myKOREA with Boipelo Seswane
As part of our myKOREA series, we’ll be asking someone on the local scene to share their journey through Korean culture by naming their favourite musicians, movies, and artists. We’ll also be asking them to tell us about one more thing of their choosing.
Boipelo Seswane is an artist, poet, writer, and all-around super human being. Her latest project is called Big Nine Four Eight, a 48-hour filmmaking competition taking place in Daegu this week (more on that coming later in this piece.)
You can follow Boipelo here and follow Big Nine Four Eight here.
Music: ARKITEKTURE
The band of my choosing, though, is Arkitekture. Johan Ahn, whom I met back in my Jeollanamdo days, was part of Arkitekture who I got to see performing a few times in Hongdae. They are a South Korean heavy progressive rock band founded in 2021, but I have been following them since 2018 when they were called Superstring.
With the band consisting of a bassist as lead, a drummer, two classically trained soloists on violin/viola and saxophone, along with Johan on keyboard, they crafted this phenomenal progressive rock meets classical music sound that just feels like a wave of cool. They released their album Rationalis Impetus in 2022, which does incredible work of combining each of their attributes. One of my favourite songs off this album, Prayer For The Dying, feels to me like sinking into a really good sofa chair while simultaneously being suspended in space.
Their music embodies an expansivity that feels just as lush on the first listen as each one after
Movie: DECISION TO LEAVE
As a film student, having spent long hours of my time between 2008 and 2010 watching a variety of Korean films for seminars, essays, exams and everything in between - it was one of my points of interest in my cover letter to come here as a teacher.
It’s been phenomenal watching Korea reiterate and deeply cement its place as a force in the world of cinema. The immense list of fantastic films across genres has been a joy to witness- and most of all, to witness with the Korean people.
My film of choice is Decision To Leave by Park Chan-wook. In comparison to his revered Oldboy, this one etched itself into my mind with its use of quietness, its time, and unspoken things. What a way to portray the weight of human connections.
I still talk about it now and watch it as many times as I did when it first came out (and thankfully was also available for streaming with subtitles not too long after). And a shout-out to Teo Yoo for his back-to-back Decision To Leave into Past Lives move.
Art: Chun Kyung-ja
One of my new favourite places to encounter both new and well-established artists is at the Jeonnam Museum of Art, where I saw Yoon Jae Woo’s The Meaning of Colors, a gorgeous interplay of rich colours and light and dark spaces. I especially loved Lee Kyung Mo’s Moments That Changed History photography exhibition. He was born in Gwangyang, where the museum is based. The bulk of the exhibition was his work covering the Yeosu-Suncheon Rebellion which started October 19th, 1948 as well as the affectionate daily life of the people of the areas of Gwangyang, Hwasun, Gwangju, and other areas of Jeollanamdo from 1946.
Chun Kyung-ja’s work deeply reminds me of Frida Kahlo. Depicting the showing of beauty, lushness, pain, of inadequacy (in whatever way one perceives). I saw her work for the first time at SeMA where it is part of their collections. There is something incredibly moving and grounding about being in space with work that feels like space, being held to be imperfect and human and connected to all that is life.
One more thing: Big Nine Four Eight
I’m currently part of a smol team with Philip Brett running a 48-Hour film contest that will take place between April 5th and 7th.
We both currently live in Daegu and attended an event for creatives hoping to connect late last year and ended up talking about all kinds of projects, including things we’ve done in the past. In a bid to build community with so many creative communities/spaces having been lost, we made Big Nine Four Eight.
Big Nine Four Eight is the first iteration of Daegu’s own 48-Hour Short Film Contest. The challenge is to write, shoot, edit, and score a film (of a maximum of 7 minutes) in just 48 hours, when doing so is more important than planning. Participants will be able to select a genre and will be provided a mandatory prop, and line.
Sponsorship comes from superb local businesses Mooyoungdang, The Pollack, 55 Cinema, Daehwa.Scene, Noriteo, and Communes. Teams stand a chance to win prizes that range from food and drinks, tickets for live music events and cash for the best film winner and first runner-up. Additionally, the winner and audience favourite will be screened at the Jinju English Film Festival (JEFF), where they can compete for additional prizes. Check us out on Instagram, and tell your friends! Hope to see you or your film there!
