MUN Jeong-hyeon ,Documentary filmmaker

 

I was asked by an outsider related to the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival to write an article about it. I accepted it on a whim but I was worried about it. It was difficult for me to define what the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival was and where it is now in a single word. Finally, I try to start writing this article by looking back on what kind of place the film festival was to ‘myself’ who is a documentary filmmaker.

In 2009, I was preparing next work after , the movie produced by myself, was released. It was also when I was agonizing about movies and my life. What is documentary? Why am I doing difficult jobs like this voluntarily? Am I doing well? Then, I heard that a documentary film festival would be created in DMZ. After that, the film festival was supposed to support an omnibus film related to ‘peace’ and asked me if I could work with it. My curiosity was aroused after I checked every face of the directors who were supposed to participate in the project. They included Soda Kazuhiro from Japan, Tan Pin Pin from the Philippines, and Supriyo Sen from India who famed in various international fim festivals. I was curious about peace that we would tell by using which languages. And I gave it an answer that I would do even though I lacked in my ability. I could complete a film called after the production period of a year. I learned the diversity through the movies by other directors who participated in the festival and I received an impression that we were actually talking about the same story. In the movie, I talked about if we live well and if we can live well ‘together’. It was a meaningful experience. It was the turning point that I had a great attraction for producing documentaries. I was confident and sure that I could continue this work.

I got to have many new experiences that I could not imagine until then in the 1st and 2nd DMZ International Documentary Film Festival that I got to become associated with like this. Paju Book City that the film festival was held was like a hideout to me (I could not get out of it after some time because there was no transportation.) and I talked about movies and life with friends of mine having drinks all through the night. We talked about if all of us lived well and how we should live. Spray that rose up from the surface of the water and birds’ chirpings next Jijihyang Hotel (The film festival’s lodging) at dawn were the scenes that I could remember for a long time. Many foreign works of art that were globally the talk of the town and the movies that we watched in various special and planned exhibitions became appetizers with drinks of the drinking parties with senior and junior producers. In this process, I got to know the power of documentary films and learn knowledge of life. In addition, there were patchworks of simple memories, the memories that we met and played separately and secretly because we felt awkward with foreign directors who were invited, the place which breakfasts that we had scarcely eaten was offered, and Jim Jarmusch’s collection of interviews that had a great effect on my movies (I stole it from the hotel room without a TV but I put it back next year.). And I had precious relationships with various fields like producers of independent movies.

On the other hand, I was worried about this. Will the independent documentary festivals that directors of independent movies have built shrink due to the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival of relatively stable finance? Will the value of independent movies be nominal? We disputed and discussed the methods that the two film festivals can be successful together. A sure thing was the point that many staffs and the persons concerned who led the film festival were open-minded and continued to agonize about characters, directions, or philosophy of the film festival. Then, I thought that we could create something together. Sure enough, the film festival became more widely known to general audiences. The acquaintances that never know movies recommended me to the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival.

Since then, I got to visit the film festival every year. In addition, I have been with many things planned by the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival. Youth documentaries that focused on Gyeonggi-do were began and I got to meet many friends who agonize about documentaries seriously. I could have good relationships with the friends who have made themselves in the same field as well as the persons who have produced documentaries until now. The documentary classroom that I visited high schools, disputes with the youth juries of the film festival, and discussion with judges that I met through support of the production and domestic competition judgement made me rich in experience.

I remember that producers of independent movies were with independent moviemen for a year. We shared in-depth stories about the production process or distribution of their movies after watching them through regular movie screenings. And we shared the results through the forum in the film festival in the same year. They were my experience of expanding the external scope and my precious memories to be able to check where I am and which field I am active in. The late director Lee, Seong-gyu’s passion and love for life and movies became the meaning that I will never forget.

‘Crossing Borders’ that I could learn the entire process to produce a documentary in a global language and ‘Asian Side of the Doc’ that I could recognize movie distribution which was unfamiliar to me could also be done by networking of the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival. I felt awkward for the first time when I were with man directors from Asia. But I had good relationships with them as I ask them how they are getting along. Various forums and workshops that I were with them served as a momentum to check my constitution of movies and the present of Korean documentaries.

They say it takes about 5 years to make a film festival established. The DMZ International Documentary Film Festival got to be quite expensive and its recognition drastically rose. However, there were many stories in the film festival for five years. First, it has simultaneously been arranged in Baekseok and Paju after leaving Pakju that we had become fond of. Internal staffs were changed but it is not easy to feel affection for the film festival of the initial stage. Are they tired? I think that it is the problem in the film festival. Should there be the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival’s own directions and philosophy at this point of time to make it the film festival which makes you want to show your movies surely, is welcomed to local areas, and receives support of the academic world, the cultural circle, the press, and the movie circle? This does not mean support of pre-production for new and existing directors, stories about prize money of the film festival, and networking with domestic and Asian producers. It never means the only function as the platform to be able to show your movies.

It’s about the story of the film festival’s spirit or emotion. For this, activity environment of staffs in the film festival needs to be improved. And based on this, staffs should be able to manage the film festival with happy feelings with producers and audiences. I also expect humanistic imagination and socioscientific fierceness that the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival can just have with the systematic system.

Consistent academic and serious characteristics of the Japanese Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival called one of top 3 documentary film festivals in the world can be an example. There should be an image or story to remind you of when it comes to the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival. I expect that the film festival will continue to communicate with one another, dispute, and experiment by opening the place widely for this. I expect the film festival that you make together, agonize seriously, and is of perseverance. Tradition and history of the film festival begin in this point, don’t they? So the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival must go on.

The DMZ International Documentary Film Festival has played a great role for producers as well as general audiences until now. If documentary films can be the window to look at the world, I make a confession about a lot of moments that I looked back on myself and environment near me and introspected through this film festival. These achievements can be checked change of the audiences that watch movies and attitudes of many producers who love the film festival. I think that we have done well. I thank the film festival. I hope that the film festival will be the one that all the persons wait every year and want to visit expecting it. I hope that the film festival will be the one that all the persons can hang out with one another and talk about one another and which is close to them. I hope that the film festival will be the one that we see, listen to, and feel various stories of life that we should learn. I hope that the film festival will be the one that we can enjoy stories ranging from youth to old directors in their 80s and communicate with one another, we can check that minorities can live together telling about their own stories, we can learn the richness of differences in languages of life, and which is innovative as we can talk about making order of the mainstream changed. I expect I will be able to boast the fact that there is the film festival like this in Korea happily. For this, I expect provocative imagination which can continue to split yourselves and throw away and dissolve the things that you have resolutely and practice according to this. Finally, I hope that the DMZ International Documentary Film Festival will always be with me as the healthy film festival.