A Night of Korean Horror Brings Local Film Fans Together

Event Date 23.07.2026

On 23 July, the Korean Cultural Centre in South Africa’s K-Cinema Club teamed up with Open Window Horror Club for a special screening of Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum (2018) at Open Window Institute, bringing together film enthusiasts for an evening dedicated to Korean horror.

Inspired by the urban legends surrounding Korea’s abandoned Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital, Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum follows a group of young people who enter the abandoned facility to livestream a horror experience, only to find themselves confronting increasingly terrifying events. Its found-footage format and immersive approach kept audiences on edge throughout the screening.

Following the film, audiences came together for a discussion exploring the film’s approach to fear, the characteristics of Korean horror, and the techniques that make horror effective on screen. The conversation offered an opportunity to exchange different perspectives on the genre and reflect on the experience of watching horror together in a cinema setting.

Jaeil Lee from the Korean Cultural Centre also joined the discussion, sharing insights into Korean horror and the genre’s evolution over the years. He highlighted how horror has often served as a space for experimentation in Korean cinema, while also helping launch the careers of emerging actors and filmmakers. “Korean horror has developed its own way of playing with fear while constantly evolving with new generations of filmmakers and audiences,” Lee said. “It was especially exciting to experience the film together with local horror fans and hear the different ways they responded to it.”

The collaboration with Open Window Horror Club brought together communities with a shared interest in film and provided a platform to introduce Korean genre cinema to local audiences through both screening and discussion.