The participants of the upcoming Atelier for Young Festival Managers will have the opportunity to meet Seonghee Kim, Artistic Director of the Asian Arts Theater/ACC, during the 7-day training taking place from 31 August to 6 September in Gwangju. As the Atelier’s host that will kick off the Asian Arts Theatre Opening Festival during the same week, she will offer the 36 festival managers first-hand insights into the Korean arts and festival sectors.  

Seonghee Kim is currently the artistic director of the Asia Cultural Center Theater. The ACC Theater is doubtless the most ambitious and momentous art project in Korean history in terms of budget, artistic vision, and spatial scale. Based in the newly constructed theater complex, the ACC Theater aspires to become the hub theater for the production, presentation, discussion, and international distribution of the most cutting-edge works in the context of the international performing arts scene.

From 2002 to 2005, she was the programming director at the International Modern Dance Festival also known as ‘MODAFE’, and in 2007 she co-founded Spring Wave Festival, where she also became the artistic director.

In 2008, Kim also founded Festival Bom and served as the artistic director until 2013. William Forsythe and Romeo Castelluci are amongst the globally well-known contemporary artists that she has been introducing into Korea, and she is consistently discovering artists of the young generation and producing their new works.

“We are delighted to host the Atelier for Young Festival Managers in partnership with Chonnam National University. Our grand opening festival will provide an arena where different perspectives and visions can freely collide and mingle. As one of Asia's most ambitious cultural initiatives, our festival will be a timely opportunity for future generations of festival managers to question and explore the most pertinent discourses of Asia today," says Seonghee Kim.

Renowned mentors from all over the world will guide the participants throughout the seven days of the Atelier GWANGJU 2015 under the coordination of Hugo De Greef (Atelier Coordinator, former EFA Secretary General, Director European Capital of Culture Bruges 2002, Co-Founder Kaaitheater Brussels - Belgium): Robyn Archer (Artistic Director The Light in Winter in Melbourne, Deputy Chair Australia Council for the Arts, Strategic Advisor Gold Coast Arts and Culture in Queensland, Member European House for Culture - Australia), Nele Hertling (former Vice President Academy of Arts Berlin; Member Strategy Group “A Soul for Europe”, former Director Hebbel-Theatre – Germany), Marie-Hélène Falcon (former Director TransAmériques Festival Montreal – Canada), SeongHee Kim (Artistic Director Asian Arts Theater - South Korea),Chiaki Soma (Art Producer, Representative Director Arts Commons Tokyo, former Artistic Director Tokyo Festival - Japan) and Monique Veaute (President Fondazione Romaeuropa - Arte e Cultura - Italy).

More information about the Atelier GWANGJU 2015 can be found on the Atelier website.