User:Marilynmijares/sandbox

drafts/ thoughts for LGBT History in South Korea (Representation in Film):

Intro for LGBT History

might not include in LGBT history, only in Cinema of South Korea (or much condensed version?)

need to shorten

choose films to keep >landmark films

Representation in Film
LGBT and/or Queer representation in South Korean film has been noted in films starting as early as the emergence of cinema in South Korea to the present. However, it should be recognized that categorization of LGBT/queer films can be unclear due to variation in how LGBT/Queer characters and storylines are represented, ranging from subtle allusions to more obvious and overt depictions. Ambiguity as to what consitutes queer representation also stems from debate over how to define the term "queer." While LGBT/queer representation varies greatly in cinema, non-normative elements and transgressive qualities may promote a queer reading of film, thus placing it in the category of LGBT/queer.

Films directed by openly LGBTQ directors have mostly been released independently and as short films. These include Lee Song Hee-il's films Everyday is Like Sunday (1997) and No Regret (2006) as well as Kimjo Kwang-soo's films Boy Meets Boy (2008) and Just Friends? (2009). Films by LGBTQ directors are not limited to short films however, as seen by the feature-length film by Kim Kyung-mook's, Stateless Things (2011).

Notable films in Korean queer cinema include Ascetic: Woman and Woman (Kim Su-hyeong, 1976) which won awards during the time of its release but did not receive much popularity. Road Movie (Kim In-shik, 2002), released through a major film company did not have the expected box office results, but has been seen as a precursor to queer films that came after it. One of the most mainstream and successful queer films is The King and the Clown (Lee Joon-ik, 2005) which represented LGBT themes mainly through it subtext rather than explicit depictions, but reached a mainstream audience. The Handmaiden (Park Chan-wook, 2011) also found striking success at the box office and like The King and the Clown, depicted homosexuality in a subtle way that conveyed queer sexual tension.

^^ already published

Intro for Cinema of South Korea:

LGBT/Queer Cinema
LGBT/Queer films and representations of LGBT/Queer characters in South Korean cinema can be seen since the beginning of South Korean cinema despite public perceptions of South Korea as being largely anti-LGBT. Defining “queer cinema” has been up for debate by critics of cinema because of the difficulties in defining “queer," which becomes complicated when defining it in film. The term "queer" has its roots in the English language and although its origins held negative connotation, reclammation of the term began in the 1980s in the U.S. and has come to encompass non-heteronormative sexualities even outside of the U.S. Thus, queer cinema in South Korea can be thought of as encompassing depictions of non-heteronormative sexualities. On this note, LGBT and queer have been used interchangeably by critics of South Korean cinema. While the characteristics that constitute a film as LGBTQ can be subjective due to defining the term “queer” as well as how explicit or implicit LGBTQ representation is in a film, there are a number of films that have been considered as such in Korean cinema.

According to Pil Ho Kim, Korean queer cinema can be categorized into three different categories regarding visibility and public reception. There is the Invisible Age (1945-1997), where films with queer themes have received limited attention as well as discrete representations due to societal pressures, the Camouflage Age (1998-2004) characterized by a more liberal political and social sphere that encouraged filmmakers to increase production of LGBT films and experiment more with their overt depictions but still remaining hesitant, and finally the Blockbuster Age (2005-present) where LGBT themed films began to enter the mainstream following the push against censorship by independent films prior.

Though queer Korean cinema has mainly been represented through independent films and short films, there exists a push for inclusion of LGBT/queer representation in the cinema as well as a call for attention to these films. Turning points include the dismantling of the much stricter Korean Performing Arts Ethics Committee and the emergence of the Korean Council for Performing Arts Promotions and the "Seoul Queer Film and Video Festival" in 1998 after the original gay and lesbian film festival was shut down by Korean authorities. The Korea Queer Film Festival, part of the Korea Queer Culture Festival, has also pushed for visibility of queer Korean films.

