[Photo&] Samcheok Haerang Film Festival Opens in September…‘Picnic Cinema’ Set Against the Sea

‘3rd Samcheok Haerang Film Festival’, Opens on September 4…‘Blue Sea Myths and History’ Turns the Beach Into a Living Theme

From September 4 to 5, for two days, ‘2026 3rd Samcheok Haerang Film Festival’—a leading maritime cultural festival of the Republic of Korea—will kick off in a big way at major local landmarks, including Samcheok Beach. Under the festival’s central theme, ‘Blue Sea Myths and History’, the Samcheok Tourism Culture Foundation has upgraded the event into an interactive cultural festival that allows citizens and visitors to fully immerse themselves. The program will unfold across a wide range of hub locations throughout the region, starting with Samcheok Beach and expanding to places such as ‘Isabu Dokdo Memorial Museum’, ‘Garam Cinema’, and the small theater at the Culture and Arts Center—effectively turning the whole area into one giant movie venue. In particular, a ‘Picnic Cinema’ will be set up so visitors can enjoy the mood of the autumn sea. Beginning with the opening ceremony on the 4th, it will offer a family-friendly yet high-quality viewing environment.

New ‘AI Film Special Category’…A Future-Forward ‘Samcheok Haerang Film Festival’ Driven by Innovation

The festival’s momentum is built carefully even before the main event starts. From May, a traveling film screening series will tour across Samcheok, alongside tightly packed pre-events such as ‘AI Media Facade Education’. Then, in June, ‘Short Film Competition’—aimed at up-and-coming filmmakers and creators nationwide—will be held, drawing intense attention from the film industry. The most standout innovation is the establishment of the first-ever ‘AI Film Special Category’, which blends Samcheok’s distinctive historical source material. This is more than just a regional festival; it clearly signals a strong commitment to combining advanced technology with locally rooted content, elevating the festival’s unique competitive strength to a world-class level.

From ‘Blue Carpet’ to the Post-Event ‘Roundtable’…A ‘Core Cultural Festival’ Perfected

During the main event period, a variety of exciting side programs will take place, including opening and closing ceremonies, celebration performances, in-depth talks with invited actors and directors, and dazzling events that captivate audiences—such as the ‘Blue Carpet’ and hand-printing. The festival’s impact is further strengthened through post-event follow-up. Even after the film festival ends, a ‘Roundtable’ will be held immediately, with a professional monitoring team and experts from various fields participating, so that the festival’s outcomes can be assessed with a clear-eyed perspective and future development plans can be explored. The Samcheok Tourism Culture Foundation said it is evolving ‘Samcheok Haerang Film Festival’ into an irreplaceable festival rooted in the region’s uniquely distinctive content, and that it will firmly establish the event as a ‘Core Cultural Festival’ representing Samcheok.