In Water

Dir. Hong Sangsoo
2023, South Korea, 61 min
Korean with English subtitles

His most overtly experimental work to date, in water reveals Hong at the height of his allusory powers. The story is simple: three friends set out to make a film, and then they do it. But with bold formal choices and his signature impulse toward the uncanny, Hong evokes infinite mysteries and hints at whole worlds lurking below the surface of everyday reality.

Plays with

The Daughters of Fire
Dir. Pedro Costa
2023, Portugal, 9 min
Portuguese with English subtitles

Three young sisters are separated by the eruption of Fogo, but they sing: one day, we will know why we live and why we suffer.

The FIRE+WATER double bill will couple Hong Sangsoo’s In Water with Pedro Costa’s The Daughters of Fire. Both films, fresh of their North American premieres, show consummate artists taking some of the boldest risks of their careers. For Hong it’s shooting a feature film in varying focal lengths, a decision that comes fully into focus in the film’s indelible final image. For Costa, it’s staging a three-screen mini-opera with three incredible performers filmed independently but somehow performing in unison.

“”A fearless, genuine experiment.” – Nic Rapold, Artforum

“Hauntingly beautiful.” – Chuck Bowen, Slant

“A gently gorgeous delight…suffused with the haziness of a half-forgotten memory.” – Thomas Flew, Sight & Sound