<Swing Diary (Seuwing Daioeri)> (1996)

Director : Lee Nan
Year of Production : 1996
Genre : Experimental Film
Format : 16mm/Color, B&W
Running Time : 13 minutes

Crew :
Screenplay/Director/Editor : Lee Nan
Cinematography : Park Yong-jun, Lee Nan
Lighting : Kim Ju-il, Kwon Ki-hwan, Kim Kwon-sik
Music : Kim Dae-hwan, Kang Tae-hwan, Jeong Song-jo, Lee Ju-han, Lee Young-kyung
Distributor : Indie Story

Cast :
Lee Nan, Kim Ji-yang, Kim Gi-tea, Han Soo-chul, Choo Dae-joong

Synopsis

The life of a porn actor during an undefined period of time.
The actor gets up in the morning, defecates, and looks into the mirror supremely self-absorbed and self-satisfied, then, he heads to the film studio. He loses himself in the thought of how he will use the money that he will receive after the shoot is over. Then, he is beaten by a gang who forces him to renew his contract. After he returns home, he falls asleep in his girlfriend’s arms and dreams about awkward sex and an uncomfortable vagina. In the morning, he does not brush his teeth and avoids the peering eyes of others, but...

Notes

A film that expresses the “I” through an elegant and provocative visual language which was rare for the times. (Kang So-won) A film with a bold subject matter which breaks all conventions of form. It presents new horizons for the independent film. (Kim Dong-won)
This is a film about a porn actor. The film breaks with convention and a jazz performance scene is interposed into it in order to pose questions about art and the practical aspects of making a living. The movie moves between jazz-like, improvisational direction and structured drama. Through self-confessional scenes, the movie shows the agonies of artists who must also make a living. It was an attempt to combine the elements of dramatic films, documentaries and experimental films, which were rare for its time.

Notes on the Production

Swing Diary continuously juxtaposes scenes of jazz performances with scenes from the fictional drama of the movie.
During planning for a documentary on Korean jazz, I discovered analogies between swing and improvisation, and documentation and fiction, and found myself wanting to unite the “real” and the “fictional,” which had always been the way my life was. This is where I got the idea for fictionalizing reality and making fiction real. In the movie, I attempted to reveal the truths of life through strict temporal-spatial divisions and formal structuring.
The movie shows how we subconsciously improvise our way through our lives while “swinging” to the rhythm of those around us. It was made with my belief that movies reveal truths by the strict division of spatial-temporal elements and structuring of form.

Awards and Showings at Film Festivals

Special Showing of the film held at the 10th Sao Paulo International Short Film Festival (1999, Brazil)
Shown as part of the 2nd Pusan International Film Festival Wide Angle Category
Officially Shown at the Korean Independent Film and Video Makers’ Forum of 1997, held at Indie Forum 97
2nd Place at the 22nd Seoul Independent Film Festival, 1997

Director Bio : Lee Nan (1971- )


Born in 1971, he directed such films as Prologue (1992), Swing Diary (1996), Slowly (1998) and A Ring of Memory (Kiukui hwan) (2002).