Korea's First Feature-Length Animation Released on Blu-ray
Video Archive Produces 'Hong Gil-dong' and 'Hopiwa Chadolbawi'
Achievements Overcoming Difficult Production Conditions
Korea's first feature-length animation has been produced on Blu-ray. It is Shin Dong-heon's 'Hong Gil-dong (1967)'. The Korean Film Archive announced on the 8th that it will release the 'Shin Dong-heon Animation Collection,' which includes another animation by director Shin, 'Hopi and Chadolbawi (1967)'.
Both works are cel animations based on 'Punguna Hong Gil-dong,' a series serialized in the 'Sonyeon Chosun Ilbo' by Shin Dong-woo, the younger brother of director Shin. 'Hong Gil-dong' was released in January 1967, became a box office hit, and sparked an animation boom. It also won the Non-Drama/Cultural Film Award at the Grand Bell Awards.
'Hopi and Chadolbawi' was created after director Shin was unable to use the Hong Gil-dong character due to conflicts with Segisangsa. The work features Chadolbawi, who appeared in 'Hong Gil-dong,' and a new character, Hopi, as the protagonists. It received significant attention for Hopi's anti-heroic traits and the individuality and harmony among the characters.
This achievement was made despite harsh production conditions. Director Shin learned production techniques by watching foreign films and reading foreign books. He washed reconnaissance aerial films left by the U.S. military with lye and reused them. Due to the lack of proper paint, colors were applied post-color, and scenes were quickly shot before peeling occurred. Even amid these challenges, he implemented the advanced technique of shadows to effectively express the situations and emotions of the characters. The scene where Hong Gil-dong leads the Hwalbindang in a zigzag march enhanced the dynamism. The Film Archive evaluated it as "a precious heritage of Korean cinema, achieved solely through effort during a time when skilled personnel were scarce and production infrastructure was poor."
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The Film Archive digitized the film in 2016 and released a DVD of the same name. The Blu-ray underwent advanced restoration to reproduce it even closer to the original. It will be available for purchase at online and offline stores nationwide starting from the 14th.
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