Events

Title: My Place
Director & Producer: Emmanuel Moonchil Park
Length of Film: 77 minutes

CHAIRPERSON

Prof Chua Beng Huat, Asia Research Institute, NUS

SYNOPSIS

Shot over seven years and spanning three generations, My Place is a tenderly crafted love letter charting the personal journey of a family re-discovering themselves and their connection to one another.

Born in Canada, two siblings spent their early childhood in Toronto before migrating back to their homeland of South Korea where they were raised in a more traditional society. While young Emmanuel adjusts easily to his new surroundings, his younger sister has a more difficult time. Feeling lost and frustrated, Peace struggles to assert her identity and eventually returns to Canada. But life becomes infinitely more complicated for the entire family when Peace becomes pregnant. Eager to embrace single-motherhood, Peace decides to have the child despite her parents’ concerns. As the family prepares to welcome a new baby into their midst, they must also reconcile the differences that have long divided them.

Awards and festivals:
• Seoul Independent Documentary Film Festival, Audience Award
• Jeonju International Film Festival, Audience Critics’ Prize
• Seoul Independent Film Festival, Jury Prize
• Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Official Selection

The length of the film is 77 minutes. There will be a question-and-answer session with the director after the film screening.

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR

Emmanuel Moonchil Park was born and raised in Toronto, Canada, until his family relocated to South Korea when he was 11 years old. After graduating from Seoul National University (BA in Aesthetics) and working at an internet company in Korea, he decided to pursue his dream of making films. After making short films and doing staff work for various independent film productions, he is currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in documentary production at the Korean National School of Arts. His first feature length documentary, My Place (2013), is a personal documentary dealing with his sister’s single motherhood and his family’s experience of reverse migration from Canada to Korea. The film has won numerous Audience Awards, and has screened at Hot Docs, Jeonju International, and Seoul Independent Film Festivals. It had its nationwide theatrical release in South Korea, early in 2014.

REGISTRATION

Admission is free. We would greatly appreciate if you RSVP to Ms Tay Minghua via email: minghua.tay@nus.edu.sg.