South Korean director O Muel will screen his film "Jiseul" at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival in the World Cinema Dramatic competition.
Set during the 1948 Jeju Massacre in Korea, "Jiseul" tells the story of some 120 villagers who hid in a cave for 60 days from soldiers who were under shoot-to-kill orders. They suffer from severe cold and hunger but retain their sanity by making jokes and holding on to the hope that their wait is almost over. Eventually their endurance wanes, and fear begins to test the group’s mettle.
The film is shot with a striking black-and-white cinematography that captures the texture of the region as well as the humanity of its inhabitants. Its described as a "powerful and poetic" film that is "hard to watch" at times because of its graphic content.
O Muel is a representative of the Jeju-based independent culture project, Terror J, and often chooses to direct films set on his native Jeju Island. Born in 1971, he has directed several feature films—most recently "Nostalgia" in 2009—in addition to various plays and performances. He also organized a street art festival called Flower for a Jeju Head, is codirector at the Jeju Independent Film Society, and acts as artistic director of the Japari Research Center.
For more about the Sundance Film Festival screening of "Jiseul" go to: http://filmguide.sundance.org/film/13082/jiseul
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