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Return to Seoul 

Co-presented by SCREENSHOT: ASIA at the University of Pittsburgh

Co-sponsored by  the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, Climate & Equity at the Heinz College at CMU and the Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh

Directed by Davy Chou

Run Time: 119 mins 
Released: France/2022  
Language:  French, Korean, English

 Set over an eight-year time span, Return to Seoul  follows Freddie’s journey back to her place of birth — a country to which she has never been and of which she does not know the language. Freddie, played by first-time actor Park Ji-Min, has never felt at home or comfortable in any setting, which may be why she ventures back to Seoul.  Over the course of the eight years, Seoul, the city, and Freddie, its citizen, evolve with each new encounter. A story driven through change, Return to Seoul  invites audiences to look closely at the experience of adoption, integration, and what it means to be “from” somewhere.

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"'Return to Seoul' is a startling and uneasy wonder, a film that feels like a beautiful sketch of a tornado headed directly toward your house." — New York Times

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Event includes

Virtual Panel with

Davy Chau, Director

Laure Badufle, Writer/Author

Katie Ozbek, Director of Korean American Adoptee Adoptive Network

Moderated by Andy Lee, PhD Candidate in Film and Media Studies, University of Pittsburgh

Special Performance by M2CPL and KPDC, CMU

 

Reception catered by Booksek and Sumi's Bakery

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Davy Chou

Awards

 Cambodian-French filmmaker Davy Chou is known for his 2009 featurette, The Twin Diamonds, and his 2016 premiere feature-length film, Diamond Island. Chou founded Vycky Films production company with Jean-Jacky Goldberg and Sylvain Decouvelaere in 2009, before embarking on a youth workshop series with 6 universities and around 60 students. In 2010 and 2011, Chou’s film endeavors took a personal turn as he moved to Cambodia, the country in which his father, Van Chann, had been a leading film producer in the 1960s. Chou set out to recover material and witnesses from Cambodia's oppressed golden age of cinema (1960-1975), resulting in his documentary, Golden Slumbers. In 2013, Chou helped launch Asia’s first heritage film festival in Phnom Penh. Diamond Island, Chou’s first feature-length film, was screened at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, winning the SACD Award. He is up for Best Director at the Asian Film Awards for his most recent work, Return to Seoul.

 

  • Selected under the Un Certain Regard section at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival

  • Cambodia’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards

Screening Soon!

Date: March 23
Time: 7:30 PM
Location:  Harris Theater, 809 Liberty Ave, Pittsburgh

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