Cannes Enlists Cicada (2020), Graduation Film by K-ARTS Student, in Cinéfondation Selection 2021

The graduation film Cicada (2020) by director Yoon Daewon (School of Film, TV & Multimedia) participates in the Cinéfondation of the Festival de Cannes from 6 July 21 to 17 July 21. Yoon is the only director from Korea who received the invitation this time. Cannes initiated Cinéfondation in 1998 to discover prospective filmmakers from film schools, and it is considered an opportunity for debut for young filmmakers. This year, seventeen works among 1,835 submissions from around the world received the invitations.

Yoon’s Cicada talks about gender identity confined in a physical body by following the story of a transgender character who lives as a sex worker in Sowol-gil. The story begins as the main character encounters an old friend. Director Yoon made his debut with Bird Cage (2020), a short film based on the original script by Studio N Naver Webtoon, which won awards in Catholic Film Festival and International Youth Contests Art Association (ITYCA) in 2020. He also directed music videos for K-pop group BTOB and K-pop singer Jo Kwon of 2 AM.

On the other hand, the School of Film, TV & Multimedia has received invitations from Cinéfondation nine times so far in its twenty-four years of history since its foundation in 1998. It is the most invited number within the country and even one of the highest in the film schools in the world.