LGBT/queer films by openly LGBT/queer directors
LGBT/queer films by openly LGBT/queer identifying directors have historically been released independently, with a majority of them being short films. The films listed reflect such films and reveal how diverse the representations can be.


 * Everyday is Like Sunday (Lee Song Hee-il 1997): The independent, short film directed by openly-LGBTQ identifying Lee Hee-il follows two male characters who meet then become separated, with direct representation of their relationship as homosexual. The independent aspect of the film may have had a role in allowing for a more obvious representation of homosexuality since there is less pressure for appealing a mainstream audience and does not require government sponsorship.
 * No Regret (Lee Song Hee-il, 2006): An independent film co-directed by Lee Hee-il and Kim-Cho Kwang-su, both of whom had ties to the gay activist group Ch’in’gusai, portrays LGBTQ characters in a way that normalizes their identities. The film was also able to see more success than usual for independent films for its marketing strategy that targeted a primarily female audience with an interest in what is known as yaoi.
 * Boy Meets Boy (Kimjo Kwang-soo, 2008): Claimed by the director to be inspired by their own personal experience, the independent short film tells an optimistic story of two men, with the possibility of mutual feelings of attraction after a brief encounter. Even though there is homosexual attraction, it is told through a heterosexual lens, since the masculinity of one character and the femininity of the other are in contrast with each other, creating ambiguity about their queerness due in part to homophobia in society and the political cimate
 * Just Friends? (Kimjo Kwang-soo, 2009): This independent short film by Kimjo Kwang-soo, also written as Kim Cho Kwang-soo, represents LGBTQ characters, with the main character, Min-soo, having to deal with his mother’s disapproval of his relationship with another male character. This short film, like Boy Meets Boy also offers a more optimistic ending.
 * Stateless Things (Kim Kyung-mook, 2011): In the film, both LGBT characters and Korean-Chinese immigrant workers are considered non-normative and are marginalized. The film can be considered to have a queer point-of-view in the sense that it has an experimental quality that creates ambiguity when it comes to non-normative themes. However, the films does depict graphic, homoeroticism, making the representation of homosexuality clear.

