Kim Minha's Powerful North Korean Defector Role

The press and distribution preview and press conference for the film 'Hana Korea' was held on the 26th at CGV Yongsan I'Park Mall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Director Fredrik S. Krabbe, actors Kim Minha, Kim Juriyeong, Ahn Seo-hyun, and screenwriter Choi Sung-jae (Sharon Choi) attended the event.

'Hana Korea' is an art-buster film based on a true story that won the Audience Award in the Flash Forward section of the 30th Busan International Film Festival. It depicts the journey of Hye-sun (Kim Minha), a North Korean defector woman who strives to move forward despite her unfamiliar life.

Director Fredrik S. Krabbe, from Denmark, took on both the screenplay and direction. He worked with Korean and Danish production teams and interviewed over 30 North Korean defectors for five years. He captured the true stories of defectors through a Nordic-style static mise-en-scène and restrained emotional lines.

Director Fredrik S. Krabbe stated that his personal contemplation on unification during his visit to Korea in 2010 led him to produce a radio documentary at Hana Academy and conduct research on defectors. In 2019, he met Choi Hyo-rin, whose story became the film's motif, and decided to make the movie. He explained that he hoped the courage and perseverance of Hye-sun would provide significant meaning to modern people and serve as an opportunity to reflect on the cost of the freedom they take for granted.

Screenwriter Choi Sung-jae (Sharon Choi), known as director Bong Joon-ho's interpreter, pointed out the tendency for the arduous journeys of young women to be consumed merely as sensational 'spectacle.' She emphasized the need to evoke deep public empathy through the narrative of young women overcoming hardship. She added that she joined the project when the story's framework was already established and worked closely with the director through constant dialogue to determine the direction.