The opening ceremony of The Korean Film Festival in Azerbaijan was held in Gabala.

The opening ceremony of The Korean Film Festival in Azerbaijan organized by Azerbaijan Foundation of Culture, SEBA (Seoul-Baku) Azerbaijan-Korean Cultural Exchange Association and Korea Foundation, with the support of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to the Republic of Azerbaijan was held in Gabala region on August 7.   
10 films, telling of the history, culture, geographical position and traditions of Korea will be featured at the Festival, which will take place from 7 to 15 August. Festival participants laid fresh flowers at the monument to nationwide leader Heydar Aliyev in Gabala city and honoured his memory first. Counsellor of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to Azerbaijan Cha Chang Sun, Head of International Affairs and Education Department of SEBA (Seoul-Baku) Azerbaijan-Korean Cultural Exchange Association Irada Najafova, Head of the Department of Socio-Political and Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Head of the Gabala region Executive Power Ataya Osmanova made a speech at the ceremony held in Gabala Cultural Center and spoke about Azerbaijani-Korean relations and similarities between the two nations. Talking about the importance of The Korean Film Festival in Azerbaijan the speakers thanked the President of Heydar Aliyev Foundation, MP, UNESCO and ISESCO Goodwill Ambassador Mehriban Aliyeva for high-level execution of this project. It was reported that during the Festival, Korean movies were shown in Ganja, Lankaran, Sumgait, and Aghdash.
The residents of Gabala region will be able to view these films from 7 to 15 August. The guests of the event were provided information about the history, population and economic potential of Gabala. Further, they discussed the program of films that will be presented at the festival, achievements of film industry, the challenges ahead, and the urgency of the matter was stated. It was mentioned that 10 Korean films to be shown at the festival, were dubbed into Azeri for the first time with the support of SEBA. In his speech, Counsellor of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Azerbaijan Cha Chang Sun spoke about national and moral values of the two countries. He especially highlighted the development of Azerbaijan-Korean relations in ascending order in recent years. Adviser drew attention to the fact that he believes the films that will be shown during the festival will create a better impression of Korea with the Azerbaijani audience.
After the speeches, the audience was presented “Mother” Film, shot by director Choi Ik Hwan in 2011. It was reported that all the films will be presented in Heydar Aliyev Park and Gabala Cultural Center. These films tell of the themes in the spirit of social and political issues, science, education, love, beauty and humanism. All shows are open to the public, and entries are free.