The film, Next Sohee, won the Special Jury Award at the 23rd Tokyo FILMeX Festival. The festival organizer said, "Next Sohee, which shows thoughtful reflection on how life and other values are sacrificed in this ruthless world, sheds light on the mechanism of human exploitation," revealing the reason for its invitation.
Next Sohee, directed by Jung July, tells the story of Sohee (Kim Sieun), a high school student who starts training for a subcontracted position at a call center, and Yoojin (Bae Doona), a detective who doubts Sohee’s case. At the time it was screened as the closing film at the 75th Festival de Cannes in the 'International Critics' Week' section for special screening, the film drew sympathy from audiences around the world and received favorable reviews. It is also the winner of the Best Director award in the Cheval Noir competition category and the Best Asian Feature silver award in the Audience Award category at the 26th Fantasia International Film Festival.
Apart from the Tokyo FILMeX Festival, Next Sohee has been invited to more than 15 film festivals, including the BFI London Film Festival, the Film Fest Ghent, the Hong Kong Asian Film Festival, the Hawaii International Film Festival, Thessaloniki International Film Festival, and the Red Sea Film Festival, enjoying the continuous hot responses and interests. In particular, the film is the only Korean film competing at the Red Sea Film, raising expectations.
Next Sohee, which continues to hold a relay of invitations to domestic and foreign film festivals along with the news of winning the Special Jury Award at the Tokyo FILMeX Festival, will be released in Korea in early 2023 and meet Korean audiences.