1973 book by Kim Jong-il
On the Art of the Cinema
[a]
(
Korean
:
映畫藝術論
;
MR
:
Y?nghwa yesul ron
;
lit.
Film Art Theory
) is a 1973 treatise by the
North Korean leader
Kim Jong Il
. It is considered the most authoritative work on
North Korean filmmaking
.
The book sets forth several original theories, which can be applied to the practices of filmmaking, the arts, and beyond. Of these the theory of literature as "humanics" and the "seed theory" are the most important ones. Humanics centers on the question of a good and worthy life. In art, it emphasizes truly independent individuals who are capable of transforming society. The seed theory has become essential to North Korean film theory. It seeks to direct all artistic creation through a single ideological foundation, or "seed". In an individual work, the seed is the synthesis of its subject matter and idea and the basis of its propaganda message. These ideas complement the themes of nationalistic form and socialist content of films. Many ideas presented in the book are justifications for the creation of
propaganda
supporting the
Workers' Party of Korea
's policies.
On the Art of the Cinema
had major political implications on
Kim Jong Il's succession of Kim Il Sung
. Kim Jong Il gained political and
cultural
influence in North Korean society and government by authoring the book.
The impact of
On the Art of the Cinema
on North Korean filmmaking is disputed. Films from before and after the publication of the treatise are similar in style and many contemporary films breach various rules laid out in the treatise.
Background
[
edit
]
After graduating from
Kim Il Sung University
in 1964, Kim Jong Il devoted himself to cultural, ideological and propaganda work at the
Department of Organization and Guidance
of the
Central Committee of the party
.
Although Kim is known to have been privately interested in
Hollywood films
,
[9]
he forbade discussion on foreign film concepts at the
Aesthetic Review Meeting
, an important annual film conference. After he had ordered the entire conference archive to be destroyed, Kim urged participants to be exclusively concerned with the teachings of
Kim Il Sung
and the party in creative work.
Since then, Kim Jong Il's influence in film and
literary
administration grew, and he resisted liberal artistic influence from the
de-Stalinizing
Soviet Union.
From 1968, Kim began to work on film adaptations of guerrilla plays originating from the 1930s.
Kim had
personally guided
the production of films, such as
Sea of Blood
, (parts one and two, 1969),
The Fate of a Self-Defence Corps Man
(
Korean
:
한 自衛團員의 運命
;
MR
:
Han chawi tanw?n ?i unmy?ng
,
1970) and
The Flower Girl
(1972).
Afterwards, Kim Jong Il began producing
revolutionary operas
. Kim had worked in the government arts administration for almost ten years by this time.
He then wrote a series of essays based on speeches he had given to directors and screenwriters over the preceding five years,
and published it as
On the Art of the Cinema
on April 11, 1973.
It was his first major work.
[13]
Through the rest of the 1970s, Kim continued to oversee cultural activities.
Ideas
[
edit
]
The cinema occupies an important place in the overall development of art and literature. As such it is a powerful ideological weapon for the revolution and construction. Therefore, concentrating efforts on the cinema, making breakthroughs and following up success in all areas of art and literature is the basic principle that we must adhere to in revolutionizing art and literature.
From the preface of
On the Art of the Cinema
[14]
In the treatise, Kim Jong Il seeks to apply the principles of the North Korean
Juche
ideology to questions of film, literature and art.
According to Kim, "revolutionizing" cinema is a means of revolutionizing the whole of art and literature and exposing society to the
Workers' Party
's "
monolithic ideology
" and
Juche
.
Building upon
socialist realist
literary theory and
Kim Il Sung
's thought,
Kim Jong Il constructs what has been described as a "
Juche
realism
".
A key aim of Kim is to employ heroic film fiction to transform man into a
socialist man
: "
Juche
-type man".
The book deals comprehensively with aspects of cinema, including
film
and
literary theory
, acting, performance, score music, the screen,
camerawork, costumes, make-up, and props.
Of particular importance are themes of directing and producing as the driving forces of
filmmaking
.
Ideas in the book are elucidated by drawing examples from North Korean films, of which
Sea of Blood
is the most referred one.
