Grafted Words, Eliminated NamesGrafted Words, Eliminated Names

Synopsis

In Greek mythology, ‘Procrustean bed’ means the arbitrary behavior of imposing others to change their way of thinking by your standard. I set up the video screen as a kind of “Procrustean bed,” and tried to consider the contradictory aspect of “living in Korean society.” It sheds light on the names of various statuses such as refugees, foreign workers, and compatriots, which have changed and been eliminated by the framework of Korean society.

Program Note

The film poses a critical question about the “surface, the hidden side, or the duplicity of the Republic of Korea.” Just like how the Reds that shouted out “Daehanminguk (The Republic of Korea)” at the World Cup and the leftists and North Korea's “Commies” are all referred to by the dichotomous color of red, the film builds visual layers of the multilayered perspective toward foreigners living in Korea. The film is largely divided into a first half and a second half. The first half portrays backdrops of the Republic of Korea in black-and-white panoramic images and overlaps them with fragmentary thoughts featured on the news regarding foreigners. The second half features the “Spanish Rhapsody” by Maurice Ravel and offers 10 4-choice questions in a critical manner. If you read along with the questions, you would realize that the film isn't asking for the right answer, and that if anything, it reflects on itself with self-ridicule through questions that are questions in format only. The questions are a device to expose the present reality of the Republic of Korea and to trigger thinking. The film showcases various sides of the Republic of Korea through diverse angles and views from an omnidirectional standpoint and shows the audience the present situation of foreigners in the Republic of Korea that have been “grafted” or “eliminated.” (LEE Seungmin)