President Lee Jae-myung confessed that he was moved to tears by "When Life Gives You Tangerines."
On the 30th, a meeting titled "The Dream of a Cultural Powerhouse: Korea Moving Forward with the Pioneers of K-Culture" was held at the Pine Grass lawn in front of the presidential office, inviting figures from the cultural and artistic community.
Among those present were director Kim Won-seok, who directed the Netflix series "When Life Gives You Tangerines," director Hur Ga-young, who won the first place prize at the Cannes Film Festival's Cinéfondation for the film "First Summer," world-renowned soprano Jo Su-mi, and ballet dancer Park Yoon-jae.
On this day, President Lee Jae-myung and his wife confessed that they were moved to tears while watching "When Life Gives You Tangerines."
Director Kim Won-seok said, "It seems that I am the only one among the five who did not receive an award today and is here. But it seems that the tears of the President and his wife are the real award," adding, "I didn’t expect to receive the sympathy and tears of the whole nation. It seems that they liked it more and for longer than I expected. People still mention it these days; recently, they told me they watched it late. I’m just grateful."
Spokesperson Kang Yoo-jung asked, "How much were you planning to make people cry?" and director Kim Won-seok responded, "To be honest, I tried really hard to make it funny. I never aimed to make anyone cry. I tried my best to capture the touching scenes, but I never thought it would make people cry," and smiled, saying, "Even in very sad scenes, I played non-sad music. I really tried hard to make people laugh. Many people say they cried, so it seems they think it’s a sad drama, but it’s actually a really funny and enjoyable drama, so I want to promote it until the end."
The First Lady, Kim Hye-kyung, who said she waited to watch "When Life Gives You Tangerines," remarked, "After I watched it first, I thought this person (the President) would catch up and watch it all in one go since he had time on the weekend. I cried while watching it alone for the first time, but watching it together the second time, I cried less. So it seems he held back and cried secretly behind me," recalling, "Perhaps while watching the main character, I was reminded of the mothers and sisters of our modern history. In particular, I heard my sister-in-law, who went to heaven, had the childhood name Ae-ja. That likely triggered my tear ducts."
President Lee Jae-myung stated, "During the last presidential election period, I watched 'When Life Gives You Tangerines' in a binge on the weekend, and I discovered something truly remarkable. I was not confident about Korea's cultural potential or how much latent potential it has, but after watching 'When Life Gives You Tangerines,' I thought, 'This could be the decisive moment for Korea to grow into an industry that can stand out globally.'" He continued, "It dealt with the difficult times in Jeju's past, but as Korea has rapidly grown, social and economic conditions have drastically changed. While we empathize with conflicts between mothers-in-law and daughter-in-laws or the patriarchal culture of male preference, I wondered if people around the world could empathize. It received tremendous empathy, which I believe is thanks to its delicate expressiveness. I thought that Korea's cultural capabilities are not only about music but also about new realms."
He added, "I have been contemplating how to grow this opportunity to give our people a chance to enjoy a culturally high-level culture, create jobs, and enhance Korea's national power. It seems that 'When Life Gives You Tangerines' demonstrated a lot of possibilities," and noted, "On a national scale, if we invest in the cultural sector, provide opportunities to the emerging generation, develop the industry, and expand globally to enhance Korea's cultural influence, we can become a strong and leading nation. Thinking about this makes me proud."
Moreover, President Lee Jae-myung added, "I thought I was crying because it was naturally my menopausal period" regarding the fact that he was moved to tears while watching 'When Life Gives You Tangerines.'
Meanwhile, "When Life Gives You Tangerines," starring IU and Park Bo-gum, is a series that unfolds the adventurous life of a "feisty rebel" named Ae-soon born in Jeju and a "foolish iron man" named Gwan-sik through the four seasons. It was released globally on Netflix in March, reaching over 190 countries, and received great love.
[Photo] Captured from Netflix, MBCNEWS YouTube
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