13th DMZ International Documentary Film Festival: what to see and do there

Asia's largest documentary film festival with a 13 years' history was held in Goyang city, Gyeonggi Province in South Korea.

Asia’s largest documentary film festival took place in Gyeonggi-do, Goyang city. This year, DMZ International Documentary Film Festival, an annual event held by Goyang and Paju cities, was held for a week from September 9~16^th.

DMZ International Documentary Film Festival dates back to 2009 when the first festival was opened.

The name of the festival (DMZ) symbolizes its major ideology which aims to promote peace, communication, and life and as such, it features documentary movies related to the respective theme.

This year, although the scale was somewhat smaller compared to the pre-pandemic period and the festival had to undergo some changes to ensure a safe environment for its visitors, it was nevertheless organized according to the long-standing tradition: showcasing a variety of Korean and foreign documentary films and giving awards to the best.

This year, the festival was held on the 5^th floor of Mega Box Baekseok movie theater. In the face of the pandemic, like any other public place, the festival’s venue features waiting lines with the marks on the floor reminding of maintaining an appropriate distance.

Entrance to the festival venue

DMZ International Documentary Film Festival venue

Tickets for the movies could be purchased on the spot, as well as booked in advance and collected at the venue. One of the documentary films screened was called ‘The Man Who Paints Water Drop’, which features a story of a famous Korean painter Kim Tschang-yeul known for his abstract paintings of water droplets. The film narrates the life of the painter who passed away in January this year and discloses Kim’s real motives of painting water droplets.

The Man Who Paints Water Drops movie tickets

While waiting for the movie, visitors were free to try other things available at the venue, such as, trying their luck and drawing a plastic ball with a free gift: a coupon for 1 cup of americano. Some of the balls contained the descriptions of the movies featured at the festival. If guests drew those, they were given a second chance to try their luck again, so there was no way you leave the place without getting a free coffee!

Free Coffee Coupon

Description of a movie

No need to walk too far to enjoy your drinks as there was a terrace available exclusively for the festival visitors and September’s weather is just perfect for spending time outside.

Outdoor lounge available at the festival venue

The venue also featured booths where guests could purchase DMZ-branded souvenirs, such as posters, t-shirts, tote bags and other accessories.

And of course, the festival wouldn’t be complete without a photo-zone to capture the memory of the 13^th DMZ International Documentary Movie Festival.

Photo-zone at the festival venue

On the way out of the movie theater, the guests could also a small photo exhibition of the directors whose films were featured at the opening ceremony, as well as those whose works were put out into the competition.

Directors' photo gallery

What movies will the 14^th festival feature in 2022? While wondering, Go Great, Gyeonggi is looking forward to the next DMZ International Documentary Films Festival and hopes for prosperity of this meaningful event in the future.