[9]
On the Art of the Cinema
presents two major theories: the theory of literature as "humanics" and the "seed theory". Both are considered justifications for the party's control over artistic creation.
Other ideas developed by the treatise are the so-called "modeling theory" and "speed campaign". Compliance with these principles earns an artwork the title of "collective work".
[21]
Films should be realistic, which is possible only when the filmmakers have lived with the popular masses,
much like the ideal of the revolutionaries of the
Korean resistance
.
However, this "realism" entails unadulterated
worship for the leader
and
Juche
, making it incomparable to conventional types of realism in film, like
Italian neorealism
.
Kim builds on the idea that contemporary North Korea has transcended
class conflict
and no real conflicts exist to be portrayed in cinema, bar historical and external ones.
[24]
This can be seen as a reassertion of the Stalinist
Zhdanov Doctrine
. No "negative people" who would disagree with the party's policies can exist.
Depicting conflicts within North Korean society in film could be considered being critical of the regime.
[24]
When historical themes are depicted, traditions should be portrayed selectively to support present ideological needs, purged of "feudal ideologies" of traditional tales and legends.
Literature as humanics
[
edit
]
The theory of literature as "humanics" (
MR
:
inganhak
) developed by Kim Jong Il establishes that literature exists within the human domain. A key theme of humanics is the question of good and worthy life, allowing for propagandist and moralistic art. The idea of
Chajus?ng
[
ko
]
(Korean for 'independent spirit') is also prominent in the theory of humanics.
Chajus?ng
is the metaphysical essence of humans struggling against oppression. Philosophically, it depends on the
indeterministic
view on
free will
in
Juche
. The
hero
of the story, in particular, embodies
Chajus?ng
. According to Kim, "humanics literature" gives emphasis to the development of truly independent individuals as called for by the
Juche
era. This brings about a transformation of the society as a whole. In
North Korean literature
,
Chajus?ng
is used as a justification of state control on literary creation
and a nationalistic policy of
socialism in one country
.
Seed theory
[
edit
]
The "seed theory" (
Korean
:
種子論
;
MR
:
chongjaron
) forms the essence of
On the Art of the Cinema
and, consequently, North Korean film theory in general.
[b]
It has been called a "strange concept", a method of coercing artists to follow the party line, and a means of canceling out individual creativity;
Kim Jong Il equates a film with a living organism, noting that in this analogy the seed is its kernel. The idea is that, if all artistic interpretation is done through a single ideological foundation, or "seed", the resulting cinema is whole. This makes all members of a creative team work for a single goal, in spite of differences in the personalities or focus of the individual members. The director's task is to prevent anything "foreign" to the seed itself from entering cinema. Thus, the seed is the fundamental consciousness underlying artistic creativity.
In more concrete terms, the seed is the basis of the propaganda message of the film: "a strong, convincing idea of what to tell".
The seed synthesizes the subject matter and the idea of a work, thus providing both the form and content.
[31]
In this capacity, it fuses together the
Marxist?Leninist
literary theory concepts of "material", "theme" and "thought".
[32]
The film should contribute to the ruling ideology
and employ esthetics and storytelling that support the propaganda message.
For example, the seed of film
The Fate of a Self-Defence Corps Man
revolves around the choice facing the main character, Gap Ryong: to perish under oppression or sacrificing one's self for the revolution. Its seed could be summarized as "whether or not Gap Ryong participates in the revolutionary movement, he dies".
Surplus value
, Kim argues, is the seed of
Marx
's
Capital
.
[31]
The seed theory became influential in the literary circles of North Korea and writers sought to backtrack the seeds in classics preceding Kim's treatise.
[34]
In addition to questions of art, the seed theory was adopted to a wider range of industrial and economic activities.
[35]
Modeling theory and speed campaign
[
edit
]
According to the "modeling theory", liberation struggles should be portrayed so as to combine national and class struggle. This is achieved through idolizing portrayal of the North Korean people
[21]
and by producing role-models.
The "speed campaign" (
MR
:
sokto-jon
) calls for rapid production of films. According to Kim Jong Il, by producing films as fast as possible, the overall revolutionary process is expedited.
