K-Cinema Touring heads to San Francisco for Yim Soon-rye retrospective

The Korean Cultural Center Los Angeles will bring K-Cinema Touring to San Francisco for the first time Nov. 12-14, with screenings and director conversations at SFMOMA and BAMPFA. The program spotlights Yim Soon-rye and includes a Korean cooking workshop tied to Little Forest.

Why it matters: - K-Cinema Touring is expanding beyond Los Angeles for the first time, widening access to Korean cinema in Northern California. - The San Francisco stop pairs film screenings with in-person conversations, giving audiences a direct look at one of South Korea’s most prominent filmmakers. - The program also connects Korean film and food culture through a workshop tied to Little Forest.

What happened: - The Korean Cultural Center Los Angeles will present K-Cinema Touring in San Francisco from Nov. 12 to 14. - The program is being staged with SFMOMA and BAMPFA. - This year’s featured director is Yim Soon-rye. - Yim Soon-rye will present screenings of Little Forest and Waikiki Brothers, followed by audience conversations. - The program opens with Little Forest at SFMOMA on Nov. 12 at 6:30 p.m. - BAMPFA will screen Waikiki Brothers on Nov. 13 at 4 p.m. - BAMPFA will screen Little Forest on Nov. 14 at 6:30 p.m. - Tickets can be reserved through the official websites of SFMOMA and BAMPFA.

The details: - K-Cinema Touring launched in 2015 to introduce a diverse range of Korean films to American audiences. - The program has previously featured filmmakers including Lee Chang-dong, Bong Joon-ho, Park Chan-wook and Hwang Dong-hyuk. - SFMOMA is the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. - BAMPFA is the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, an art museum and film archive affiliated with the University of California, Berkeley. - A Korean cooking workshop inspired by Little Forest will take place at SFMOMA on Nov. 14 at 11 a.m. - Participation in the workshop is limited to the first 30 registrants. - Yim Soon-rye is one of South Korea’s leading female filmmakers. - Yim’s films include The Three Friends, Waikiki Brothers, Forever the Moment, The Whistleblower, Little Forest and The Point Men.

Between the lines: - The San Francisco expansion suggests K-Cinema Touring is testing demand outside its traditional Los Angeles base. - Pairing SFMOMA and BAMPFA with a filmmaker-focused retrospective gives the program institutional reach and built-in cinephile audiences. - The workshop adds a lifestyle component that may help broaden attendance beyond film fans alone.

What's next: - Audiences in San Francisco can attend screenings, conversations and the cooking workshop during the Nov. 12-14 run. - The director conversations will follow each screening. - The institutional collaboration could set a precedent for future K-Cinema Touring stops outside Los Angeles.

The bottom line: - K-Cinema Touring’s San Francisco debut turns a long-running Los Angeles program into a broader regional showcase for Korean film.