Mediaboss Marketing

The Villainess, an insanely over-cranked action-thriller from the South Korean director Jung Byung-gil, begins with the sort of sequence that seems designed to clear most of the theater, until only those with cast-iron stomachs remain.

With little fanfare and even less context, the film thrusts us into the shoes of a deadly assassin named Sook-hee (Kim Ok-vin) as she shoots and slashes her way through what seems to be an entire buildings worth of armed-to-the-teeth thugs, a brutal revenge mission that sends blood gushing and broken glass flying in every direction.

The intensely subjective point of view and squish-squish sound effects lend the carnage a terrible first-person intimacy, strengthened by the fact that the sequence was shot to resemble a single take (any cuts here are strictly of the knife-induced variety). All that visual gimmickry aside, the sequence may remind you of the ax-in-the-hallway fight scene from Park Chan-wooks notorious 2004 cult hit, Oldboy, which, I suppose, makes this movie Oldgirl. Or better yet, La Femme Sook-hee, as Jung has acknowledged the heavy influence of Luc Bessons Nikita on this tale of a butt-kicking anti-heroine forced to serve the government agency that created her.

We see that creation story once Sook-hee ends her rampage (for the moment) and is taken into custody by Korean intelligence, at which point the camera relaxes slightly and assumes a more traditional, omniscient point of view. But it stays close to Sook-hee as she undergoes a bit of plastic surgery and some lethal vocational training from a steely female handler named Chief Kwon (the formidable Kim Seo-hyung), who tells her that, if she does the governments bidding faithfully and without questioning, she will be released in 10 years time.

Sook-hee has no real choice but to comply, especially since she has recently given birth to a daughter, Eun-hye (Kim Yeon-woo), and wants her to have as normal an upbringing as she can. The identity of Eun-hyes father turns out to be intimately linked to the reasons Sook-hee shot up that building in the first place reasons that will be clarified, sort of, in a dense tangle of flashbacks, the story toggling feverishly between Sook-hees deeply traumatic past and her equally harrowing present.

The action highlights of The Villainess are doubtless soon headed to a YouTube channel near you, if they arent there already: a fight set aboard a city bus, a three-way swordfight on motorcycles and various other moments of inventive, adrenaline-pumping kinesis. The best, most surreal scenes follow Sook-hees training at a secret compound, a kind of homicidal Hogwarts, where she and several other female assassins-in-training not only hone their deadly arts but also learn practical skills that will help them blend in with civilian society.

That still leaves much of the storys middle act, and while Im generally inclined to applaud an action movie that seeks to be more than just an exercise in carnage, The Villainess turns wearyingly stop-and-go whenever it tries to fill in the void of its protagonists emotional and psychological history. Jung, who previously directed the 2012 serial-killer flick Confession of Murder, has a brutally effective way with action, but his attempts at character-driven storytelling (he co-wrote the script with Jung Byeong-sik) are nowhere near as well served by the same kind of calculated, mechanized efficiency.

It may be the strongest vindication of the movies feminist credentials that while Sook-hees interactions with her female rivals and colleagues are fascinatingly charged with emotion, her scenes with the male characters are almost uniformly dull. A shame, really, that there are so many of them: We get grisly flashbacks to her childhood with her criminal father, as well as a romantic triangle of sorts involving Joong-sang (Shin Ha-kyun), the gangster who was once Sook-hees mentor and lover, and Hyun-soo (Bang Sung-jun), the fresh-faced new neighbor she falls for not long after settling into her latest life of crime.

Best known for her performance in Parks 2009 vampire thriller, Thirst, Kim Ok-vin is no stranger to having her beautiful face splattered with blood, and she gamely submits herself to this punishing physical gantlet as if it were no more taxing than a CrossFit routine. Getting you to care about this glamorous cipher may be beyond even this actress estimable talents, but few stars could wield a sword, a dagger or a battle ax with as much conviction, or look better doing it. At one point, her character is ordered to eliminate a high-profile target mere minutes before her own wedding ceremony, granting us the surreally memorable image of Sook-hee hoisting a sniper rifle in a banquet-hall bathroom, a murderess in matrimonial white.

By this point, The Villainess has become such a delirious welter of action-cinema allusions that the explicit reference to Kill Bill registers only fleetingly. My thoughts returned to Quentin Tarantinos revenge saga more forcefully, and troublingly, in the movies surprisingly numerous scenes of children (none more heartrendingly cherubic than Eun-hye) being forced to witness the horrors of their parents spectacularly dismal career choices. You may be relieved, amid all this coldly virtuosic spectacle, to feel something at long last, even if what you mainly feel is revulsion.

------------

The Villainess

Not rated

In Korean with English subtitles

Running time: 2 hours, 9 minutes

Playing: AMC Dine-In Sunset 5, West Hollywood

See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour

justin.chang@latimes.com

@JustinCChang

Original post:
Kim Ok-vin is 'The Villainess' in this deliriously violent Korean action-thriller - Los Angeles Times

The Louth branch of the Local Enterprise office are holding a Start Your Own Business programme in Ardee next month, as part of their new training and management development schedule for Autumn/Winter 2017.