[21]
The origins of the speed campaign are in the shooting of
The Fate of a Self-Defence Corps Man
in just 40 days when it was anticipated to take a full year.
The practice was carried out after publication of
On the Art of the Cinema
, too. For instance, the eight-part film series
Unsung Heroes
(1979?1981) was produced by following the speed campaign principle. Each film took just 45 days to produce.
Subsequently, speed campaigns have been carried out not only in art, but also economic matters.
It was thought of as equally important with Kim Il Sung's
Chollima Movement
, and remains an influential concept associated with Kim Jong Il's leadership.
Reception and influence
[
edit
]
While official biographies of Kim Jong Il describe
On the Art of the Cinema
as comprehensive, original and "supported by impeccable logic",
Whitney Mallett calls it boring and repetitive.
[9]
Anna Broinowski calls
On the Art of the Cinema
"turgid, whimsical and clunky".
[41]
David-West, however, points out that the work shows "some understanding of the constructive elements of the literary text".
The work is considered the most authoritative guide on filmmaking in North Korea.
However, the real extent of its influence is doubted. According to Johannes Schonherr, the work offers little new to North Korean cinema,
and many of the ideas presented are unoriginal and obvious, particularly to the specialist audience of professional filmmakers Kim is writing for. Films from before and after the publication of the treatise are remarkably similar, suggesting that it had little impact on North Korean film industry in practice.
Many traits of contemporary North Korean cinema, such as repetitiveness, slow editing style, and old theatrical acting, go against the teachings of
On the Art of the Cinema
.
[42]
Whatever change there was in North Korean cinema, can be attributed to political and economic pressures.
Instead of contributing anything new, the work reformulates Kim Il Sung's ideas about the importance of film to art and as a propaganda tool. Rather than the theoretical breakthrough it is taught as, it is an account of Kim Jong Il's personal experiences in the film industry and an attempt to thwart the "sloppiness and thoughtlessness" he had encountered.
Kim himself considered his treatise a failure.
[44]
Films it had contributed to were enjoyed at home, but abroad they were ridiculed. North Korean cinema could not compete with the quality of foreign, and in particular
South Korean
, films.
This directly prompted him
to kidnap
Shin Sang-ok
,
[44]
South Korea's most famous film director, in 1978.
[46]
Shin and his wife, actress
Choi Eun-hee
, were kept in North Korea for eight years under cruel conditions. Nevertheless, Shin studied
On the Art of the Cinema
to please Kim with the
kaij?
film
Pulgasari
,
[47]
which credits Kim as the executive producer.
[46]
Kim was delighted with the film and allowed Shin and Choi to travel to
Vienna
, where they were supposed to negotiate a deal for a sequel. The couple used the opportunity to escape and ended up in America.
[47]
Politically, the treatise was a success. At the time of writing
On the Art of the Cinema
, Kim's father Kim Il Sung was systematically rallying support for the younger Kim to prepare for his
succession
.
By authoring the work, Kim Jong Il gained social and political power.
He secured his father's confidence, thus making succession possible.
Kim Jong Il continued to write on the arts until the 1990s and published treatises
On the Art of Opera
(1974),
On the Art of the Drama
(1988),
On the Art of Dance
(1990),
On the Art of Music
(1991),
On Fine Art
(1991),
On Architecture
(1991),
On Juche Literature
(1992),
[48]
[49]
and
Theory of Circus
(1993).
[50]
On the Art of the Cinema
is mandatory reading for North Korean students of literature.
North Korean filmmakers must also study the work, or even memorize it.
[9]
On the Art of the Cinema
also influenced South Korea's
minjung
-oriented
People's Cinema
(
MR
:
minjung y?nghwa
) movement that was born out of the
Gwangju Democratization Movement
.
[51]
The work's influence goes beyond Korea, too. Australian Anna Broinowski directed
Aim High in Creation!
, a movie about making a propaganda film abiding by Kim's instructions.
[52]
Danish documentarist
Mads Brugger
in his
The Red Chapel
is shown continuously consulting the treatise for artistic guidance.
