Director Choi Yoon-jin expressed his position regarding the court's 'injunction dismissal decision' surrounding the film 'Big Deal'.

On the 26th, Choi Yoon-jin, credited with the on-site direction of 'Big Deal', held a press conference in Gwanghwamun, Jongno-gu, Seoul to clarify his stance.

The production company The Lamp and Director Choi have been experiencing internal conflicts regarding 'Big Deal'. Originally, 'Big Deal' was completed under the title 'Moral Hazard' and the first edit version was released, but it became controversial amidst a scenario copyright dispute in 2023 while post-production was ongoing. Director Choi received a notice of dismissal from the production company in September last year and subsequently filed for a provisional injunction to suspend the effect of the termination of the directorial contract in court.

At that time, the production company stated the reason for the director's dismissal, saying, "The director deceived us by claiming it was a sole screenplay, and later we discovered there was a separate original author. Trust was undermined, and the first edit was also terrible, so we could no longer entrust it to him." The production company and SHOWBOX credited Choi Yoon-jin as the 'on-site director' considering the filming conditions until the termination.

In response, Choi Yoon-jin's side opposed, stating that such terminology does not exist, and they have been engaged in a legal battle. Meanwhile, in May, The Lamp stated, "We have filed a lawsuit for confirmation of the termination of the directorial contract against the co-production company represented by the person who terminated the contract, and it is currently in progress. The opposing party (Choi Yoon-jin) filed for a provisional injunction in court to suspend the effectiveness of the termination of the contract against The Lamp, and the court, which examined the case, recognized The Lamp's explanation and dismissed all of the opposing party's requests for provisional injunction on the 27th."

It added that "the court concluded in its ruling that it cannot definitively state that The Lamp's notice of termination was illegal," “the moral rights of authorship, including the right of attribution, are naturally not transferable," "if the screenplay credit does not mention Park Hyun-woo, copyright infringement may be an issue," and "the film footage of 'Big Deal,' which is currently about to be released, appears to be edited by someone other than Director Choi Yoon-jin."

In relation to this, Director Choi Yoon-jin conveyed through the press conference that he "respects the court's position. However, as the injunction decision was made just over a week before the release date, even if we physically filed an objection, the film had to be released anyway. Due to this physical limitation, we did not file an objection."

He further stated, "The provisional injunction decision is an attempt to briefly provide a temporary position," adding, "the court did not determine that the director's contract termination decision is valid or sound," and argued that it did not recognize the legality of the dismissal of the director or judge the validity of the dismissal decision.

Additionally, he noted, "This will be sharply addressed once the main lawsuit is reopened," and stated, "In the judgment of the need for preservation regarding ‘irreparable harm’ which the provisional injunction court emphasizes, the directorial credit of the director can be resolved as a monetary damages issue through the main lawsuit, so there is no need for preservation. In other words, the provisional injunction court, which lacks understanding of the seriousness of the director's credit in the film industry, prioritized legal judgment as a result."

Finally, Director Choi appealed that "due to unfounded accusations from CEO Park and subsequent direct and indirect lawsuits and property seizures, it has become difficult to maintain everyday life," and warned that "if the outrageous violence of the producer, who shamelessly terminated the director and deleted the director's credit before releasing the film, persists under the guise of credit adjustment that undermines creators, the rights of Korean filmmakers and creators will regress." He demanded an investigation by the Ministry of Culture, institutionalization by the National Assembly to prevent recurrence, a public apology from CEO Park Eun-kyung, and restoration of the director's credit during future OTT and additional rights screenings abroad.

[Photo] Movie 'Big Deal'

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