Baby, the star’. Eventually, she decides to sell the counterfeits that her father sold. A girl, Ichigo who is a scooter gangster, suddenly appears in front of Momoco.

After buying stuff, Ichigo continues and visits Momoco’s house, but Momoco does not relax and behave familiarly with her. In fact, Momoco does not have friends. The people who live close to her house also think she is unique. She was a girl who does not communicate with anyone. It shows one aspect of individualism. However, she does not care about it. She just feels happy wearing dresses in her own world. Ichigo approaches her continuously requesting to look at the handicraft maker of legend.

Many things happen from this meeting, in Momoco’s mind that loves to wear dresses in the other world, the representative of ‘Baby, the star’ clothes observes her closely, he admits that she has a talent. In addition, Ichigo recognizes the value of her own view, and how important it is to come from Momoco.

There are some unusual visual impacts of this movie. The director’s sense to divide between reality and imagination is skillful, and Momoco’s Loretta dresses are another point to watch. Above all, there is a secret subject in the communication between the friends in their own world and in their friendship. The world holds out its warm hand to Momoco, who cannot feel the importance and necessity of communication. She meets friends outside of her inner world and meets a miracle to find happiness.

 

“Hope and communication” - Midnight My Love

This movie starts to show Iran’s scenery through a taxi’s window. It shows how taxis wander from place-to-place or drive through the streets receiving neon sign lights. The nightlife gives feelings that a dull and lonely night life are becoming deeper.

The life of a taxi driver, Bati who lives on prosaic everyday, has nothing new to make him interested in life again. One day a woman named Nual gets in the taxi. She is a prostitute. Bati saw in her that she is like himself, but he cannot approach her easily. Soon, he becomes her exclusive taxi driver and they feel begin to have subtle feelings toward each other. However, there are many obstacles in front of them. A mere taxi driver cannot make her happy. They already received many hurts in the world.

However, between two people, who know about life’s hurts, can console each other. Through their communication, they begin to hope again and a willingness to survive.

The taxi driver makes ceaseless efforts to rescue the girl from the prostitute’s quarters. However, he gets deception and prejudice. He again receives a hurt. This movie is founded on reality, but has a meager and flat love story. It seems to say love can solve all of problems, but no problem is solved easily.

They eventually part from each other, and then they do it all over again. They always think each other. Nual starts to listens to Bati’s favorite radio program. Bati delivers a wedding pamphlet to Nual, when she goes out, and he helps her to find her dream. In the desiccated world, they finally meet as a couple.

Love between a middle-aged man and a prostitute is not easy. They find prejudices about the difference between their ages and jobs, prejudice about their appearance makes more ordeals. They are suppressed by people that have a lot of money and do bad things, but they try to live as private people.

This movie is like Petit Bourgeois’ love story, and makes me think about many things that happen among lovers and society. Hope always exists even in a cold-hearted society.

With the exception of the movies above, another movie ‘Liez’ stands out. Rather than famous movie that is advertise a lot, the Indie Film Festival movies have a strong impression. As more interest develops there will be more effort to make these movie more available to the public, we need to show more concern for these films from Korea’s minority groups. Our present society is focusing on the minority groups in Korea.