Occupation, Hollywood and Identity: The Emergence of South Korean Cinema in the Postwar Era, 1945-1960

You are cordially invited to a presentation:

"Occupation, Hollywood and Identity: The Emergence of South Korean Cinema in the Postwar Era, 1945-1960"

by Sueyoung Parik-Primiano
New York University
2007 Florence Tan Moeson Fellow

Wednesday, June 13, 2007, 12:00 - 1:00pm
Asian Division Conference Room, LJ-149
Jefferson Building
10 First St., SE, Washington, DC 20540
Metro stop: Capitol South on the Blue and Orange Line.

This program is free and open to the public.

The impact of Hollywood on South Korean cinema has long been argued and accepted as fact, and yet there exists little or no investigation and analysis into how it may have impacted or influenced the domestic film industry. The collaboration between Hollywood and the U.S. military to promote America and the American way of life in the postwar years is another aspect of history that has been studied and articulated, and yet research and publications on South Korea tend to restrict their focus on the high?level negotiations between the government and business representatives, leaving unclear any questions about their influence and impact on the South Korean society. In addition to assuming Hollywood and the U.S. military's influence as totalizing and complete, extant studies fail to acknowledge Korean society's exposure to the U.S. and Hollywood during the colonial period and the varying impact of the nation's relationship with Japan, as well as the influence of cinemas from Europe and Hong Kong.

The need to consider such continuities and discontinuities from multiple paths and perspectives is the first step in conceptualizing my project's focus on the years from 1945 to 1960. Hence, the first goal is to examine the theoretical, political and ideological underpinnings of Hollywood and the U.S. military's cultural policy towards south Korea by reviewing their film trade policies and regulations to answer the following questions: What was the rationale behind the determination of certain titles as appropriate for the purpose of re?educating the local population and promoting democracy and the American way of life? How were these films censored, distributed, and exhibited for local consumption? To what degree do these strategies impact the local film industry during the years of U.S. occupation, as well as during succeeding years of the 1950s when the number of Hollywood imports was at its height and the South Korean film industry showed signs of resurgence?

Balancing the administrative and legislative findings from the first approach, the second and no less important goal of my project is to identify and evaluate local responses to the propagandizing efforts of the U.S. military and Hollywood while recognizing the existence of ambiguities, tensions and struggles within these multiple and overlapping discourses. I will begin by investigating local film reviews and film related letters and opinions published in newspapers and popular magazines, followed by analyzing local film productions as another site of critical discourse. Together, they will be indispensable not only in isolating local responses to the compelling and conflicting images of democracy and the American way of life, but also in identifying local reactions to and interpretations of the changing socio-cultural milieu in the process of modernization and the rise of modernity. It is through the merging of these two approaches, then, that the narrative of South Korean cinema can be conceptualized as a unique expression and experience of the modern Korea will begin to emerge.

Contact: Sonya Lee, slee@loc.gov, (202) 707-2991.