Scene from the film State of Play
Scene from the film State of Play
Scene from the film State of Play
Scene from the film State of Play
Scene from the film State of Play

State of Play

Direction
Year 
2013
Country
  • Belgium
  • South Korea
Duration
96min 
Audio Tracks 
Subtitles 

Every year thousands of South-Koreans flock to the game stadiums in Seoul to watch the Pro League, a live sports event where professional gamers compete to be the best at one single video game: Starcraft. It’s a title many young South Koreans dream of. The game itself is more than a decade old, almost ancient in the fast developing world of video games, but in South Korea it has become a national past-time. Like most specator sports, this world of eSports rapidly evolved in a multi-million dollar business.
The stars of the Starcraft league are national celebrities, participating on all levels of popular culture. 24hr TV networks devote entire theme shows to a single player, while teenage girls from Seoul devote their entire teenage life to the fan club of their favourite gaming star. As top players earn hundreds of thousands of euros, being a Starcraft player isn’t only a wise career move, it is also the path to respect and credibility in the highly competitive society of South Korea.They are envied and admired because they do what they love and make a lot of money doing so. Unfortunately few people realise these gamers live a spartan life of training and competition - just as any other professional athlete.
However, a series of radical events has broken the status quo of the Korean eSports scene. First there was the match-fixing scandal, where several high profile players were caught losing games in exchange for money. Soon after that, Starcraft II, a follow-up to the game was released. New players entered the scene and brand new tournaments were established. As eSports finally became global, the South-Korean professional gaming scene faced a clear-cut choice: adapt or perish.
In this story, we follow 3 characters in different stages of their career as a Pro-Gamer in South Korea. For some it will be a struggle to stay on top of their game, for others it might be the turning point of their lives.

Details

  • Original title
    State of Play
  • Direction
  • Screenplay
    Steven Dhoedt
  • DOP
    Steven Dhoedt
  • Editing
    Gert Van Berckelaer
  • Music
    Regina Lok Yan To
  • Sound
    Raf Enckels
  • Duration
    96 min (91+ min.)
  • Year
    2013
  • Country
    • Belgium
    • South Korea
  • Colour
    • Colour
  • Production
  • Festivals
    • 2013 DOCVILLE
    • 2013 CNEX TAIPEI INTL DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL
    • 2013 INTERNATIONAL SPORTS FILM FESTIVAL, ANTWERP
    • 2014 FUZHONG 15 – TAIPEI, TAIWAN
    • 2014 F.A.M.E. Film And Music Experience – PARIS, FRANCE
    • 2014 CINEMASIA FESTIVAL - AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS
    • 2014 NATLAB – EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS
    • 2014 FRAMEOUT FESTIVAL – VIENNA, AUSTRIA
    • 2014 KITZBUHEL FILM FESTIVAL – KITZBUHEL, AUSTRIA
    • 2014 PORTLAND FILM FESTIVAL – PORTLAND, USA
    • 2014 CINCINNATI FILM FESTIVAL – OHIO, USA
    • 2014 ASTRA FILM FESTIVAL – SIBIU, ROMANIA
    • 2014 NYC INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL – NEW YORK, USA – BEST DOCUMENTARY AWARD
    • 2014 FESTIVAL ENFANCES DU MONDE – PARIS, FRANCE
    • 2015 DOCPOINT – HELSINKI, FINLAND
    • 2015 DOCPOINT – TALLIN, ESTONIA
    • 2015 KOREAN FILM ARCHIVE – SEOUL, KOREA
    • 2015 ONE WORLD FILMFEST – PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
    • 2015 LA INDIE FEST – LOS ANGELES, USA
    • 2015 SILK ROAD FILM FEST – DUBLIN, IRELAND
    • 2015 GOLDEN DOOR INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL – NEW JERSEY, USA
    • **

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