Diva (Korean: 디바, romanizedDiba) is a 2020 Korean thriller film directed by Cho Seul-ye,[2] starring Shin Min-a and Lee Yoo-young.[3] The film marks the directorial debut of Cho Seul-ye and revolves around a competitive diver (Shin Min-a) and her best friend and rival (Lee Yoo-young), who goes missing after the two are involved in a car accident.[4] It was released in Korea on September 23, 2020.[5]

Diva
Promotional poster
Hangul
디바
Revised RomanizationDiba
Directed byCho Seul-ye
Written bySeul-yeah Jo
Young-sun Yoo
Produced byYo-Hwan Kim
StarringShin Min-a
Lee Yoo-young
CinematographyKim Sun-ryung
Edited by
  • Choi Min-young,
  • Park Kyung-sook
  • Kim Woo-hyun
Music byKim Jun-seong
Production
companies
  • OAL Co. Ltd.
  • A&G Modes Co., Ltd.
  • 88 Avenue Co., Ltd.
Distributed by
  • Megabox JoongAng Plus M
  • Korea Investment Partners Co., Ltd.
Release date
  • September 23, 2020 (2020-09-23)
Running time
84 minutes
CountrySouth Korea
LanguageKorean
Box officeest. US$783,081[1]

The title of the film was suggested by director Park Chan-wook, who reviewed an early draft of the screenplay.[6][4] Cho found that the word translated to "goddess" in Italian, but to "demon" in Arabic; she appreciated the dual meaning, and so adopted it as the title of her film.[4]

The film received two nominations in the 41st Blue Dragon Film Awards: for Best Leading Actress (Shin); and for Best Cinematography and Lighting.[7]

Synopsis

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Yi-young (Shin Min-a) has all the talent to be a ‘Diving Diva’. She misses her best friend Soo-jin (Lee Yoo-young), so she changes her event to synchronizing swimming. While into olympics selection practice, they are involved in a freak accident, Soo-jin disappears and Yi-young loses her memory. As she gets her memory back, she remembers strange side of Soo-jin. She begins to lose her control on the diving board.

Cast

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  • Shin Min-a as Yi-young[4]
    • Kwak Ji-hye as young Yi-young
  • Lee Yoo-young as Soo-jin[4]
    • Choe Dain as young Soo-jin
  • Lee Kyu-hyung as Diving coach
  • Joo Suk-tae as CEO Lee
  • Oh Ha-nee as Kang Cho-ah, super child
  • Park Sung-yeon as Detective Oh
  • Yoongeum Sun-ah as Hwang Hyeon-shin
  • Park Choong-seon as president
  • Heo Hyeong-gyu as detective Kang
  • Bae So-young as nurse
  • Oh Hee-joon as Reporter at Hospital
  • Ji Yi-soo as Lee Yeong's agency representative

Production

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Filming began on July 16, 2018 and was wrapped up on November 5, 2018.[8]

Release

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The film was released theatrically on September 23, 2020 in South Korea.[5]

Diva was invited at 25th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival held in July 2021. It was showcased in Korean Fantastic features section.[9]

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Recipient Result Ref.
2021 41st Blue Dragon Film Awards Best Leading Actress Shin Min-a Nominated [10][11]
Best Cinematography and Lighting Kim Sun-ryung: Cinematography; Cho Gyu-young: Lighting Nominated

References

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  1. ^ "KOFIC, KOBIS (Korean Box Office Information System) The Box (2020)". KOFIC. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
  2. ^ Conran, Pierce (October 12, 2018). "Finecut Gets SHIN Min-a's Mystery-Thriller DIVA". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  3. ^ Choi, Ji-won (September 20, 2020). "Shin Min-ah says 'Diva' is like flesh to her". The Korea Herald. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e Kwak, Yeon-soo (August 14, 2020). "Mystery thriller 'Diva' transforms Shin Min-a". The Korea Times. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Sun, Mi-kyung (September 23, 2020). "신민아의 낯선얼굴, 가장 아름다운 스릴러로 관객들 사로잡을까[오늘의 개봉" [Can actor Shin Min-ah's unfamiliar face capture the audience?]. Chosun (in Korean). Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  6. ^ Lee, Jae-Lim (August 13, 2020). "Upcoming thriller 'Diva' encapsulates every meaning of the word". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  7. ^ Lee, Seung-mi (November 11, 2020). "제41회 청룡영화상 후보 발표" [Nominations for the 41st Blue Dragon Film Awards announced]. Chosun (in Korean). Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  8. ^ "Diva - (Korean Movie, 2020, 디바)". HanCinema. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
  9. ^ "Korean Fantastic: Feature". Bifan. July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
  10. ^ Lee Seung-mi (November 11, 2020). "[공식]제41회 청룡영화상 후보 발표…'남산의부장들' 10개 부문 최다 노미" [[Official] Nominations for the 41st Blue Dragon Film Awards Announced… Most Nomi in 10 categories of'Namsan Medical Directors']. Sports Chosun (in Korean). Chosun. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
  11. ^ Kim Yu-jin (February 9, 2021). "유아인·라미란, 영광의 남녀주연상…'남산의 부장들' 최우수작품상 [청룡영화상 종합]" [Yoo-in, Rami-ran, Glory of Male and Female Leading Actor... 'The Directors of Namsan' Best Work Award [Blue Dragon Film Awards General]]. X-Sports News (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
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