From Sept. 11 to 16, Art House Momo held its 10th anniversary film festival titled “Every Voice Counts.” Art House Momo, located in the ECC, is an independent cinema that features a variety of minor films. It has hosted many meaningful film festivals such as the Seoul International Architecture Film Festival, the Seoul Eco Film Festival, and Films Without Borders. Art House Momo has made a big contribution to developing minor films.
“As a worker in the film industry, but also as part of an audience that loves film, I find the 10th anniversary of Art House Momo meaningful to me,” said Lee Ha-yoon, the programmer of Art House Momo. “This film festival was planned to look back on the 10 years of Momo’s history and to seek future plans. There are many hardships in running an independent cinema due to fast-changing movie trends and aggressive marketing of multiplex cinemas. However, it is always heart pounding to think about which movie we can introduce in the next few years.”
In the festival, 15 films were introduced under the name of three different sections: Every, Voice, and Counts.
“I personally find the section ‘Voice’ the most meaningful,” Lee commented. “Although every section has its own unique meanings, ‘Voice’ was the main inspiration for the film festival. We wanted to include the meaningful increase of people’s interests in films that had covered the voices of minorities over the past 10 years.”
In the first section, “Every,” films with high cinematic quality and artistic value were introduced. Art House Momo showed art films that were loved consistently by the audience, like “Attila Marcel” (2013) and “Days of Being Wild” (1990).
In the second section, “Voice,” films that reflect minorities’ voices were presented. The section aimed to show films that cover controversial issues with new and colorful perceptions. Notable films such as “I, Daniel Blake,” winner of the 68th Golden Palm of the Cannes Film Festival, were featured.
In the third section, “Counts,” masterpieces throughout the history of cinema were played. Major works of great directors were carefully chosen by Art House Momo. Films that had a huge impact on the world film history, such as “The Conformist” by Bernardo Bertolucci and “Persona” by Ingmar Bergman, were presented in celebration of the festival.
“Our vision is to make a cinema where the audience becomes the owner,” Lee said with a smile. “We hope to see more discussion and deeper interest in movies.”