Short film compilation 'Project 30' marks anniversaries of CJ ENM, K-Arts film department

The compilation film “Project 30,” which opened last Wednesday in 20 CGV theaters nationwide, is an 118-minute film composed of three acts, each with 10 short films running about three minutes apiece.

Main poster for the compilation film ″Project 30″ [CJ ENM]

A video of a last will and testament plays at the funeral of a young filmmaker. It begins, “When I die, bury me in Montparnasse Cemetery,” but the video will keeps going on and on and on. As it drags, even the friends who were grieving start to lose interest.

Eventually, someone quips, “Movies talk too much. But they’re not even fun. No wonder no one watches them any more.” At that moment, the coffin begins to shake. Then the lid opens, and the young filmmaker, who was thought to be dead, suddenly opens their eyes wide and looks around.

This is a scene from Act 1 of the compilation film “Project 30,” which opened last Wednesday in 20 CGV theaters nationwide. “Project 30" is an 118-minute film dedicated to the idea of films and theaters in an age of online streaming and short-form content.

“Project 30” is composed of three acts, each with 10 short films running about three minutes apiece. The first act, “Warm Up,” premiered last Wednesday, followed by Act 2, “Deep Field,” opening this Wednesday and Act 3, “Impact Zone,” opening Jan. 28. After their release, the full compilation will be screened over five days starting Feb. 4. Each act runs for 40 minutes and tickets are priced at 3,000 won ($2).

“Project 30” was created to mark the 30th anniversary of the film department of Korea National University of Arts (K-Arts) and CJ ENM’s founding. A total of 30 directors with ties to KAFA each contributed one film to the project. Their short works deliver the struggles and thoughts of young filmmakers grappling with a stagnant industry — short in length but impactful in theme, like cinematic snapshots.

Directors such as Kim Do-yeong, behind the 2019 film “Kim Ji Young: Born 1982,” director Jeong Ga-young, who made the romantic comedy “Nothing Serious” (2021) and Yoon Ga-eun, who helmed the indie film “The World of Love” (2025) which became a sleeper hit last year, participated in “Project 30.”

While the shorts range from B-movie comedies to stories with more philosophical messages and can be more abstract than typical entertainment films, none of them overstay their welcome.

BY JEONG EUN-HYE [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]