| The Drop Box | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Brian Ivie |
| Written by | Brian Ivie |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | Lee Jong Rak |
| Cinematography |
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| Distributed by |
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Release date |
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Running time | 79 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $3,300,000 |
| The Drop Box | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Directed by | Brian Ivie |
| Written by | Brian Ivie |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | Lee Jong Rak |
| Cinematography |
|
| Distributed by |
|
Release date |
|
Running time | 79 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $3,300,000 |
In 2011, the writer and director of the documentary, Brian Ivie, contacted pastor Lee Jong Rak. Ivie had heard about Pastor Lee's work from the Los Angeles Times article "South Korean Pastor Tends to an Unwanted Flock." [1] After six months of correspondence and preparation, Ivie and a production team at Arbella Studios began to film. The production of The Drop Box took two years. [1]
Sacrifice, hope, guilt, courage, and unconditional love are themes that resound through the documentary. The Drop Box explores some anti-abortion themes, although its content does not explicitly mention abortion. Rather, it emphasizes the value of the life of every child that Pastor Lee receives in the drop box. [2]
The Drop Box was released on March 3, 2015 in a limited theatrical release and garnered close to a quarter million views and public interest. It was shown in over 700 theaters in the United States. [3] Many viewers of this documentary were inspired to contact Kindred Image, a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to ending child abandonment and creating a culture that celebrates life in South Korea. [2] Kindred Image focuses its efforts on long-term solutions. Some projects that have been undertaken include care packages, counseling, and adoption support. [3] Kindred Image also provides expecting mothers with necessary resources for healthy and successful pre- and post-pregnancy. [4] Through the efforts of this organization, over 1.4 million dollars have been raised for Korean orphans and foster care in America. [2]
Every year, hundreds of infants are abandoned in Seoul, South Korea. [5] Pastor Lee's drop box provides a safe location for children to be placed if parents feel they are unable to care for their child, and wish to give them the opportunity to be adopted. [5] Pastor Lee's work also raises awareness of South Korea's Special Adoption Law, which if revised and addressed, could alleviate the child abandonment crisis. [6] The director, Brian Ivie, was critical in the creation of Kindred Image, a nonprofit organization that addresses child abandonment issues with holistic solutions. Part of the proceeds from The Drop Box are received by Lee Jong Rak and his ministry to support his children. [7]
Paul Boge, Winnipeg Film Director and director of Reel to Reel Film Festival, said: "We all lead busy lives and it is not possible for us to do research on every social issue. Documentaries like these give us a chance to understand issues that impact us and the world around us so we can be better informed about our responsibility in responding to these issues." [7]
Child abandonment is the practice of relinquishing interests and claims over one's offspring in an illegal way, with the intent of never resuming or reasserting guardianship. The phrase is typically used to describe the physical abandonment of a child. Still, it can also include severe cases of neglect and emotional abandonment, such as when parents fail to provide financial and emotional support for children over an extended period. An abandoned child is referred to as a foundling. Baby dumping refers to parents leaving a child younger than 12 months in a public or private place with the intent of terminating their care for the child. It is also known as rehoming when adoptive parents use illegal means, such as the internet, to find new homes for their children. In the case where child abandonment is anonymous within the first 12 months, it may be referred to as secret child abandonment.
The term "Cinema of Korea" encompasses the motion picture industries of North and South Korea. As with all aspects of Korean life during the past century, the film industry has often been at the mercy of political events, from the late Joseon dynasty to the Korean War to domestic governmental interference. While both countries have relatively robust film industries today, only South Korean films have achieved wide international acclaim. North Korean films tend to portray their communist or revolutionary themes.
The international adoption of South Korean children started around 1953 as a measure to take care of the large number of mixed children that became orphaned during and after the Korean War. It quickly evolved to include orphaned Korean children. Religious organizations in the United States, Australia, and many Western European nations slowly developed the apparatus that sustained international adoption as a socially integrated system.
A baby hatch or baby box is a place where people can leave babies, usually newborn, anonymously in a safe place to be found and cared for. This was common from the Middle Ages to the 18th and 19th centuries, when the device was known as a foundling wheel. Foundling wheels were abandoned in the late 19th century, but a modern form, the baby hatch, was reintroduced from 1952 and since 2000 has been adopted in many countries, most notably in Pakistan where there are more than 300. They can also be found in Germany (100), the United States (150), Czech Republic (88) and Poland (67).
Secret Sunshine is a 2007 South Korean drama film directed by Lee Chang-dong. The screenplay based on the short fiction "The Abject" by Lee Cheong-jun that focuses on a woman as she wrestles with the questions of grief, madness and faith. The Korean title Miryang is named after the city that served as the film's setting and filming location, of which "Secret Sunshine" is the literal translation. For her performance in the film, Jeon Do-yeon won the Prix d'interprétation féminine at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. The film also won the award for Best Film at the Asian Film Awards and at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. The film sold 1,710,364 tickets nationwide in South Korea alone.
The Housemaid is a 2010 South Korean erotic psychological thriller film directed by Im Sang-soo. The story focuses on Eun-yi, played by Jeon Do-yeon, who becomes involved in a destructive love triangle while working as a housemaid for an upper-class family. Other cast members include Lee Jung-jae, Youn Yuh-jung and Seo Woo. The film is a remake of Kim Ki-young's 1960 film of the same name. It competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival.