LGBT/queer films not by openly LGBT/queer directors

 * The Pollen of Flowers (Ha Kil-jong, 1972): Regarded as the first gay Korean film by the director’s brother Ha Myong-jung, the film depicts homosexuality in the film through tension in LGBT/queer relationships though it was not typically regarded as a queer film at the time of release. The film’s political message and critique of the president at thte time, Park Chung-hee, may be the reason that queer relationships were overshadowed. In spite of being an earlier Korean film depicting homosexuality, the film is more explicit in these relationships than might be expected at the time.
 * Ascetic: Woman and Woman (Kim Su-hyeong, 1976): Though the film was given award-winning status by Korean press, during the time of the release, Ascetic remained an under-recognized film by the public. The film is seen as the first lesbian film by Korean magazine Buddy and tells the story of two women who develop feelings for each other. Though the homosexual feelings between the women are implied through “thinly-veiled sex acts” that could be more explicit, it was considered homosexual given the context of the heavy censorship regulations of the 1970s. Despite the film's status as a lesbian film, it has been noted that the director did not intend to make an LGBT/queer film, but rather a feminist film by emphasizing the meaningful-ness of the two women’s interactions and relationships. Even so, Kim Su-hyeong has said the film can be seen as both lesbian and feminist.
 * Is There a U.S. Moon in Itaewon? (1991): The film depicts a transsexual character, played by a transsexual person as opposed to a professional, cisgender actor. The depiction relied on stereotypes, thus resulting in criticism by the LGBT community, however, the inclusion of a transsexual person playing the role introduced transsexual identities to the public eye.
 * Broken Branches (Park Jae-ho, 1995): Broken Branches is a film in which the main character defies traditional values of the Confucian family system. Even though the character’s attraction to another man is received in a more optimistic way than would be expected by other characters within the film, public reception by the LGBT community leaned on the negative due to the character, Chong-min’s, queerness conveyed as being the result of a broken family.
 * Memento Mori (Kim Tae-yong, Min Kyu-dong, 1999): Set in an all-girls school, the film includes representation of lesbian romance. However, according to the directors, the homosexuality and feminist intent of the film, may have been overshadowed by its horror genre.
 * Road Movie (Kim In-shik, 2002): Even though the film was released through a large distribution company, the film did not reach the expected mainstream box office success, yet it is still seen as a precursor to queer blockbuster films to come. The film is explicit in its homosexual content and portrays a complicated love triangle between two men and a woman, while focusing primarily on a character who is homosexual. Road Movie is one of the few full-length feature films in South Korea to revolve around a queer main character.
 * The King and the Clown (Lee Joon-ik, 2005): The King and the Clown is seen as having a major impact in queer cinema for its great mainstream success. In the film one of the characters is seen as representing queer-ness through his embodiment of femininity, which is often regarded as the character trope of the “flower boy” or kkonminam. However, actual depictions of homosexuality is limited (shown through a kiss). The “flower boy” character of Konggil attracted primarily female viewers. The King and the Clown is seen as influential because of its representation of suggested gay characters that preceded other queer films to come after it. The film depicts undertones of a love triangle between two jesters and a king and suggests homosexuality in a pre-modern time period (Joseon Dynasty). It is based on the play Yi (2000) which drew on the passage The Annals of the Choson Dynasty, two pieces that were more explicit in their homosexuality in comparison the film. The representation of gay intimacy and attraction remains ambiguous in the film and among the LGBT community, it has been noted that criticism of the portrayal of queerness arose, causing unease about the representation of these characters.
 * Frozen Flower (Yoo Ha, 2008): A Frozen Flower followed other queer films such as The King and the Clown, Broken Branches, and Road Movie. This film reached a mainstream audience which may have been due in part to a top actor playing a homosexual character. Critiques of the film have questioned the character Hong Lim’s homosexuality, however it may be suggested that his character is actually bisexual. Despite the explicit homosexual/queer love scenes in the film that brought a shock to mainstream audiences, the film still managed to be successful and expose a large audience to a story about queer relationships.
 * Bungee Jumping of Their Own (Kim Dae-seung, 2011): A big-budget film that reached mainstream success, Bungee Jumping of their Own has a clear portrayal of homosexual attraction between the main character and a male student. The film depicts negative sentiment towards the queer characters through homophobic bullying, though there is attempt to normalize homosexuality by certain characters (i.e., the psychiatrist).
 * The Handmaiden (Park Chan-wook, 2016): The film is a cross-cultural adaptation of the novel Fingersmith written by Sarah Waters. The Handmaiden includes representation of lesbian characters who are seen expressing romantic feelings towards each other in a sensual way that has been critiqued as voyeuristic for its fetishization of the female body. Explicitly depicting the homosexual attraction of the characters Sook-hee and Lady Hideko is a bath scene where the act of filing down the other’s tooth has underlying sexual tension. The film had mainstream box-office success and “over the first six weeks of play [reached a gross] of £1.25 million."
 * Male Kisaeng (Sim U-sop): During the 1960s, the director made several comedy films with queer depictions including characters who cross-dressed and played reverse gender roles, despite a conservative regime with Park Chung Hee in office. The film itself is a representation of queerness because of the main character's feminine gestures, his cross-dressing, and his seemingly lesbian relationship with a female coworker. Another instance of queerness is a kiss between the main character Ku T’aeho and the male character Ho, though their relationship is not homosexual. Even through the allusions to queerness, the film upholds gender norms and heteronormativity by suggesting what is right and what is expected from a patriarchal family structure.

Films to add to exisiting list:

The Pollen of Flowers (1972)

Ascetic: Woman and Woman (1976)

Broken Branches (1995)

Everyday Like a Sunday (1997)

Stateless Things (2011)

Is There a U.S. Moon in Itaewon? (2011)

Male Kisaeng