Two S. Korean animated films invited to Annecy fest

SEOUL, May 20 (Yonhap) -- Two South Korean animated films have been invited to a competition section of this year's Annecy International Animation Film Festival, organizers said Wednesday.

According to the 2020 lineup released by the France-based festival to be held online from June 15-30, "Beauty Water" and "The Shaman Sorceress" will compete in the Contrechamp competition category for feature films.

A total of 10 animated films, including "On Gaku: Our Sound!" by Japanese director Kenji Iwaisawa, were invited to the Contrechamp section, which was inaugurated in 2018 to showcase unique full-length films.

Directed by Cho Kyung-hun, "Beauty Water" is a horror-thriller animated film based on the web-based horror cartoon "Strange and Weird."

It revolves around a girl who comes across mysterious water that enables her to change her appearance. She runs into trouble as she desires to be the most beautiful woman.

"The Shaman Sorceress," an adaptation of a Korean novel with the same title, features a breakup of a traditional family after a religious clash between shamanism and Christianity.

Its director Ahn Jae-hunn became the first South Korean filmmaker to make it to the competition section of the Annecy Film Festival twice. His hand-drawn animated film "Green Days: Dinosaur and I" was invited to the festival in 2011.

Launched in 1960, the Annecy festival is one of the highest-profile animation events in the world.

South Korea's "My Beautiful Girl, Mari" and "Oseam" won best feature film in 2002 and 2004, respectively.

brk@yna.co.kr
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