I got a press release for The East Winds Film Festival and it announces the guests set to arrive and there are a variety of interesting characters, especially the first one I’m going to write about…
The festival takes place at the end of this month in Coventry between 31st October and 2nd November in the state-of-the-art digital 3D Cinema Square One and the guest list has been announced. Attendees will get to see a selection of stars and directors who will be at the event to introduce their films, taking part in Q&A sessions and mingling with audiences.
Kim Kko-bbi, a rising star in South Korea and Japan made a major impact in the west with Yang Ik-June’s gritty drama Breathless (released by Terracotta) and has since starred in a series of Japanese horror movies and the recent big-budget historical actioner, Kundo: Age of the Rampant.
She is at the East Winds Film Festival to present the European Premiere of A Record of Sweet Murder, the recently released (as in, last month) production from one of Japan’s leading directors in underground horror, Koji Shiraishi, the man famous for Noroi: The Curse and CULT. She also introduces the upcoming Third Window Film release, Greatful Dead, directed by Eiji Uchida.
The next guest to announce is director Sophon Sakdaphisit who also has two films at the festival. Both are slow burn chillers with social commentary that some regard as the best horror films to be made in Thailand in recent years. Get the low-down on how he views and makes horror when he introduces Laddaland, an apparent real life story of a family who moved into a haunted condo development, and his most recent horror The Swimmers, a story of alienation and teen romance where a love triangle between two members of the school’s swim-team turns deadly.
Director, producer and screenwriter Clifton Ko Chi-sum will be at the festival for the European Premiere of his drama Wonder Mama, a story about a 49-year old lady librarian on the verge of retirement who can never get the ordinary, drama-free life she desires because of a lot of drama in her family.
Writer-director Nithiwat Tharatorn will be introducing this year’s 
Closing Film, The Teacher’s Diary, a feel-good movie that has become Thailand’s official entry to the Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards. This one looks very sweet and a nice way to end what looks set to be a great festival.