[53]
Release details
[
edit
]
The work is included in
Selected Works of Kim Jong Il
Vol. 5. (enlarged edition).
[54]
The first three chapters of
On the Art of the Cinema
are also published as
Life and Literature
,
[55]
The Cinema and Directing
[56]
and
The Character and the Actor
, respectively.
[57]
A reprint of the English edition of
On the Art of the Cinema
has been issued by
University Press of the Pacific
.
[58]
Three speeches that were not included in the English editions ? "Some Problems Arising in the Creation of Masterpieces" (1968), "Let Us Create More Revolutionary Films Based on Socialist Life" (1970), and "On the Ideological and Artistic Characteristics of the Masterpiece,
The Fate of a Self-Defence Corps Man
" (1970) ? are included in the Korean edition from 1977.
Translations of
On the Art of the Cinema
include Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Russian and Spanish.
[59]
[60]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes and references
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
The work is sometimes referred to as
(The) Theory of Cinematic Art
[3]
and
Essays on the Cinema
,
[5]
but it has been only published in English under the title
On the Art of the Cinema
.
- ^
Although being often attributed to Kim Jong-il and
On the Art of the Cinema
, the seed theory appears to predate the treatise.
[28]
An official biography of Kim Jong-il explains that Kim spoke of the seed theory throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s, but at that time "officials could not understand what this strange term 'seed' meant".
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
On the art of the cinema, April 11, 1973 (Book, 1989) [WorldCat.org]
.
WorldCat
.
OCLC
22903260
.
- ^
a
b
Yeonghwa yesullon: 1973-y?n 4-w? 11-il (Book, 1984) [WorldCat.org]
.
WorldCat
.
OCLC
829882908
.
- ^
"Kim Jong Il Authors Lots of Works for Development of Juche-oriented Literature and Arts"
.
Korean Central News Agency
. May 15, 2014. Archived from
the original
on October 11, 2014
. Retrieved
April 1,
2016
.
- ^
Chin T'ak; Kang-il Kim; Hong Je Pak (1985).
Great Leader, Kim Jong Il
. Vol. 1. Tokyo: Sorinsha. p. 180.
OCLC
12981945
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Mallett, Whitney (March 14, 2014).
"Hollywood North Korea: How to Make Movies the Kim Jong-il Way"
.
Hazlitt Magazine
. Penguin Random House Canada
. Retrieved
July 11,
2015
.
- ^
Jae-Cheon Lim (March 24, 2015).
Leader Symbols and Personality Cult in North Korea: The Leader State
. Routledge. p. 28.
ISBN
978-1-317-56741-7
. Retrieved
May 21,
2015
.
- ^
Kim Jong-il (April 11, 1973).
On the Art of the Cinema
(PDF)
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. p. 2.
OCLC
22903260
. Retrieved
April 9,
2015
.
- ^
a
b
c
Lee, Hyang-Jin (2001).
"CINEMA AND CONSTRUCTION OF NATIONHOOD IN CONTEMPORARY KOREA"
.
International Journal of Korean Unification Studies
.
10
(1).
Korea Institute for National Unification
: 151
. Retrieved
April 9,
2015
.
- ^
a
b
Petersen, Martin (January 2012). "The Downfall of a Model Citizen?: Family Background in North Korean Graphic Novels".
Korean Studies
.
36
: 88?89.
doi
:
10.1353/ks.2012.0001
.
S2CID
143989145
.
With conflict in art being 'the reflection of the class struggle in life,' class conflict must thus predominantly be described as a past and external phenomenon, apropos of the socialist realist theory of conflictlessness. Neglecting the mandatory depiction would be perceived as if the authors were raising an implicit critique of the North Korean state.
- ^
Kim Suk-Young (August 2000).
Illusive Utopia: Theater, Film, and Everyday Performance in North Korea
. University of Michigan Press. p. 142.
ISBN
978-0-472-02689-0
. Retrieved
April 7,
2015
.
The practice of positioning Kim Il-sung as the disseminator of national culture was consolidated into 'seed theory' by the North Korean cultural bureau. 'Seed theory' appeared in 1972 in North Korea's
Dictionary of Literature and Art
, which correlated the seed with Kim Il-sung's personal ideology[.]
