CRIEnglish.com reported, “The funeral of top South Korean actress Choi Jin-Sil was held on Saturday morning in Seoul, October 4th, the web Site QQ.com reports.”

“More than 100 of her friends and family, including her ex-husband Jo Seung-min were in attendance.”

“A series of her acting performances and her favorite music were shown and played during the funeral service.”

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CRIEnglish.com reported, “The thirteenth Pusan International Film Festival opened Thursday night in South Korea with more than a hundred top stars from South Korea and overseas in attendance.”

“China’s portal Web site, Sina, reported that 315 films from 60 countries will be shown during the festival. The opening movie was Kazakh director Rustem Abdrashev’s “The Gift to Stalin.”

“The film festival was overshadowed by the death of South Korean actress Choi Jin-sil, who committed suicide earlier that day. The audience observed a brief moment of silence for the popular star at the end of the opening ceremony.”

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Chosun reported, “The apparent suicide of a top actress shocked the country on Thursday morning. Choi Jin-sil was found hanged in the bathroom of her home. But questions are growing since she had only the previous day been filming a commercial and was recently preparing to appear in a drama.”

“Suh Sang-wook, the president of her agency SBM, said Choi was very vulnerable when defamatory messages about her and her children appeared on the Internet and had lately been under extreme stress over a rumor that she may have lent money to actor Ahn Jae-hwan, who also recently committed suicide. Ahn is believed to have killed himself due to business failure and consequent financial difficulties.”

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Image courtesy of Chosun

Chosun reported, “Dansungsa, the oldest movie theater in Korea in Myo-dong, Jongno-gu in Seoul, has gone bankrupt. The main creditor bank of the cinema, Woori Bank, on Thursday said Dansungsa on Sept. 19 failed to pay overdraft repayments worth W1.5 billion (US$1=W1,159) to the Jongno 3-ga branch of Woori Bank and it was finally declared bankrupt on Wednesday.”

“Dansungsa underwent renovation in 2001 to transform itself from a single-hall theater to a multiplex screening up to 10 films simultaneously. It reopened in 2005 and since May this year has been partnered with Cinus, operating as Cinus Dansungsa. However, due to overspending in the renovation and failure to compete with rivals backed by big business like CGV, Megabox and Lotte Cinema, it recorded a W11 billion loss last year.”

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Chosun reported, “Korean movie makers are digging into the past for inspiration. The recent trend in the film industry is all about transforming historic facts and events into fiction.”

“Director Chung Ji-woo tries to bring Seoul during the 1930s to life in his latest movie “Modern Boy.” The filmmakers say they had a difficult time finding remnants of the past which were crucial for recreating the capital during Japanese Imperial rule, which was then called Gyeongseong. In the end the crew turned to modern-day technology such as three-dimensional computer graphics to fill in the details.”

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Arirang News reported, “The 13th Annual Pusan International Film Festival is coming up, starting on Oct. 2 and lasting for one week in the southern port city also spelled Busan”

“Known for introducing up-and-coming movies from Asia including Korea, this year the festival is attempting something new.”

“The aim is to expand the festival’s focus outside the region by tapping into countries with potential to produce great movies. A total of 60 countries are participating.”

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Chosun reported, “The U.S. Ladies Professional Golf Association on Saturday decided not to introduce a new regulation compelling LPGA players to speak English, which it had intended to implement in 2009. The LPGA Tour previously threatened to suspend membership of players who do not speak adequate English.”

“The LPGA U-turn came after protests from LPGA players, PGA Tour golfers, major press outlets including the New York Times, politicians, and LPGA sponsor State Farm.”

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Chosun reported, “Comedian Seo Gyeong-seok has joined a lawsuit spearheaded by civic group Cultural Action against France filed at the Paris Administrative Court for the return of the Oegyujanggak archive of Chosun-Dynasty documents”

“The Seoul National University graduate with a French major and the civic group held a press conference in front of the French Embassy in Seoul on Wednesday morning.”

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BoA (21) and her Korean label SM Entertainment held a press conference on Sept. 10th to announce her English album release set for October 7th via iTunes and MySpace and on November 11th in stores.

BoA was seen wearing a cast on her left arm and it was revealed that she had fractured her arm. 
BoA told media that she slipped on a staircase in Korea at her management’s office and fell down on her left arm and left foot.  Her staff immediately brought her to the hospital and was diagnosed with a fractured arm and was put in a cast.   She was told that it will take six weeks to heal and BoA told the media that she hopes for it to heal before her US debut.

BoA started out as an artist native to Korea, known for her pop songs and dance choreography at a very young age. A few years later, her label focused her music career in Japan, becoming the first major success for a Korean J-pop artist in Japan and through intensive studying, BoA eventually became fluent in the language.

According to her management, she is learning advanced English and speaks beginning-level in Chinese and plans are to introduce her to the world.

Teasers for her upcoming American CD single “Eat You Up” have been attracting viewers on youtube:

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Image courtesy of Sankei Sports

Chosun reported, “Ahn Jae-hwan, an actor-turned-businessmen who married comedian Jung Sun-hee late last year, was found dead on Monday. Police presume the 36-year old committed suicide at least 10 days ago. He was found in a Carnival minivan in an alley in a residential area in Nowon-gu, Seoul on Monday morning by a truck driver identified as Yeo (28) who was delivering beverages to nearby stores.”

“Yeo was quoted as saying his suspicion was alerted some three weeks ago, when he saw a man sleeping in the Carnival every morning. The morning of the discovery, he was able to see inside because of the bright sunlight and noticed that the man’s leg had turned black. He called the police.”

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