The team at LEO Louth are keen to help ensure everyone is fit for business going into 2018 and their new schedule of programmes and seminars aim to support businesses in every aspect of business development and management.

The programme in Ardee, to be held at Ardee Business Park for eight consecutive Tuesday evenings from Tuesday September 19th, has been designed to address the needs of those wishing to start their own business, or those who have recently started trading. It is aimed at providing practical support, advice and guidance in a broad range of business areas. This programme will enable participants to gain a working knowledge of how to set up a business and / or to manage an existing business.

The Local Enterprise Office exists to help support local businesses, to support job creation and to assist anyone thinking of starting a business, training co-ordinator Denise Belton said. We provide training and management development throughout the year to help business owners to be as efficient and effective as possible.

The course in Ardee will cost 100 and amongst other subjects, will cover Enterprise & Self Employment, Market Research, Taxation, Marketing and Business Plan Preparation. The training is heavily subsidised to ensure programmes are accessible and affordable to as many people as possible. You can book your place on the Ardee course here.

The same courses will also be available in Dundalk and Drogheda, whilst other offerings focus more in-depth on aspects of business such as taxation and digital marketing, which offers small business owners a very affordable and effective way to reach potential customers. Staying up to date with the latest changes in social media is really important for an SME. From now until December, we will offer training in Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, SEO, Google Adwords and more.

Management Development programmes in LEAN for Micro-business, Tendering and Innovation will also be rolled out this autumn. These on-going courses provide more detailed and in-depth learning and development opportunities. The Local Enterprise Office also also, as ever, offer mentoring programmes for small businesses providing support, advice and guidance to owners of small business.

Our key message is that we here to help and support the growth of your business, whatever stage you are at. We have training to support all business needs and advice to help you overcome the hurdles, Denise concluded. Check the full training schedule by visiting http://www.LocalEnterprise.ie/Louth or call us today on 042 932 4185.

Read the rest here:
LEO Louth announce Ardee 'Start Your Own Business' course - This Is Ardee

Successful Marketing Group, which is based in Minneapolis, MN, is proud to announce that they have developed live training sessions on local business internet marketing. These sessions can be half an hour to 90 minutes long, or a full four hour workshop. During the training, people will learn more about Google SEO for local business, and how this is substantially different from global search engine optimization (SEO).

The new training is all about teaching businesses how to get connected. It also discusses the eight "must haves" for successful online marketing and building an internet presence specifically for local businesses. Furthermore, it teaches participants the basics of reputation marketing and getting 5 star reviews from customers. A seminar, meanwhile, has been designed to help companies triple their bottom line in just 18 months.

Glory Ramsey from the Successful Marketing Group says: "I wake up everyday, with relentless commitment to positively change the face of my clients' businesses forever. I am only in the business of helping my clients reach their personal goals by helping them dominate their category and serve more customers. To achieve this, I have developed new forms of training to explain the strategic messaging and local SEO and how businesses can use both to their advantage."

While those appear to be pretty big claims, it appears that the Successful Marketing Group is indeed able to deliver. This is apparent from their many customer reviews. For instance, Jerry F. says on the company's website: "Glory, and Successful Marketing Group, has truly become a business partner with our Fresh Coat Painters of Eden Prairie team. Her SEO knowledge and ideas have swamped others. She is always there when I want to bounce an idea for marketing off someone. She is more than just a marketing guru, she is as I said, a part of your team. Feel very happy if you are able to work with her."

Glory Ramsey is dedicated to doing all she can to empower her clients to become successful. She has over 25 years of experience in doing this, having specialized in internet marketing in particular for the past 11 years. She is also a Certified Member of the Power Marketing Network.

###

Contact Successful Marketing Group:

Glory Ramsey (866) 411-5125 glory@SuccessfulMarketingGroup.com Successful Marketing Group 6250 Excelsior Blvd, #203, Minneapolis, MN 55416

View post:
Successful Marketing Group Introduces New Local Business Internet Marketing Training Workshops - Digital Journal

There are boot camps that teach coding skills in up to 12 weeks. And there are technical schools that students enroll in from one to four years.

Then theres , which offers three- to six-month programs in web and app development, user-interface and user-experience design, and digital marketing.

Ciara Hamagishi, admissions and events manager at RED Academy, told the Straight by phone that one of the unique things about her school is the length of its digital-education programs.

The other unique thing is that we really give back to the community, she added. Our students are working on projects for nonprofits and startups while theyre in the program.

The school on West Broadway uses capital letters for RED, which is short for redefining education. Thats because cofounders Colin Mansell and Mandy Gilbert felt there was a need to change the way digital education is delivered in order to provide greater opportunities for young creators, designers, developers, and entrepreneurs.

Mansell is also a cofounder of Drive Digital. According to Hamagishi, he found that graduates of other schools still required a lot of training after they were hired to work at his digital agency.