- ^
a
b
Sung Chull Kim (February 16, 2012).
North Korea under Kim Jong Il: From Consolidation to Systemic Dissonance
. SUNY Press. p. 179.
ISBN
978-0-7914-8093-9
. Retrieved
April 7,
2015
.
- ^
Pyon Jae Su (1995). "Comrade Kim Jong Il's Thoughts and Theories on Art and Literature".
Great Successor to the Cause of Juche: Scientific Treatises Offered in Celebration of the 50th Birthday of Comrade Kim Jong Il
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. pp. 52, 54.
KPEA
:
2E0002
.
- ^
Choi Yearn-hong (April 23, 2008).
"North Korea's Literary Theory"
.
The Korea Times
. Retrieved
April 7,
2015
.
- ^
Yonhap News Agency (December 27, 2002).
North Korea Handbook
. Seoul: M.E. Sharpe. p. 91.
ISBN
978-0-7656-3523-5
.
- ^
Broinowski, Anna (May 27, 2015).
"Aim High in Creation!"
.
The Director is the Commander
. Penguin Books Limited. p. 51.
ISBN
978-0-85797-546-1
. Retrieved
July 21,
2015
.
- ^
Wayne, Mike (July 2005).
Understanding film: Marxist perspectives
. Pluto. p. 204.
ISBN
978-0-7453-1993-3
. Retrieved
April 7,
2015
.
- ^
a
b
Edwards, Russell (2013).
"North Korean cinema: A history [Book Review]"
.
Metro
.
175
.
Australian Teachers of Media
: 120
. Retrieved
April 6,
2015
.
Schonherr also says Kim knew his 1989 book
On the Art of Cinema
was a failure and that this was his primary motivation for arranging the 'kidnapping' of Shin Sang-ok from Hong Kong.
- ^
a
b
Savage, Mark (December 19, 2011).
"Kim Jong-il: The cinephile despot"
.
BBC News
.
BBC
. Retrieved
April 6,
2015
.
- ^
a
b
Morris, Leslie (July 12, 2013).
"Kim Jong Il's Monster: The Making of Pulgasari"
.
Monster Pictures
. Retrieved
April 7,
2015
.
- ^
Kim Jong Il: Brief history
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. 1998. pp. 70, 103.
OCLC
272459470
. Retrieved
July 21,
2015
.
- ^
Worrall, Julian (May 2009).
"Kim Jong Il On Architecture"
.
Icon
. Archived from
the original
on February 23, 2020
. Retrieved
July 9,
2015
.
- ^
"DPRK Acrobatics Famous Worldwide"
.
Explore DPRK
. July 2, 2018
. Retrieved
October 12,
2021
.
- ^
Park, Nohchool (December 2009).
"The Three Faces of People's Cinema: A Critical Review of the South Korean Independent Cinema Movement in the 1980s"
(PDF)
.
Acta Koreana
.
12
(2): 21?22, 45.
doi
:
10.18399/acta.2009.12.2.002
. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on August 1, 2015
. Retrieved
July 23,
2015
.
- ^
Mathieson, Craig
(February 24, 2015).
"Aim High in Creation!: Anna Broinowski interview"
.
SBS
. Retrieved
April 9,
2015
.
- ^
Gowman, Philip (February 9, 2010).
"A pizza shovel for the Dear Leader: was he amused by 'Kim Jong-il's Comedy Club'?"
.
London Korean Links
. Retrieved
September 16,
2015
.
- ^
"
'Selected Works of Kim Jong Il' Vol. 5 Published"
.
KCNA
. October 2, 2010. Archived from
the original
on April 13, 2015
. Retrieved
April 7,
2015
.
- ^
Life and literature (Book, 1986) [WorldCat.org]
.
WorldCat
.
OCLC
15469454
.
- ^
The cinema and directing (Book, 1987) [WorldCat.org]
.
WorldCat
.
OCLC
18792947
.
- ^
The character and the actor (Book, 1987) [WorldCat.org]
.
WorldCat
.
OCLC
19550905
.
- ^
On the art of the cinema (Book, 1989) [WorldCat.org]
.
