Korean director wins Cannes prize for immigrant family film

Film director Jin Mi-song won Second Prize in the La Cinef student film competition at the Cannes Film Festival for "Silent Voices," a 17-minute short tracing a Korean immigrant family's quiet emotional struggles in New York, The Korea Times reported Friday.

The prize — drawn from 2,747 global submissions — signals the expanding international reach of South Korean cinema and carries particular resonance for Korean-American communities in Southern California, where immigration experiences echo those at the heart of Jin's film.

Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young sent a congratulatory message to Jin on Friday, calling the film a work that crossed cultural boundaries through its intimate depiction of domestic life.

"Silent Voices moved people all over the world with its quiet but deep resonance delivered through the everyday lives of an immigrant family," Chae said, according to The Korea Times.

The La Cinef section, which spotlights student films produced at accredited film schools around the world, received 2,747 submissions this year and advanced 19 to competition. Jin's film follows a mother, father and their two daughters through a single day in New York, showing how each family member quietly suppresses emotions worn down by the daily weight of immigrant life.

"I send applause of encouragement as your sincere attention and directing ability that delicately captured the various aspects of an individual's emotions led to a precious result on the world stage," Chae said.

The minister framed the Cannes recognition as a milestone for the next wave of South Korean filmmakers. "Your award demonstrated the potential of the next generation of South Korean cinema, and will give new courage and inspiration to our young people in the film industry," Chae said.

Jin's film, rooted in the experience of a family that left South Korea for New York, joins a growing body of Korean works exploring the interior lives of immigrants — stories that resonate deeply with the Korean-American community across Southern California.