The Border City 2 is a documentary that records the fierce and controversial times regarding the return of a Germany-residing professor, SONG Du-yul. The former film on him, The Border City 2 , was mostly about the daily life of SONG's family, who were expecting to get back to their home country, and it went on the air on KBS in 2002. The Border City 2 stares at SONG's traces in Korea for eight-year period, the place that used to be his dream to go back to, and the ‘red complex,' which was spread all over the Korean society.
Professor SONG Du-yul is a leader for the democracy, since his residency in Germany from 1970s, being against the monopoly of Korean government. He calls himself a border person, as he is a philosopher who dared to be engaged with the problem of two Koreas; at the same time, he was prohibited from going back to Korea, being spotted as a spy. There were several attempts to enabling him to come back, but they always failed because of the political reason. The Border City 2 describes his life in Germany and his missing of his hometown from a foreign land.
The director HONG Hyung-sook came up with the idea of working on a documentary about SONG, when she planned a ‘division project' in 1997. “I was considering a serial and thought it would be appropriate when the first figure for this is an international leader for the democracy, who is not able to get back to Korea. Then I researched for it when I finally found the right person – SONG. And we got lucky that we could get the financial support from German Academic Exchange Service, and we could stay in Berlin. So it was a nice condition to take him for our film.”
In the meantime, The Border City 2 begins with grey-haired philosopher SONG returning home to Korea. Unlike the previous film, however, this one focuses mainly on the cold reception SONG received from the Korean society. SONG, who dared to visit Korea after a warrant had already been issued, became one of the notorious spies just a week after being hailed as an admirable figure of democracy from overseas, since the National Intelligence Service regarded him in the same level as KIM Chulsoo, who is the 23rd ranked official in North Korea, and started an active investigation on him for the violation of national security law. As a hot-potato in both press and politics, the perception of SONG slowly turns into an image of a spy by Korean society. This big issue, however, is promptly forgotten after he was found to be innocent.
The camera, which used to give a generous gaze towards his ordinary life, has totally turned opposite and towards strife about the ‘spy-suspicion' on SONG Du-yul. “Former one is needed to support SONG, who was listed number one on the blacklist. However, incidents abruptly broke out as soon as SONG came to Korea, and I felt like even I must be objectified through the camera. Keeping distance had to be done unconsciously and strategically.” It was not like this at first: the director wanted to film what the old philosopher would see and experience in Korea, as he would come back for the first time ever since in his 20s. But it could not go this way. The Border City 2 catches the sight of the red complex, which has been deeply rooted in divided Korea, regardless of conservative or progressive.
Maximal five cameras were used in order to record the tense story that started with his arrival in Korea. The shooting lasted for eleven months which was actually planned for three, and all the staffs lived together in a room next to SONG's. The madness of the press' suspicion of being a spy, physical competition among journalists to get the news wherever SONG comes and goes to the investigation, all of wild imaginations and rumors surrounding him, and finally the arguments of those close to SONG about his decision, all have been recorded straight out of the reality. “We recorded 60 tapes a day, and the number became 400 in the end. We also had over hundred data tapes, so we were struggling with 500 tapes after all.”
More than a year was passed before SONG's final verdict of ‘not guilty' was awarded, and the director had to work on those tapes for years.
“I needed time to make a distance from the society and refine the work. I believe it could be persuasive only if I keep the distance from the Korean society as well as me. Though it deals with the year of 2003, it should be the documentary which is able to talk about today and foresee tomorrow.” Just as the director mentioned, The Border City 2 reflects the director's agony when she speculates the Korean society, still unable to get away from the ideology issue.
Released on 8th of March, The Border City 2 meets the audience in the way of holding concerts, talk show, forum, or the screening in the local community. This controversial one dreams of becoming in the centre of the discourse, while it contains the messages what today's Korean society really needs.
HONG Hyung-sook asks via her twitter, “The next round is actually about having a real talk, whether it's SONG Du-yul, the issues back then or nowadays, whatever. Why don't you just come out to the middle of the controversy? I think the climax of this film would be various reactions from the society after the premiere. The cameras keep tracking of the ongoing events and forums. There are a number of people who are waiting for the third one.”