ACF Asian Cinema Fund

Post-Production Fund

2016

2016 Post-Production Fund

LIST Merry Christmas Mr. Mo
Category Korean Project
Project Merry Christmas Mr. Mo
Director Lim Dae-hyung
Country Korea
Director's Profile Lim Dae-hyung was born in 1986 in Geumsan, a city located in the province of South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. He graduated from Hanyang University majoring in Theater and Film. His short film Lemon Time (2013) and The world of If (2014) were invited to numerous film festivals, including Indie Forum and Daejeon Independent Film Festival, presenting a unique artistic oeuvre. In particular, The world of If was well received and won the Special Jury Award at the 13th Mise-en-scene’s Short Film Festival and the Best Picture Award at the 40th Seoul Independent Film Festival. He is also a beloved actor known for his sly acting in short films such as Mother’s Family (2013) and Gathering Day (2012). Merry Christmas Mr. Mo is his first feature film debut.
Synopsis
Mo Geumsan (48) is a barber living in the rural area, who once aspired to be an actor. He starts to have doubts about his humdrum life after the village health center advises him to be examined at a larger hospital. He comes up with a plan to give a gift to his beloved ones in the coming Christmas. The plan is to invite everyone to the local culture center and to screen his self-made comedy movie based on his own tragic life. For this, he brings over his son Sdevan (25), an aspiring film director, and his long-standing lover Yewon (25) from Seoul. They wander around shooting a silent film with an 8mm camera parodying Charlie Chaplin’s silent movies. Meanwhile, as he follows his father, Sdevan is seized with an ominous premonition and ends up facing the worst truth he could ever imagine.
Director's Note
I wished to restore a certain period of time and space from our past. I intended to return some of the essential human emotions back to where they used to be, which are discarded as something outdated and sentimental in today’s society. One could call these as the remnants of ‘romanticism’. The protagonist of this film ‘Mo Geumsan’ represents a generation of paradox. This is a generation that ran away from home in the periods of industrialization, a generation that jumped over the time lag between the rural area and the city. Facing his imminent death, he is presented with a new perspective on life. Yet, for some reason, this perspective does not seem to fit into modern times. It is somehow tacky, unnatural, and even ridiculous. Of course, living in this ‘cool’ society, we could merely sneer at this character, or perhaps we could be affected a little.
Festivals
2016 Busan International Film Festival - New Currents / NETPAC Award
2016 Seoul Independent Film Festival - Competition / Music Staff Award
2017 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival - Variety Critics’ Choice
2017 Buenos Aires International Film Festival
2017 Vilnius International Film Festival
2017 Frankfurt International Film Festival
2017 Muju Film Festival
2017 London Korean Film Festival
2017 Paris Korean Film Festival
2017 Saipan International Film Festival - Music Award
2018 Wild Flower Film Awards - New Director’s Award, Best Actor Award
Still Cut
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