There was this student who said he learned more in his first three months working at Drive Digital than he did in his four-year undergrad and his two-year technical program, Hamagishi said. The fact that there wasnt that level of learning in the education system is what inspired Colin and also Mandy, who owns a technical recruiting agency in Toronto, to found RED to fill that gap.

The school opened in Vancouver in 2015 and there are now campuses in Toronto and London, England. Instructors are from industry, andaccording to Hamagishiacademic director David Kohler provides them with in-depth training to enhance their teaching skills.

The school mimics a work environment, even in its appearance, which means there are whiteboard walls, communal working spaces, and even beer on tap.

Hamagishi said that instructors act like managers and students are taught to be strong employee leaders and how to work collaboratively. When a clients project comes in, design students will work with a developer.

She added that instructors rarely speak for more than 15 or 20 minutes in the morning before students are practically applying the skills that theyve learned. Afternoons are spent meeting with clients and working on projects.

The web- and app-development program can be taken over three or six months. The first three months covers HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Hamagishi said graduates will be able to work for a digital agency creating websites for clients.

Digital-marketing students learn about analytics and Google AdWords. Theyre taught how to create a strategic campaign covering social to inbound marketing and generating paid and unpaid messages. They also master search-engine optimization (SEO) and search-engine marketing.

In addition, Hamagishi said, professional development is integrated into the educational programs, which entails everything from learning how to perform better in job interviews to enhancing the SEO of a LinkedIn profile.

We have a team of career coaches who assist the students throughout, Hamagishi said Theyre like advocates for the students.

RED Academy hosts a career fair where students can show their creativity to recruiters. She even recalled one student making an entire keyboard out of cookies.

Our guarantee is that we will work with every student until theyre placed in a job, as long as they go to class and put in their effort, Hamagishi said.

Follow this link:
RED Academy reinvents digital education in Vancouver - Straight.com

Few would be able to tell that actor Park Seo Joon, who has been in the spotlight recently for his portrayal of a playful boyfriend, used to be an intensely shy teenager.

In the recent hit drama series Fight! My Way, Park plays the spirited Dong-man, a boy-next-door type character who remains boisterous despite numerous setbacks in life.

Park will soon make his movie debut in the police-buddy flick Midnight Runners as the energetic cop trainee Ki-joon who leaps to action before thinking. Both characters are the epitome of unquestioningly confident youths with nothing to fear.

The real-life Park, however, was not so self-assured, he confessed. Park decided to begin acting in middle school as a means to escape his crippling shyness, he said in an interview.

I couldnt even order food at a restaurant, I was so embarrassed, Park, 28, said of his younger days.

I wanted to change that. And I have to confess I was drawn a little bit to the glamour (of acting).

So Park joined the animation club at his school and participated in his first cosplay event at a school arts festival.

That was the first time I wasnt afraid of peoples attention. It was surprising, he recalled of his first stage experience. I went to an acting academy for the first time when I was in high school. They told me it was too late.

Park went on to study theatre at Kyungpook National University and made his first drama appearance in the 2012 series Dream High 2 at the age of 24, unlike many actors these days who begin acting in their teens.

Park then starred in the sitcom Pots Of Gold as the spoiled son of a wealthy family and proved himself a talented romantic lead in the 2014 drama Witchs Romance.

His success came gradually rather than overnight; he began to slowly rise to stardom through the 2015 dramas Kill Me, Heal Me and She Was Pretty, and the 2016 period piece Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth. His performances were lauded as unforced and natural.

I really dont like it when you can tell someone is acting, he said. I want to be someone who feels comfortable in every situation. I think you have to be relaxed to be able to listen to others thoughts and, in turn, express your own thoughts.

Having come into fame only in recent years, Park says his years as a very ordinary 20-something help him deliver detailed renditions of struggling Korean youths.

Ive worked part time, Ive attended hagwon (after-school classes) Ive done everything you can do as a teenager and a 20-something in Korea. That helps me play everyday characters. Debuting late wasnt such a bad thing.

In Midnight Runners, which opens in South Korean theatres today, Park plays a budding cop-in-training full of passion, tenacity and sincerity, he says.

In the film, Ki-joon and his fellow trainee Hee-yeol, played by Kang Ha-neul, chase kidnappers barehanded and without formal police experience, with the sole goal of bringing justice to the world.

Hes someone who doesnt really know how the world works. Hes a little sloppy, just full of passion.

Parks chemistry with Kang was pivotal to the comical, youthful rhythm of the two protagonists in the film.

We instantly got along. We might have led different lives but the way we think is very similar, he said of Kang, who started out in musicals before moving on to dramas and films.

I think acting is more about reaction than action. You have to understand the (other actors) style and react to that, which can bring life to a scene and to a work. I never think that I have to be the star of a scene. The Korea Herald/Asia News Network/Rumy Doo

All comments are moderated. Your comment may not show up immediately. Please keep it clean and on topic. Offensive comments will not be published.

Follow this link:
Actor Park Seo Joon goes from shy guy to fly guy - Star2.com