SGIFF Defies 109 Korean Lawmakers, Keeps 'The Assassin(s)' as Opener

The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) will keep Hur Jin-ho's "The Assassin(s)" as its opening film on Oct. 21, a day after all 109 lawmakers of South Korea's ruling People Power Party (PPP) asked organizers to drop it.

The festival said the title was chosen on merit. "The film was selected through SGIFF's independent curatorial process for its artistic merit and contribution to contemporary Asian cinema," SGIFF said in a Wednesday statement that did not name the PPP.

SGIFF cited Korean Film Council data showing roughly 2.5 million admissions in South Korea and 47% seat occupancy over the Chuseok holiday. The film world premiered at Toronto and was second runner-up for the festival's international People's Choice award. Hur is due to attend with actors Shim Eun-kyung and Park Sung-hoon.

What does the film depict?

"The Assassin(s)" opened in Korea on Sept. 23. Yoo Hae-jin stars as a police inspector who witnesses the Aug. 15, 1974 shooting at the National Theater, where Yuk Young-soo, the wife of then-President Park Chung-hee, was killed during Liberation Day celebrations. Park Hae-il plays a newspaper social affairs desk chief; Lee Min-ho plays a rookie reporter.

The official inquiry blamed Mun Se-gwang alone, citing North Korean instructions. Hur's film declines to name a culprit, and its detractors argue the open ending points to Park or his government. In a Sept. 28 statement, the producers said: "Nowhere in the film is any specific individual defined as being behind the incident, and the film's hypotheses and dramatic settings are not presented as historical fact."

How has the dispute escalated?

The PPP letter, signed Tuesday by floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik and addressed to SGIFF executive director Jeremy Chua, urged an immediate reversal. It cited a survey of 1,017 adults in which 58.2% called the film a distortion and 27.6% considered it creative freedom. It also pointed to objections from Park Ji-man, chairman of EG Group and son of Park and Yuk.

The row has already reshaped the film's festival run at home. On Oct. 1, the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) called off "Actors House: Lee Min-ho," citing unavoidable circumstances. A day later, distributor Hive Media Corp. withdrew cast and crew from all BIFF appearances on safety grounds. A conservative group said it would picket Yoo Hae-jin's home daily until month's end.

The Producers Guild of Korea (PGK) said the dispute had moved past criticism. "Exposing the personal details and family relationships of individuals who participated in a project, or exerting pressure on their normal activities, goes far beyond legitimate criticism and can never be justified," the PGK said.

The Directors Guild of Korea (DGK) added its voice. "Cinema must carry on as a place where different ideas and voices meet, even when it stirs up debate," the DGK said. "If that freedom disappears, it becomes hard for new films and new stories to be born."

Former PPP Seoul city councilor Lee Jong-bae has asked Seoul police to investigate Hur, Hive Media Corp. CEO Kim Won-kuk, and writers Kwon Ki-jun and Lee Ji-min for defamation. PPP lawmakers also tried to summon Hur to testify at the annual parliamentary audit; the Democratic Party blocked that move on creative freedom grounds.

SGIFF's Oct. 21 gala will now unfold under the weight of an unresolved legal and political campaign in Seoul, with the festival betting that curatorial independence can hold against a 109-signature demand.