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KIM Young-jin Appointed as New KOFIC Chairman
Professor, Critic and Former Jeonju IFF Head Programmer to Lead KOFIC’s ‘Post-COVID’ Film Policy
Respected film critic, professor and programmer KIM Young-jin has been elected as the new chairperson of the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). He takes over from OH Seok-geun, who stepped down on January 7 after completing his three-year term as chairman.
First establishing himself as a film reporter for leading Korean film magazine Cine 21 and as an editor for the now-defunct film weekly Film 2.0, KIM Young-jin is also a professor at Myongji University. Previously, he served as the head programmer of the Jeonju International Film Festival and last year directed a short film which debuted at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BiFan).
In his position as one of the vice-chairpersons of KOFIC, a post to which he was appointed in January last year, KIM has played a significant role in the council’s efforts to coordinate the film industry’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of his chief tasks as the new chairman will be to spearhead KOFIC’s ‘Post-COVID’ film policy.
Chairman KIM expressed, "We will seek practical support measures to overcome difficult times due to the aftermath of COVID-19 and other issues, and will concentrate our capabilities on presenting a blueprint that actively responds to the rapidly reorganizing film industry.”
KIM’s term will conclude on January 3, 2022. Previously, chairpersons for the Korean Film Council were selected by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for three-year terms. KOFIC has now returned to its previous system, whereby a chairman is chosen among and by KOFIC’s nine-member committee. As a result, KIM will finish out his current two-year committee term as chairman, at which point his contract is eligible to be renewed for three years.
Taking over KIM’s seat on the nine-member committee will be CHOI Jae-won, a veteran producer whose credits include Hansel and Gretel (2007), The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008), The Attorney (2013), and The Age of Shadows (2016). He was formerly the president of local investor and distributor Next Entertainment World (NEW) and recently served as the head of the local production for Warner Bros Korea.
Related People
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OH Seok-geun
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CHOI Jae-won
