Director Jeong Ji-young's 'My Name' and Director Yoo Jae-in's 'En Route To' Officially Invited to the Berlin Film Festival

⬦ Director Jeong Ji-young X Yeom Hye-ran 〈My Name〉, Invited to the Forum Section

Director Jeong Ji-young's film 〈My Name〉, starring Yeom Hye-ran, has been officially invited to the Forum section of the 76th Berlin International Film Festival. The production companies Let's Film and Aura Pictures announced this news on the 16th.

The Forum section of the Berlin Film Festival is widely known for showcasing original and challenging cinematic attempts. In 2024, the domestic film 〈Exhuma〉 was invited to this section.

The film 〈My Name〉 deals with the Jeju 4·3 incident through the story of an 18-year-old boy who wants to abandon his name and a 'Eomeong' (meaning mother in Jeju dialect) who wants to keep her name.

The Berlin Film Festival described this work as "a piece that delicately captures the trauma left by a tragic history across generations and reminds us of the importance of breaking a long silence."

Yeom Hye-ran plays the role of a mother who faces the truth in her memories while raising her son alone. Director Jeong Ji-young, who took the megaphone, has been recognized for films with social messages such as 〈Broken Arrow〉, 〈Namyeong-dong 1985〉, and 〈Boys〉. This film won the Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation Scenario Award and is particularly meaningful as it was produced with the support of Jeju residents.

〈My Name〉 will premiere at the Berlin Film Festival and is scheduled to meet domestic audiences in April.

⬦ Is a 'Second 〈House of Hummingbird〉' Being Born... Director Yoo Jae-in's 〈En Route To〉

Meanwhile, it has been reported that Director Yoo Jae-in's feature debut 〈En Route To〉 has also been invited to the 'Generation 14plus' competition section of the Berlin Film Festival.

The 'Generation' section introduces works that highlight the lives and growth processes of children and adolescents. In the past, Director Yoon Ga-eun's 〈The World of Us〉 was invited, and Directors Kim Bora's 〈House of Hummingbird〉 and Kim Hye-young's 〈IT′S OKAY!〉 have received honors.

〈En Route To〉 depicts the journey of high school student Yoon-ji, who had a secret romance with her homeroom teacher, in search of illegal abortion pills, and is a graduation project from the Korean Academy of Film Arts (KAFA). Last year, it won the 'New Currents Award' at the 30th Busan International Film Festival, and lead actress Lee Ji-won won the 'Acting Award' in the competition section.

Sebastian Macht, the head of the 'Generation' section at the Berlin Film Festival, praised, "〈En Route To〉 delicately expresses the friendship and self-assertion among women, addressing the heavy themes of power abuse and self-determination within a beautifully crafted cinematic world, and the outstanding performances of the actors further enhance the quality of the work."

Director Yoo Jae-in expressed, "This is my first time participating in an overseas film festival, so I am excited and have high expectations," and added, "I am grateful to share this joy with the staff and actors who made this film together."