A Kim Jong il Production: An Amazing but true story
A Kim Jong-il Production is the incredible and true story of how Director Shin and his actress wife Choi Eun-hee were kidnapped by the son of Supreme Leader Kim Il-sung and forced to help him realise his dream of a film industry worthy of international praise.
Director Bong Joon Ho (Parasite) might be the most famous South Korean director in the world right now, but back in the 60s it was Director Shin Sang-ok who was known as the ‘Prince of South Korean Cinema’. He won the first international film prize for the country and his success did not go unnoticed in North Korea by film buff and North Korean leader-to-be Kim Jong-il.
The firsthand accounts of the behaviour and lifestyle of Kim Jong Il are eye-opening.
A Kim Jong il Production by Paul Fischer (Penguin, 2015)
I flew through this book. It’s just one crazy event after another. And an exciting story of escape. Despite harrowing accounts of prison life and executions, the book is more upbeat than other reflections on North Korea – this is a celebrity couple after all. And whilst they suffer a lot, they are treated to luxury too. Incredibly decadent luxury.
Who was Shin Sang-ok?
Shin Sang-ok became the most famous director of the 60s in South Korea after getting together with actress Choi Eun-hee. She always starred in his films. And together they became a glamorous power couple.
He ran the production company Shin Films and was a pioneer in the film industry. At the time, the country was still struggling after the Korean War and films were made for escapism. His most notable work was directing Seong Chun-hyang (1961). (based on the famous folk love story Chunhyang). This was also the first technicolour film in Korea.
Shin originally came from Chongjin in North Korea (the industrial city at the centre of Nothing to Envy). But he went to Japan during the occupation and then couldn’t return to the North after the county was divided. Shockingly, the next time he went to the North was when he was kidnapped!
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A Sceptical South Korean Public
Another curious part to the story is that many people in the South didn’t believe that the couple were really kidnapped. Shin was originally from North Korea after all. So when they wrote their own memoirs (in a Korean book), the public thought they were just looking for attention. Shin Sang-ok died in 2006 before this book was published (2015). Choi Eun-hee was interviewed before she died in 2018.
However, their story is very compelling. And the details of their treatment in the North so unique. There’s a photograph of Choi Eun-hee shaking hands with Kim Jong-il. It could just be a photo of a famous actress meeting Kim Jong-il. He is smiling and looking completely at ease. But actually the picture was taken as she first stepped onto North Korean soil in 1978. After this, she spent several years in prison.
The caption under the photo reads that only hours before this, ‘Madame Choi’ had been man-handled on a beach in Hong Kong. A group of North Korean soldiers in long haired wigs had dragged her onto a boat.
The Motivation of Kim Jong-il
A fascinating part of the book is what it reveals about Kim Jong-il himself.
He was a film buff who understood the importance of a good story. And we can see how this interest helped him to create the myth behind the Kim Dynasty. It was Kim Jong-il who decided that all citizens should wear name badges with his father’s face on it. And he was the one who made every household have a portrait of the Supreme Leader in their homes.
Less than blind obedience to the Supreme Leader makes you a traitor and un-Korean.
Propaganda is crucial if you want to control people’s minds. And with the economy in a mess, Kim Jong-il knew he needed more than badges and portraits. Film could spread the myth. And he had a clear vision of what he wanted. His philosophy was simple, but effective: every film must have a ‘seed’ that can grow in the viewer.
He had already had a taste of success with The Flower Girl which was the first North Korean film to win an international film prize. Through film he could also manipulate the image of North Korea and their enemies.
Scenes set in Japan or South Korea had to be gloomy, set at night or on a rainy day. While the North was always set in sunshine. American characters were baddies and had to have a physical deformity.
But as well as demanding unconditional loyalty at home, he yearned for international success and praise abroad.
And creating quality films was the way he planned to achieve this. He just needed a great director…
A Kim Jong-il Production is certainly an exciting and thought-provoking read!
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Interesting post. I’m not a fan of Kim, Jong Il, he was a brutal dictator but when you describe the propaganda, “Scenes set in Japan or South Korea had to be gloomy, set at night or on a rainy day. While the North was always set in sunshine. American characters were baddies and had to have a physical deformity…” which I agree is propaganda, but it reminds me of what North American films have consistently done in the past and today. The “baddies” in US films are usually whoever is the current enemy: Russians, Muslims, Asians, etc, the heroes are almost always Caucasian, sometimes they’re Black. The more you keep your eyes open, you’ll see it everywhere in films; but no one calls it what it is, Propaganda.
This reminds me of a documentary about how the film industry including cartoons in certain country in north America depicted the native Americans also as the enemy and how much this affected their overall image; as if they were not having already a hard time :(.
Totally, many cartoons and films were definitely racist. It was obvious then but people didn’t think it was wrong. Sad how long it went on. Now people know racism is wrong, but the films are still subtly racist. I think it’s finally slowly changing, I like when the cast is multicultural without it being forced or fake token inclusion.
You make a great point. And I completely agree.
I never used to pay attention, but now I can’t help but notice. I think people are more aware now.