The lecture will explore “diasporic thinking.” The director, who was born in the United States and raised in Korea, began to question the concept of “Korean identity” when he returned to the U.S. as a teenager. During this time, he encountered friends from the Korean diaspora around the world. These individuals were expanding the boundaries of “Korean identity” by forming their own unique communal and personal identities. While working in New York, the director visited Cuba in 2015 and, by chance, met Cuban Koreans. This encounter revealed the deeper implications of diaspora identity, leading him to recognize the need for more “diaspora narratives.” Through these stories, he finds a potential solution for the issues of multiculturalism, diversity, immigration, refugees, and marginalized communities that the Korean peninsula currently grapples with. The Korean diaspora, and the existence of diasporic communities, may represent the future of the peninsula, as they embody a way of life that embraces peaceful coexistence and the acceptance of differences.
Speaker: Juhn Jae-hyung (Director of the film Jerónimo)