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'Spirits' Homecoming' director Cho Jung-rae returns with historical drama

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By Kwak Yeon-soo

Director Cho Jung-rae poses for a photo during a press conference for the film
Director Cho Jung-rae poses for a photo during a press conference for the film "The Singer" in Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of Little Big Pictures
Director Cho Jung-rae, known for his 2016 film "Spirits' Homecoming," has returned with the historical pansori drama "The Singer." Its original Korean title "Sorikkun" is a term that refers to a traditional lyrical storyteller accompanied by a drummer.

Set in 1734 during the Joseon Kingdom, the movie centers on the lives of pansori performers, who held very low social status. Pansori is a narrative music style comprised of various melodies and rhythms.

In "The Singer," Sim Hak-gyu (played by pansori singer Lee Bong-geun) embarks on a journey with his daughter Cheong (played by Kim Ha-yeon) to search for his wife Gannan (played by Lee Yu-ri), who is kidnapped.

Hak-gyu performs the pansori "Simcheongga," which revolves around a girl and her sacrifice to cure her father's blindness, on his way to find Gannan. Poverty and human trafficking are featured in the story, which is exactly why he chooses that particular song.

With the help of the audiences he performs for, who are moved by his performance, Hak-gyu eventually finds his wife. Now, he has to perform "Simcheongga" in front of an aristocratic "yangban," and move him to tears in order to free his family.

A scene from the film 'The Singer' / Courtesy of Little Big Pictures
A scene from the film 'The Singer' / Courtesy of Little Big Pictures

Director Cho explained that the film is based on a synopsis that he wrote in 1998 as a film student.

"The original script was centered on the relationship of Hak-gyu and Gannan. I've made some changes to express Korean sentiment and the importance of family," he said during a press conference for the film at Lotte Cinema Konkuk University Entrance Branch, Monday.

Cho said he firmly insisted that the film needed a professional pansori singer playing the lead role.

"My colleagues said there were talented actors who were more than capable of performing pansori. However, I held an audition to find the right person for Hak-gyu's role because the music was the most important part of this project," he said.

The director had no doubt that Lee was the perfect fit for the role. "Lee was brilliant in his audition but he looked really nervous. He was literally shaking. I thought that resembled Hak-gyu."

The 47-year-old director said he wanted to touch on a universal theme to which many can relate: the sorrow associated with loss of a loved one and the importance of family and friends.

Cho wished "The Singer" would gain popularity overseas and deliver Korean sentiments to people around the world. "I had long wanted to shoot a film that contains Korean rhythms and emotion. I hope pansori becomes more accessible to people around the globe," he said.

"The Singer" will hit local theaters, July 1.


Kwak Yeon-soo yeons.kwak@koreatimes.co.kr


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