My Brothers and Sisters in the North

Description

“Personal, engaging, and even-handed…the film avoids many of the cliches and sensationalistic features of much of the media coverage of North Korea, especially in the US…One of the best and most original documentaries on North Korea I’ve seen in the past 20 years.” – Dr. Charles Armstrong; Professor of Korean Studies, Columbia University

Synopsis

What do we know about the citizens of North Korea? The country seems to be solely inhabited by robotic soldiers and its leader’s hysterically loyal subjects. But what about the everyday life of the people?

Award-winning documentary filmmaker Sung-Hyung Cho (FULL METAL VILLAGE) was the first South Korean director to receive an official permit to film in North Korea. Traveling the country, she accompanies ordinary people during their everyday life and work routines, talking to them about their hopes and dreams. The resulting film ventures beyond the usual clichés and portrays the country and its people in a unique and respectful way.

Director

Sung-Hyung Cho, born in Busan, South Korea in 1966, is an independent filmmaker and Professor of Moving Image/Film at HBK Saar in Saarbrücken, Germany. After studying Communication at Yon-Sei University in Seoul, she moved to Germany in 1990 to study History of Art, Media Studies and Philosophy at Philipps University in Marburg. Initially working as an editor on German TV series, Sung-Hyung Cho produced her own music videos and short documentaries on the side. FULL METAL VILLAGE (2006), her first feature-length documentary, received several national film awards (Hessischen Filmpreis, Schleswig-Holstein Filmpreis) and was the first documentary to be conferred with the Max-Ophüls-Preis. Her further works as a documentary director include HOME FROM HOME (2009), 11 FRIENDS (2011), FAR EAST DEVOTION (2015) and 2 VOICES (2015).