London Korean Film Festival back for 17th year

Alienoid will open the London Korean Film Festival Photo: Courtesy of the LKFF

The London Korean Film Festival returns for its 17th edition tomorrow, opening with Choi Dong-hoon's Alienoid. The festival will run until November 17 at venues across London and feature more than 35 films and will close with Kim Han-Min's Hansan: Rising Dragon, including a Q&A with the director.

Other programme highlights include Choi Dong-hoon’s crime caper The Thieves alongside a selction of Korean cinema from the past year, including Jeong Ji-yeon’s psychological thriller The Anchor and Return To Seoul, about a woman searching for her identiy, directed by Davy Chou.

There are strands dedicated to K-Horror, documentary and female filmmakers plus a special focus dedicated to actress Kang Soo-yeon. Kang won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the 44th Venice International Film Festival for her role, making her the first Korean actor to receive an award at a major international film festival. Considered a national treasure, Kang died this May at the age of just 55.

Her films at the festival include Come Come Come Upward (1989), The Road To The Race Track (1991), Girls’ Night Out (1998) and Rainbow Trout (1999).

There will also be a selction of shorts from this year's winners at the Jeonju International Film Festival.

Today, the festival has also issued a statement of condolence regarding the Itaewon Halloween tragedy in Seoul, in which a crowd crush left at least 156 people dead.

In a statement the festivals organisers said: "From everyone at the London Korean Film Festival, we would like to express our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those lost in the Itaewon tragedy. We stand with the people of Korea and mourn with them for the loss of their loved ones. We will be inviting audiences to join us for a moment of silence and reflection at our screenings this year."

For more information about the festival and the full programme, visit the official site.