J Special: Programmer of the Year Director HUR Jinho 00:06Hello. 00:08I'm Director Hur Jinho. 00:09It's nice to meet you.

J Special: Programmer of the Year Part 1. 2 films directed by HUR Jinho

Q1. Why did you accept the offer to be ‘J Special: Programmer of the Year’? 00:16I have some great memories of JEONJU International Film Festival. 00:21I think I've been there five or six times. 00:26Every time I go, I make great memories. 00:30There's a particular mood at film festivals 00:35and this one screens lots of wonderful movies as well. 00:39And I was happy to get an offer. 00:43I always have a hard time 00:46deciding which movies I like. 00:50I thought that selecting movies I enjoyed watching 00:53or ones that have something 00:57to do with my memories 01:00would be kind of fun.

Q2. Why did you choose One Fine Spring Day and April Snow? 01:05At first, I was thinking of choosing Happiness and April Snow. 01:08In some ways, there were lots of opportunities to see 01:11Christmas in August and One Fine Spring Day. 01:18I heard actor Yoo Jitae will visit The 25th JEONJU International Film Festival 01:22and we will be able to watch the film together. 01:25I don't think we've watched a movie together before. 01:29If we did, it was probably a long time ago. 01:32That's why I felt like it was a meaningful choice. 01:38I don't think I've had the chance to 01:42watch April Snow again either 01:43ever since I made the film. 01:44The staff I met at London Korean Film Festival 01:48told me that April Snow was their favorite film, 01:52which made me think I should take this opportunity to watch it again. 01:54So this is why I chose April Snow.

Q3. When April Snow was filmed, it was also turned into a novel. What do you remember about that? 01:57It was a very unique experience. 01:58Writer Kim Hyung-kyung watched 02:03the pre-edited version I made and wrote the novel. 02:07I think the novel was better. 02:12I felt that novels were different 02:16from movies since you can 02:19choose tenses and other things. 02:22It was a really fun experience. 02:26I've been told that April Snow is a bit difficult to understand 02:29because many things were skipped over. 02:30because many things were skipped over. 02:33Hyung-kyung saw the entire movie 02:36before it was edited. 02:38And some details were added as well. 02:41Perhaps that's why the novel was well-written 02:44and easier to understand. 02:49And I felt that the tenses 02:52used in films are different from 02:54the ones used in novels. 02:56I remember thinking that perhaps one day 03:01I could use those tenses in films 03:02to create a different vibe.

J Special: Programmer of the Year Part 2. 3 films selected by HUR Jinho

Q4. Please talk about the three films that you selected: The March of Fools, Paris, Texas, and Tokyo Story 03:11Some are movies that I enjoyed 03:13and some had an effect on my life. 03:17I think that's what I based my selection on. 03:21If I had to explain,

The March of Fools (HA Gil-jong, 1975) 03:24when I was little, there was a theater 03:28that showed old releases in my neighborhood. 03:30The theater played two films. 03:33Each neighborhood had at least one theater like that. 03:37I used to often watch movies there. 03:40I saw a movie by myself once. 03:43I think it was The March of Fools. 03:44The reason I went to see it alone is because 03:48I read the book, The March of Fools, by Choi In-ho. 03:52I think I was in fifth grade at the time. 03:56I don't know why I enjoyed that book, 04:00but I wanted to see the movie because of it. 04:02There were a few things like 04:08the acoustic guitar lifestyle that was considered 04:14the college lifestyle at the time. 04:16I think I admired that when I was little. 04:19The novel, The March of Fools, was about college students 04:24and the movie based on that was about the lives of college students. 04:28I remember wanting to see it by myself 04:33and that's why I chose it. 04:34I listened to English pop songs or Korean pop songs 04:42in elementary school. 04:45I was introduced to these through radio broadcasts, 04:50especially the late-night ones. 04:54That was really fun. 04:59I spent those days thinking 05:04that when I go to college, 05:07fun and romantic things would happen. 05:12I think those days in the past 05:15had a big cultural influence on me. 05:18For example, I went to college during the 80s 05:26so the 80s should feel most familiar to me, 05:31but I feel closer to the 70s culture. 05:34So that's why 05:37I decided to pick 05:41the film, The March of Fools.

Paris, Texas (Wim WENDERS, 1984) 05:44I saw Paris, Texas at a re-release theater 05:47that was a bit far away. 05:49That was before I thought I'd make movies. 05:51I met up with a neighborhood friend and we decided to watch a movie together. 05:55The poster where you see 06:01Nastassja Kinski's back in a revealing dress was very memorable. 06:04Nastassja Kinski's back in a revealing dress was very memorable. 06:10I really liked the movie. 06:15It wasn't hard to understand. 06:17The movie wasn't difficult, 06:19and the emotions throughout 06:24the everyday lives of the family 06:29also left an impression on me. 06:32I thought it was a great movie. 06:34The music was also good. 06:39As I started working in the movie industry, 06:41I watched other movies by Director Wim Wenders. 06:43I have great memories 06:45of Paris, Texas 06:47and that's why I chose it.

Tokyo Story (OZU Yasujiro, 1953) 06:50And the last film is Tokyo Story. 06:52I graduated from a Korean Academy of Film Arts and 06:57while studying movies, 07:00I went backpacking in Paris. 07:04There was a special exhibition on Ozu Yasujiro at the time. 07:07So I saw a few films, 07:11but I couldn't understand everything 07:13because they had French subtitles. 07:16My friend who was with me spoke French 07:21so I would ask them about the movies. 07:24Ozu Yasujiro's films don't have many lines 07:28and they're very short, 07:31so they weren't difficult. 07:32I remember the film being incredible. 07:34It made me realize that even a simple story like that 07:40can be very powerful too. 07:44I think that's why during my early career days, when I was making films 07:48like Christmas in August or One Fine Spring Day, 07:51I was influenced by Director Ozu Yasujiro. 07:55That's why I chose Tokyo Story.

The 25th JEONJU International Film Festival

Q5. Which of the selected films are you curious to see the audience’s reaction to? 08:05April Snow? 08:09Sometimes I wish I could watch 08:14a film in theaters once again. 08:18I wonder if it will feel different now. 08:20I wonder if a movie I saw as a child 08:23like The March of Fools 08:24would feel different now 08:27The same goes for Paris, Texas and Tokyo Story. 08:33I saw One Fine Spring Day recently 08:37and it was fine. 08:39I'm curious what the audience 08:43will think of April Snow. 08:46I'm hoping that they'll enjoy it.

Q6. How do you feel when you make a film? 08:52When I filmed Happiness, 08:54since the title has the word 08:56Once we start shooting a film, I start crossing out the days on the calendar. 09:01I count down the days until we are done filming 09:03because I can't wait for it to end. 09:05It's very exhausting. 09:07The staff does this a lot 09:09and so do directors. 09:11They can't wait for it to be over because they're exhausted. 09:15But once we're done shooting 09:17and the movie is released, 09:20we think about what film to shoot next... 09:24You could think of that as our break time. 09:27When I'm on break, I keep thinking that I'm the happiest when I'm shooting movies. 09:31I realize that was the happiest moment, 09:35ironically enough. 09:37In that sense, being on set is 09:44the best place for me. 09:47So I can't wait to start shooting once again. 09:51I want to keep making movies for a long time.

Q7. Please say a word to the visitors of 25th JEONJU International Film Festival 09:57JEONJU International Film Festival will take place starting on May 1. 10:06We hope you're looking forward to it. 10:07I'll be in Jeonju for about a week. 10:13I hope to enjoy the film festival 10:18with great movies in a wonderful city. 10:22Thank you.