President Moon watches the movie 'Cheonmun'... "Talented individuals must be fairly recognized"

President Moon Jae-in and his wife Kim Jung-sook are watching the movie 'Cheonmun' at Lotte Cinema Avenueul in Jung-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 19th. (Photo by Cheongwadae)

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sun-hee] President Moon Jae-in watched the movie 'Cheonmun,' which features King Sejong the Great and Jang Yeong-sil, a scientist born into slavery, on the 19th.

According to Han Jung-woo, deputy spokesperson of the Blue House, President Moon watched 'Cheonmun' at Lotte Cinema in Jung-gu, Seoul, from 9:50 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. that day, along with his wife Kim Jung-sook, director Heo Jin-ho, actors Kim Hong-pa, Im Won-hee, Kim Won-hae, and employees of the Korea Meteorological Administration.

Deputy Spokesperson Han said, "Today's viewing was arranged to convey the importance of a society where talented individuals are fairly recognized and treated according to their abilities, as depicted in the movie's story, and to support an excellent work that surpassed one million viewers in the new year with a Korean-themed film."

During a preliminary conversation before the movie screening, President Moon expressed interest, saying, "The era of King Sejong was a period when science and technology flourished in our history. The protagonist, Jang Yeong-sil, who was a slave, was appointed to a third-rank official position, but after the 'Anyeo Incident' (an incident where the king's palanquin broke), records disappeared from the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, so I was curious about that story." He then encouraged the film staff, saying, "This is a meaningful movie that depicts the process of creating our own calendar, which fits our seasonal divisions best, instead of the Chinese calendar that did not align well with our seasons at the time."

President Moon also mentioned director Heo's previous film 'Innocent Witness,' saying, "During my visit to China, it was a topic of conversation with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang," and added, "We shared stories that helped foster friendship between Korea and China."

This is the fifth time President Moon has attended a movie screening since taking office. In August 2017, the first year of his presidency, he watched 'A Taxi Driver,' and in October, he viewed 'Missing' at the Busan International Film Festival. In January 2018, he watched '1987,' which deals with the democratic uprising, and in June last year, he saw 'Parasite,' the first Korean film to win the Palme d'Or at the Cannes International Film Festival.

Meanwhile, director Heo of the movie 'Cheonmun' was previously included on the cultural and artistic blacklist during the Park Geun-hye administration. Heo was reportedly blacklisted and suffered various disadvantages because he signed the 'Declaration to Abolish the Sewol Ferry Government Ordinance' in 2015.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.