Hong Sang-soo heads to Berlinale with 'The Day She Returns'
The Berlin International Film Festival announced Wednesday that Hong Sang-soo's latest feature, "The Day She Returns," will screen in the noncompetitive Panorama section at this year's festival, running Feb. 12-22.
The selection marks the 65-year-old director's seventh consecutive year at the Berlinale and his 13th appearance overall at the festival. Hong has previously screened eight times in competition and four times in noncompetitive sections. His last entry in the Panorama sidebar was "Woman on the Beach" in 2007.
This year's Panorama lineup so far includes "The Moment," a mockumentary about the highs and lows of pop stardom from "Brat" singer Charli XCX, and Iranian filmmaker Mahnaz Mohammadi's "Roya," a drama about a teacher imprisoned for her political beliefs who was shot in secret. The Berlinale will announce its full lineup on Jan. 20.
Elsewhere in the festival, South Korean cinema is represented in the Generation section with Yoo Jae-in's debut feature "En Route To" and Oh Ji-in's short "Speedy!"
Hong has established himself as a fixture at the Berlinale over the past decade. "On the Beach at Night Alone" in 2017 earned Kim Min-hee the Silver Bear for best actress. "The Woman Who Ran" took home best director in 2020 and "Introduction" won best screenplay the following year. Both "The Novelist's Film" in 2022 and "A Traveler's Needs" in 2024 claimed the grand jury prize.
"The Day She Returns" runs 84 minutes and follows an actor who stepped away from performing after her marriage. She has just wrapped an independent film and now faces three interviews ahead of its release. Later, during an acting class, her teacher asks her to reenact those conversations — but she finds herself unable to recall them.
The film stars frequent Hong collaborators Song Sun-mi, Cho Yoon-hee and Park Mi-so. Kim Min-hee, who gave birth to her first child with Hong in April, served as production manager.
"The Day She Returns" will have its world premiere at the Berlinale and is slated for a South Korean release in the first half of the year.
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