Presented by the Korean American Foundation of Hawaii (KAFH)
The 46th Hawai‘i International Film Festival (HIFF46) presents a dynamic cross-section of contemporary Korean cinema with its SPOTLIGHT ON KOREA, presented by the Korean American Foundation of Hawaii (KAFH). This year’s nine-film showcase brings together U.S. and International Premieres, acclaimed auteurs, emerging filmmakers, documentaries, genre cinema, a newly restored modern classic, and a special presentation celebrating the global phenomenon of BTS.
Highlights include the U.S. Premiere of THE ASSASSIN(S); International Premieres of THE INTERN, THE TABLE: DAY AND NIGHT, and UGLY DUCKLING MS. MAENG; Yeon Sang-ho’s PARADISE LOST; and the 4K restoration of the Korean romantic-comedy phenomenon MY SASSY GIRL, presented by Viki.
HIFF46 will also welcome acclaimed filmmaker Bao Nguyen in person for BTS: THE RETURN, a special presentation courtesy of Netflix, while THE SEOUL GUARDIANS, presented by Honolulu Civil Beat, will feature an extended after-film discussion with the filmmakers joining live from Seoul.
Together, the program captures the remarkable range of Korean storytelling today while celebrating the deep cultural and historical connections between Korea and Hawai‘i.
THE ASSASSIN(S) — U.S. PREMIERE
A gripping new entry in contemporary Korean cinema, THE ASSASSIN(S) arrives at HIFF46 for its U.S. Premiere. Blending tension, intrigue, and sharply drawn characters, the film demonstrates the continued vitality of Korean genre filmmaking and its ability to reinvent familiar cinematic forms.
HIFF audiences will be among the first in the United States to experience the film on the big screen.
BTS: THE RETURN — SPECIAL PRESENTATION
Courtesy of Netflix
Few cultural phenomena embody the global reach of contemporary Korea more than BTS. In this special HIFF46 presentation, acclaimed filmmaker Bao Nguyen turns his camera toward the global supergroup in BTS: THE RETURN.
Nguyen, whose previous films include BE WATER and THE GREATEST NIGHT IN POP, brings his distinctive approach to music documentary storytelling to BTS as the group enters a new chapter.
Director Bao Nguyen will attend the HIFF46 screening in person, offering audiences a special opportunity to hear directly from the filmmaker about documenting one of the most recognizable musical acts in the world.
This special presentation is courtesy of Netflix.
THE INTERN — INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE
Making its International Premiere at HIFF46, THE INTERN turns its attention to the pressures and absurdities of contemporary Korean working life.
Through the experience of a young person attempting to navigate the professional world, the film taps into broader questions facing a generation confronting workplace hierarchies, economic uncertainty, and the expectations attached to success in modern South Korea.
MY SASSY GIRL — 4K RESTORATION
Presented by Viki
Twenty-five years after becoming a cultural phenomenon, MY SASSY GIRL returns to the big screen in a glorious 4K restoration presented by Viki.
Starring Jun Ji-hyun and Cha Tae-hyun, Kwak Jae-yong’s wildly unpredictable romantic comedy became one of the defining Korean films of the early 2000s, helping introduce a new generation of international audiences to Korean popular cinema.
Equal parts romantic comedy, melodrama, and screwball chaos, MY SASSY GIRL became a major international hit and remains a defining title of the early Korean Wave. HIFF46 offers audiences the chance to rediscover this modern Korean classic as it was meant to be experienced—together, on the big screen.
PARADISE LOST
From acclaimed filmmaker Yeon Sang-ho, director of TRAIN TO BUSAN and COLONY, comes a provocative new thriller about grief, technology, and the dangerous desire to reclaim what has been lost.
After a bus carrying a group of children mysteriously disappears, single mother So-young is devastated by the loss of her son. Nine years later, he seemingly returns as a grown man—but his reappearance raises unsettling questions about technology, memory, and whether the person standing before her is truly the child she lost.
With PARADISE LOST, Yeon once again uses genre filmmaking to explore deeply human anxieties, transforming a mother’s grief into a haunting examination of a technologically altered reality.
POSSIBLE LOVE
From master auteur LEE Chang-dong, POSSIBLE LOVE explores relationships, desire, and the complicated emotional terrain between people through the distinctive lens of contemporary Korean auteur cinema.
Built around intimate relationships and shifting perspectives, the film examines the choices and chance encounters that shape our connections with one another, finding drama in the mysteries and contradictions of everyday human behavior. POSSIBLE LOVE is South Korea’s entry to the Academy Awards Best International Feature category.
THE SEOUL GUARDIANS
Presented by Honolulu Civil Beat
Beyond Korea’s fiction filmmaking, the Spotlight also turns its attention toward contemporary Korean society through documentary storytelling.
THE SEOUL GUARDIANS, presented by Honolulu Civil Beat, examines civic engagement, community, and the individuals working to protect Seoul and the values they believe it represents.
The first HIFF46 screening will feature an extended after-film discussion with the filmmakers joining live via teleconference from Seoul, connecting Hawai‘i audiences directly with the people behind the documentary and the issues explored onscreen.
THE TABLE: DAY AND NIGHT — INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE
Arriving at HIFF46 directly after opening the Busan International Film Festival, THE TABLE: DAY AND NIGHT makes its International Premiere in Hawai‘i.
Built around encounters unfolding over the course of a day and night, the film finds drama in conversation, observation, and the seemingly ordinary moments through which relationships reveal themselves.
Its journey from Busan to Honolulu continues HIFF’s longstanding role as a bridge connecting Hawai‘i audiences with some of the newest work emerging from South Korea.
UGLY DUCKLING MS. MAENG — INTERNATIONAL PREMIERE
Making its International Premiere at HIFF46, UGLY DUCKLING MS. MAENG brings another fresh voice to this year’s Korean lineup.
Centered on an unconventional heroine navigating expectations surrounding appearance, identity, and belonging, the film brings humor and humanity to questions that resonate well beyond Korea.
Together with THE INTERN and THE TABLE: DAY AND NIGHT, the film represents a new generation of Korean stories HIFF is committed to introducing to Hawai‘i audiences.
FROM SEOUL TO HONOLULU
This year’s SPOTLIGHT ON SOUTH KOREA reflects just how expansive Korean cinema—and Korean popular culture—has become.
Audiences can experience the global phenomenon of BTS alongside documentary filmmaking examining contemporary Seoul; discover new films making their U.S. and International Premieres; encounter the latest genre work from TRAIN TO BUSAN director Yeon Sang-ho; and return to one of the films that helped propel Korean popular cinema internationally with the 4K restoration of MY SASSY GIRL.
The Spotlight also carries special significance in Hawai‘i, where the relationship with Korea extends far beyond cinema. Korean immigration to Hawai‘i dates back more than a century, establishing enduring cultural, familial, and historical connections between the islands and Korea.
Presented by the Korean American Foundation of Hawaii (KAFH), the HIFF46 SPOTLIGHT ON KOREA celebrates those connections while showcasing Korean cinema across generations, genres, and forms—from emerging voices to established masters, and from Seoul to audiences around the world.
Explore the complete HIFF46 SPOTLIGHT ON SOUTH KOREA and get tickets.
