Jeonju Int'l Film Festival Kicks off Online Due to COVID-19

Published on 2020/05/29 | Source

Actors Kim Gyu-ri (left) and Lee Seung-joon pose at the opening of the Jeonju International Film Festival in North Jeolla Province on Thursday. /Yonhap

The annual Jeonju International Film Festival, one of Korea's largest showcases of independent and art-house films, kicked off Thursday, but without audiences due to the coronavirus epidemic.

The opening ceremony was streamed live on its official YouTube channel.

A total of 180 films from nearly 40 countries were invited to the event, which will be held for a more extended period than usual, until Sept. 20.

The event consists of both online and offline screenings.

As a means to cope with the epidemic, viewers can enjoy 96 films online on Wavve, a Korean mega OTT platform, from Thursday until June 6.

The festival organizers also plan to hold extended screenings on a smaller scale at offline theaters until the festival closes.