20 Films you shouldn’t miss at the 25th Seoul International Women’s Film Festival (Part 1)

By Asian Film Festival on August 22, 2023 • ( Leave a comment )

These are twenty feature films you shouldn’t miss at the Seoul International Women’s Film Festival which will take place from August 24 – 30, 2023 in Seoul, Korea.

**A Place of Our Own** by Ektara Collective – India | 2023 – 88 minutes | Korean Premiere

Laila and Roshni, two trans women, are looking for a house after they are evicted from the place they rented. It soon becomes evident that their search for a home is also their ongoing search for a place in this society that wants to keep them away in a section that cannot be the center. (SIWFF 2023)

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**A Table for Two** by Kim Boram – Korea | 2022 – 90 minutes

Chaeyoung, who has lived with an eating disorder for 15 years, leaves behind the goal of full recovery and searches for a way to embrace her condition. Sangok, Chaeyoung’s mother, who still has not found the cause of her daughter’s anorexia, grapples with her past to find the origin of the mother-daughter relationship. (SIWFF 2023)

**A Tour Guide** by Kwak Eun-mi – Korea | 2023 – 95 minutes

Hanyeong, a North Korean defector, obtained a tourist guide license in Korea by utilizing the Chinese language she learned while living in China. She is still adapting to the unfamiliar environment and trying to improve her performance in South Korea. However, her life continues to undergo constant changes amid the flow of time. (SIWFF 2023)

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**Birth** by Yoo Ji-young – Korea | 2022 – 156 minutes

Jay, a promising young writer, is on the verge of publishing her new book. Geonwoo, Jay′s roommate and lover, works as an English instructor at a private institute and silently assists Jay. Both of them care about each other and are happy as they are. However, Jay’s unplanned pregnancy brings enormous changes, causing conflicts between the two. (SIWFF 2023)

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**Egghead & Twinkie** by Sarah Kambe Holland – USA | 2023 – 88 minutes | Korean Premiere

After coming out to her parents, 17-year-old Twinkie takes off on a road trip to meet her online crush with the help of her nerdy best friend, Egghead. As they make their way across the country, Egghead wrestles with his unrequited feelings for Twinkie, while Twinkie learns to embrace her identity. (SIWFF 2023)

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**Hail to Hell** by Lim Oh-jeong – Korea | 2022 – 109 minutes

Na-mi and Sun-woo, two loner girls, plan to commit suicide instead of going on a school trip. But they discover the happy life of Chae-lin, who caused them trouble just before committing suicide. They put their plans on hold and leave their hometown to seek revenge, heading to the unfamiliar city of Seoul. (SIWFF 2023)

Screening Dates:
August 28, 2023 | Monday | MEGABOX SangamWorldcup 4 | 19:30 pm

**Hidden Letters** by Zhao Qing, Violet Du Feng – China, German, Norway, US | 2022 – 88 minutes

Spanning past and present, the film Hidden Letters follows two millennial Chinese women connected by their fascination with the secret language, Nushu, of sisterhood and their desire to protect it. (SIWFF 2023)

**Home Ground** by Kwon Aram – Korea | 2022 – 78 minutes

In the 1970s, “Chanel” in Myeongdong was a secret hideout for Butches and Femmes. In 1996, lesbian youths opened Korea’s first lesbian bar called “LesVos.” In the early 2000s, queer teenagers seeking a community gathered in a small park in Sinchon, Seoul. Even after 20 years, Myungwoo keeps running LesVos, but the number of customers visiting the bar has dwindled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Can Myungwoo keep LesVos alive? (SIWFF 2023)

**In Her Room** by Ito Chihiro – Japan | 2022 – 136 minutes | Korean Premiere

Susume is a young dentist who can’t communicate well with people since childhood. One day, he meets and falls in love with a woman named Miyako. She invites him into her lush, forest-like apartment, and he, though awkwardly, gradually becomes closer to her. (SIWFF 2023)

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**Life Unrehearsed** by Banpak Jieun – Korea | 2022 – 80 minutes

A love story of the two first-generation Korean immigrants in Germany. Thirty-six years ago, Soohyun met Insun for the first time at a Christian training camp for Korean nurses in Germany. Despite the opposition from the Korean community, Insun chose Soohyun for love. Now in their 70s, they have lived together through the ups and downs of life. (SIWFF 2023)

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