My daughter hugged me at the moment of winning the Golden Globe… “The reason I made buttercups” [영상]

“I hope we all learn to speak to each other in this’Language of Love’. Especially this year.”
This is the impression of the award from director Isaak Jung (Lee Isaac Chung, 43), the second generation Korean-American, who won the 78th Golden Globe Best Foreign Language Film Award for her autobiographical film’Minari,’ about the Korean family’s settlement in Arkansas in the 1980s. This is the second time in history after director Bong Joon-ho’s’Parasite’ that Korean films and Korean films won the Foreign Language Film Awards at the Golden Globe Awards hosted by the Hollywood Foreign Journalists Association (HFPA). ‘Minari’ was first unveiled at the Sundance Film Festival in February last year, and since it received the Jury Awards and Audience Award, the number of trophies that have been awarded both inside and outside the United States has reached a total of 75 crowns.

‘Minari’, a movie about the settlement of Korean families in the United States, won the Best Foreign Language Film Award at Golden Globe, the two largest American film awards on the 28th (local time). [연합뉴스]

The awards ceremony was held non-face-to-face at the Beverly Hills Beverly Hilton Hotel in California and the Rainbow Room at the Rockefeller Center in New York on February 28, US local time, to minimize attendance due to Corona 19. At the moment when Gal Gadot, the presenter of the Foreign Language Film Awards, called’Minari’, director Jung, who participated in the awards ceremony with video at home, said, “I prayed!” and said, “I prayed!” Hugged. He said, “All the’Buttercups’ family and Steven (Steven Yeon), Yeri (Han Yeri), YJ (Yeojung Yoon)… “My daughter, who was here with me, was a big reason for making this movie,” and was thrilled to thank the production crew and family. In a pre-interview with the Golden Globe nominee, he explained the reason why he drew the experiences of his maternal grandmother (played by Yoon Yeo-jung in the play) and his family who came to the US as a child in this movie. “When my daughter was 7 years old, she began to see the world through her eyes and It reminds me of what I felt at the age of.”

On the 28th (local time), director Jeong Isak, a Korean-American, who won the Foreign Language Film Award for her autobiographical film’Minari’ at the 78th Golden Globe Awards held non-face-to-face due to Corona 19, is holding his daughter at home and tells her feelings about the award. [AFP=연합뉴스]

In his impression of the award, he said, “‘Mari’ is a story about a family and a family trying to speak in their own language.” “It’s not just the American language or any foreign language, it’s the Language of Heart. I try to learn the language myself, and I try to pass it on,” he re-emphasized the word’language’. This can also be interpreted as a remark conscious that’Minari’ was excluded from the work award due to Korean dialogue.
‘Minari’ is an American film produced by Brad Pitt’s film company Plan B, directed by Jung, and lead and producer of Korean-American Stephen Yeon. It was classified as a controversy in the United States. In the Golden Globe candidate list, the nationality of’Minari’ is marked in the United States. The New York Times criticized, “The Hollywood Foreign Journalists Association, which is in charge of the Golden Globe, has come to look stupid.”

The film’MINARI’ depicts the journey of a Korean family who immigrated to the United States in the 1980s by reviving his autobiographical experience by director Isak Jeong (Lee Isaac Jung), the second generation of Korean Americans. Starring Stephen Yeon, Han Yeri, Alan Kim, Noel Kate Jo, Yoon Yeo-jung, and Will Patton. In Korea, it will be released on March 3rd. [사진 판씨네마]

Although mainly non-English dialogues, “Babel,” directed by white director Alejandro Gonzalez Inyaritu and starring Brad Pitt, won the Golden Globe Award, and the film “Basters:” starring Quentin Tarantino and Brad Pitt under the same conditions. ‘Tough Guys’ has also been nominated for the Best Picture. On the other hand, criticism of racial discrimination against Asians came to classify’Buttercup’, which depicts Korean immigrants last year, as foreign language films following’Fairwell’ depicting Chinese immigrant families last year. The LA Times pointed out that none of the 87 members of the Hollywood Foreign Journalist Association were black, and introduced that the hashtag movement (#time’s up), which means that the Golden Globe is out of date, is taking place on social media.
As soon as the LA Times announced the award of’Buttercup’,”Buttercup’ won the Golden Globe Best Foreign Language Film. That’s right, it’s an American movie.” USA Today reported, “One of the most troublesome moves of Golden Globe this year was to put the acclaimed’Buttercup’ (a very American movie about a Korean family) into the foreign language film category, but this film won that category anyway.” .

The film’MINARI’ depicts the journey of a Korean family who immigrated to the United States in the 1980s by reviving his autobiographical experience by director Isak Jeong (Lee Isaac Jung), the second generation of Korean Americans. Starring Stephen Yeon, Han Yeri, Alan Kim, Noel Kate Jo, Yoon Yeo-jung, and Will Patton. In Korea, it will be released on March 3rd. [사진 판씨네마]

CNN quoted an interview with Jung earlier, and said that he wrote a script that included more English in case he was concerned about raising the production cost, but was able to stick to the Korean ambassador with the support of a Korean producer. “If my grandmother is still alive, I will compromise. “I would have been very proud of the fact that I had filmed a movie in Korean,” said Director Jung.
At a video press conference with Korean reporters on the 26th, director Jung revealed an anecdote about her grandmother while teaching students at the Film Department at Han University in Incheon (Utah Asia Campus). “Outside the office, I saw grandmothers digging shellfish on the tidal flat.” “My grandmother lost her grandfather in the Korean War and raised her mother by herself and pulled shellfish from the tidal flat for a living. Looking outside in the office, I asked myself,’If my grandmother wasn’t there, could I teach students like this?’ I thought,” he said.

Director Jung made his debut film’Moon Yurangabo’ (2007) in Rwanda, Africa with a production cost of just $30,000 14 years ago, and was invited to the Notable Gaze at Cannes Film Festival. ‘Minari’, which contains autobiographical family history, is also mentioned as a nomination for the Academy Awards to be held in April. In the announcement of the nominations scheduled for the 15th, in addition to the nomination for the Screenplay and Director Awards by Director Jung, the nomination for the Best Supporting Actress by Yoon Yeo-jung, who has already swept more than 20 acting awards, with the praise of “humorous and lovely” for the role of her maternal grandmother Sunja will be predicted. In the American Actors Guild Award (SAG), which is counted as a trailer for the Academy Acting Awards,’Minari’ was nominated in three categories, including Yoon Yeo-jeong for Best Supporting Actor, all cast members for Ensemble, and Stephen Yeon for Best Actor. If Yun Yeo-jung is nominated for an Academy, it will be the first Korean actor to record.

‘Buttercup’ Golden Globe Foreign Language Film Awards Graphic = Reporter Kim Joo-won zoom@joongang.co.kr

Reporter Na Won-jeong na.wonjeong@joongang.co.kr