Love Letter to Gangjeong Maul


Love Letter to Gangjeong Maul, 2011


Love Letter is a short, raw documentary film set to an audio compilation of no-rae-bang (Korean word for karaoke) style songs.  As visitors watch the film they are asked to sing along with the audio.   The video footage depicts activists fighting the construction of a naval base.  It shows one day of strategy to reach "Gureombi," a sacred coastal lava rock that is home to an endangered species of crab. The activists swim, row in kayaks, and travel on foot with the purpose of dispersing the police to finally reach the rock and document international law violations.  

Ganjeong Maul(village) is a small coastal village on the island Jeju, to the south west of the Republic of Korea. Starting in 2006, the village began fighting the construction of the naval base.   In 2011 this had resulted in the polarization of their community and the militarization of their town.  For those fighting the naval base, a major point of upset was the destruction of a beloved section of Gureombi.

The day I visited Gangjeong Maul Gureonmbi was blasted and broken up multiple times, which can be observed at the end of the video.  I took position on the speed boat, performing surveillance of the police and functioning as a strategic distraction.