As cameras roll and directors shout "Action!" and "Cut!" countless films are created and aired every day. It is fair to say the media have been flooded with spectacular money-making Hollywood smash hits, sensational TV shows and breaking news from "Be the first to know" CNN.
But are there any stories in your own neighborhood that you can really connect with? Eleven ordinary people from all walks of life got together to answer that question.
They are the participants in a public access program organized by Ilju Art House, a nonprofit group focusing on media art sponsored by Taekwang Industry Co. Ltd. Only people with no previous experience in film production are eligible.
The makeup of the group is intriguing. It includes a nun, a high school teacher, an architect and a social activist.
Once selected, participants get three months of training in making films. Then they go out with digital camcorders and capture what they want to say on video.
It took six months for the 11 participants to complete their 10-minute films, now on screen in the lobby of the Hungkuk Life Insurance Building in downtown Seoul.
A Bangladesh migrant worker appears in social activist Choi Jae-hun`s documentary film. [left] Freelance documentary film director Lee Kang-gil (center) instructs participants in basic film making. [right]
"All of them captured their unique voices on camera", said Lee Kang-gil, the freelance documentary film director who taught the motley group basic filmmaking techniques.
"I think anyone, not just tech-savvy young people, can freely express themselves with digital devices these days, thanks to technological development. And the participants' desire to express themselves was actually very strong regardless of age", the director told The Korea Herald.
None of the amateur filmmakers chose eye-popping or exciting stories. They simply told their stories. Kim Kyeoung-rang, a 43-year-old Roman Catholic nun, captured through the lens the hopes of a newborn baby's father, a group of children, and people who were once homeless.
With a loud laugh, Kim said, "A camera and a nun - is it a weird combination?" While filming scenes at a shelter that provides free meals to the homeless, she came across a couple of former street dwellers now working there.
At first, she thought putting them on tape would be difficult because many homeless people are camera-shy. However, they seemed more comfortable talking to a nun.
"They came to me and wanted to talk about their determination to return to society. And that was the most impressive experience", said Kim.
Despite their passion for the subject matter, the participants' unfamiliarity with digital camera work resulted in mistakes and setbacks. Kim was no exception. One day while editing, she lost a full day's work because she forgot to save the file.
"It is now an old story", Kim chuckled.
Choi Jae-hun, an activist who works for the human rights and peace group Korean House for International Solidarity, also remembers many baffling situations.
"I once visited a factory on the outskirts of Seoul to interview migrant workers. When I returned home, I learned that their voices were not recorded at all", laughed Choi.
Choi applied for the program because he wanted to keep a record of people he met while working as an activist.
Predictably, his film sheds light specifically on the Jumma minorities, who come from the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh and now work at factories in Korea".Many of them fled the country because of human rights violations against them. However, many Koreans have no idea who they are, why they came to Korea and how they make a living here. I just wanted to describe my feelings toward them and share their stories at least with my close friends", said the 32-year-old activist.
The exhibition also includes documentary films on constellations and people's heroes.
Ilju Art House has been organizing the program since 2001 in an effort to give the public greater access to visual culture. It is an annual program and those who are interested can apply at the end of the year.
The films will run until July 8. For more information, call (02) 2002-7777 or visit www.iljuarthouse.org.
By Shin Saeromi
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