People And Meat
(사람과 고기)
Yang Jong-hyun
Woo-sik and Hyeong-jun are two eldery waste collectors who scour the streets and back alleys of Seoul in the early morning hours for cardboard to sell. In their neighbourhood, a greengrocer by the name of Hwajin also sells her produce. For most of the ten million people living in Korea's capital city, these three are invisible. As they share a meal at Hyeong-jun's place, they realise that they have a lot in common; they are old, have no money, and are lonely. After they unintentionally become dine-and-dashers after eating at a restaurant, they develop the scam into a real art form; they leave old clothes at their table and slip out into the streets.
Eating at a restaurant without paying is more than just a simple criminal act in this film. It fills their previously monotonous existences with unprecedented drama and restores their dignity, giving the trio a sense of participating in life as many others do. With a lot of empathy and a pinch social realism, director Yang Jong-hyun depicts the rebellion of these three characters in a film that marries comedy and tragedy.
3 May 2026
20:15 h, Eldorado Filmtheater
More information
| Direction | Yang Jong-hyun |
| Country | South Korea |
| Production year | 2025 |
| Duration | 107 min |
| Language | Korean |
| Language Version | OV with English Subs |
| Genre | Drama, Comedy |
| Production | Jang So-jung, Yang Ayoung |
| Production company | Film Dorothy |
| Distribution | KT StudioGenie |
| Cast | Park Keun Hyong, Jang Yong, Ye Su Jeong |
| Director of Photography | Lee Seong-eun |
| Script | Lim Namoo |
| Montage | Son Jin-woo |
| Sound | Choi Ji-won |
| Music | Choi Hye-lee |
| Sound Design | Choi Ji-won |
TRIBECA Film festival 2025, Busan 2025
Presented by:
About the director
Yang Jong-hyun is a screenwriter and director based in South Korea. His film Kiss Me, Kill Me (2009) was a tribute to film noir and tells the story of a hitman who develops feelings for one of his targets. The Pension (2018) is set in a mountain cabin, where five couples meet. People and Meat premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.
Press reviews
“The film also becomes a wistful poem about life and aging, one that observes the injustice of old age with humor and kindness. Defying the law is risky and there are consequences, but the film seems to say that there are also consequences to a life not lived, to not making the most of the rest of your life, whatever age you are.” Joan MacDonald, Forbes)
“It takes a certain amount of talent and cleverness to successfully weld the combination of comedy, tragedy, and sharp social commentary into something fresh, heartwarming and moving with a touch of poetry, and to make a feel-good movie that doesn’t overflow with clichés or moral pointing sticks.” (Niclas Goldberg, Cinema Daily US)
GERMAN PREMIERE
International Feature Film Program