The Man from Nowhere is a 2010 South Korean neo-noir action-thriller film starring Won Bin and written and directed by Lee Jeong-beom. It was South Korea's highest-grossing film in 2010 and had 6.2 million admissions. In the film, a mysterious man embarks on a bloody rampage when the only person who seems to understand him is kidnapped.
Five Senses of Eros is a 2009 South Korean omnibus film with five short films depicting love and desire, but in different styles and genres. The shorts are: His Concern, directed by Daniel H. Byun; I'm Right Here, directed by Hur Jin-ho; The 33rd Man, directed by Yoo Young-sik; In My End Is My Beginning, directed by Min Kyu-dong; and Believe in the Moment, directed by Oh Ki-hwan.
Running Man is a 2013 South Korean action film starring Shin Ha-kyun as an ordinary man who begins to be chased and watched by the entire nation after he is falsely accused in a homicide case.
Kim Yo Jong is a North Korean politician and diplomat, and sister of Kim Jong Un. She is the Deputy Department Director of the Publicity and Information Department of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). Since September 2021, she has been a member of State Affairs Commission of North Korea.
So Yu-jin is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her leading roles in the television dramas Rookie (2000), Delicious Proposal (2001), Fox and Cotton Candy (2001), as well as in Rival (2002) and Mai Ratima (2013).
The Mayor is a 2017 South Korean political drama film written and directed by Park In-je. It stars Choi Min-sik, Kwak Do-won, Shim Eun-kyung, Moon So-ri, Ra Mi-ran, Ryu Hye-young, and Ki Hong Lee. The film was released in South Korea on April 26, 2017 and in the US and Canada on April 28.
The Spy Gone North is a 2018 South Korean spy drama film directed by Yoon Jong-bin. It stars Hwang Jung-min, Lee Sung-min, Cho Jin-woong and Ju Ji-hoon. The film is loosely based on the true story of Park Chae-seo, a former South Korean agent who infiltrated North Korea's nuclear facilities. It was released in theaters on August 8, 2018.
Monstrum is a 2018 South Korean period action horror film directed by Heo Jong-ho. It stars Kim Myung-min, Kim In-kwon, Lee Hye-ri and Choi Woo-shik. The film was released on September 12, 2018. It was chosen to compete in the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival, screening there on 13 October.
Burning is a 2018 South Korean-Japanese psychological drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Lee Chang-dong. The film is based on the short story "Barn Burning" from The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami, with elements inspired by William Faulkner's story of the same name. It stars Yoo Ah-in, Steven Yeun, and Jeon Jong-seo. The plot depicts a young deliveryman, Jong-su (Yoo), who runs into his childhood friend, Hae-mi (Jeon). They soon meet an enigmatic young man named Ben (Yeun), whom Jong-su becomes suspicious of, and he begins to believe Hae-mi is in danger.
Believer is a 2018 South Korean action crime film directed by Lee Hae-young. It is a remake of the 2012 Johnnie To film Drug War. The film features actor Kim Joo-hyuk's final film performance. The film was released in South Korea on May 22, 2018. An extended version was released theatrically on July 18, 2018.
Kim Rak-hui was a North Korean politician. Kim worked in the agricultural and cooperatives section for most of her working life. During the Korean War, her efforts in rationing caught the attention of Kim Il Sung. Many time delegate to the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA), Kim Rak-hui rose in the ranks of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), becoming a full member of its Central Committee in 1970. She was appointed to the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea in 2010 and became one of six Vice Premiers of North Korea that year. She ran a committee to combat epizootic diseases.
One Child Nation is a 2019 American documentary film directed by Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang about the fallout of China's one-child policy that lasted from 1979 to 2015. The documentary is made up of various interviews with former village chiefs, state officials, ex-human traffickers, artists, midwives, journalists, researchers, and victims of the one-child policy. Nanfu Wang stated, in a roundtable discussion, that when creating the film she wanted to do a "360 degree with the policy—people who carried out the policy and people who were the victims of the policy". During the film, Nanfu Wang discovers more about the ties her own family have with the one-child policy, as they unsuccessfully attempt to locate her cousin who was abandoned by her father’s sister in 1989. By the end of the film, Nanfu Wang admits that despite the horrors of the one-child policy, there is an overwhelming acceptance of the policy that remains in China, and a shared attitude that there was no other choice. The closing scenes of the film show the growing propaganda for two child families, presenting the repetition of state interference with family planning within China.
Brian Tetsuro Ivie is a Japanese-American filmmaker, film producer and documentarian. He is the youngest active producer for Stephen Curry’s Unanimous Media empire. Ivie is most well-known for his documentary film, Emanuel, which tells the story of the 2015 Charleston church shooting, which took the lives of nine innocent African Americans. The film was produced by Viola Davis and Mariska Hargitay, & by NBA star Stephen Curry.
Broker is a 2022 South Korean drama film written, directed and edited by Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda, and starring Song Kang-ho, Gang Dong-won, Bae Doona, Lee Ji-eun, and Lee Joo-young. The film revolves around characters associated with baby boxes, which allow infants to be dropped off anonymously to be cared for by others. The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, where it was screened on 26 May and won Ecumenical Jury Award and the Best Actor Award for Song Kang-ho. It was released on June 8, 2022, in theaters in South Korea.
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