WorldCat
.
OCLC
54994660
.
- ^
Korea Publications Exchange Association catalogue
(PDF)
.
Korea Publications Exchange Association
. 2011. p. 57. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on July 14, 2014.
- ^
Korea Publications Exchange Association catalogue
(PDF)
. Korea Publications Exchange Association. 2009. p. 15. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on October 30, 2012.
Works cited
[
edit
]
- Clippinger, Morgan E. (March 1981). "Kim Chong-il in the North Korean Mass Media: A Study of Semi-Esoteric Communication".
Asian Survey
.
21
(3): 289?309.
doi
:
10.2307/2643726
.
JSTOR
2643726
.
- David-West, Alzo (January 2009).
"The Literary Ideas of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il: An Introduction to North Korean Meta-Authorial Perspectives"
(PDF)
.
Cultural Logic
.
12
: 1?34.
ISSN
1097-3087
. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on November 23, 2015
. Retrieved
April 4,
2015
.
- Fischer, Paul (February 3, 2015).
A Kim Jong-Il Production: The Incredible True Story of North Korea and the Most Audacious Kidnapping in History
. Penguin Books Limited.
ISBN
978-0-241-96999-1
.
- Kim Jong Il Biography
(PDF)
. Vol. 1. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. 2005
. Retrieved
January 10,
2015
.
- Kwak, Dong Hun (March 2013).
"Strategic Propaganda Through North Korean Films: A New Approach"
.
Studia Universitatis Babe?-Bolyai, Philologia
.
58
(1).
National University Research Council
: 231?244
. Retrieved
April 4,
2015
.
- Lee, Hyang-jin (2000).
Contemporary Korean Cinema: Culture, Identity and Politics
. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
ISBN
978-0-7190-6008-3
. Retrieved
April 9,
2015
.
- Schonherr, Johannes (August 13, 2012).
North Korean Cinema: A History
. Jefferson: McFarland.
ISBN
978-0-7864-6526-2
. Retrieved
April 5,
2015
.
Further reading
[
edit
]
- Great Man and Cinema: Anecdotes
. Pyongyang: Korea Film Export & Import Corporation(朝鮮映畫輸出入社). 1998.
OCLC
272459555
.
- Kim Jong-il (1974).
On the Art of Opera: Talk to Creative Workers in the Field of Art and Literature, September 4-6, 1974
(PDF)
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
.
OCLC
869091334
.
- — (1988).
On the Art of the Drama: Talk to the Officials in the Field of Art and Literature, April 20, 1988
(PDF)
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
.
- — (1991).
On Architecture, May 21, 1991
(PDF)
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
.
- — (1991).
On the Art of the Music, July 17, 1991
(PDF)
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
.
- — (1991).
On Fine Art, October 16, 1991
(PDF)
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
.
- — (1992).
On Juche Literature
(PDF)
. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
.
- — (1992) [1968].
"Some Problems Arising in the Creation of Masterpieces: Talk to Creators of the Film
Brothers
, April 6, 1968"
(PDF)
.
Selected Works: 1964?1969
. Vol. 1. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. pp. 331?363.
OCLC
152423072
.
- — (1995) [1970].
"Let Us Create More Revolutionary Films Based on Socialist Life: Talk to Writers and Directors, June 18, 1970"
(PDF)
.
Selected Works: 1970?1972
. Vol. 2. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. pp. 69?99.
OCLC
221977168
.
- — (1995) [1970].
"On the Ideological and Artistic Characteristics of the Immortal Work
The Fate of A Self-Defence Corps Man
: Answers to Questions Raised by the Artistes Producing the Film Version of the Immortal Work
The Fate of A Self-Defence Corps Man
, February 14, 1970"
(PDF)
.
Selected Works: 1970?1972
. Vol. 2. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. pp. 10?39.
OCLC
221977168
.
- — (1999) [1990].
"On the Art of Dance, November 30, 1990"
(PDF)
.
Selected Works: 1990
. Vol. 10. Pyongyang:
Foreign Languages Publishing House
. pp. 283?402.
OCLC
867581995
.
External links
[
edit
]