Genre 

Mystery, Drama

While finalizing a script about the life of Korean immigrants in Germany after moving to Berlin in 2019, I happened to find out about about a Korean exorcism murder case in Frankfurt am Main from 2015. A Korean woman was found dead in an InterContinental Hotel. She was believed to have died after being subjected to an exorcism act aimed at expelling ghosts. Local prosecutors said the woman was severely beaten whilst tied to a bed for several hours. Five South Korean suspects were arrested at the scene: a 44-year-old Korean woman, her 21-year-old son and daughter, and the deceased woman’s teenage son, who testified that he was trying to save his mother from her sins. (who was the fifth suspect?) They reportedly attended the same church in South Korea in the past, and had settled down together after renting a house in Sulzbach, Hesse. 

I had a conversation with a German friend who remembered the incident. Local media merely reported this case a bizarre act by an unknown cult group. However, my friend questioned Korean Collectivism, the focus on ‘Us’ rather than ‘Me’, noting that the victim and perpetrators were a group of relatives. From our discussion, I was able to view the incident from a different standpoint, which started the process of envisioning a feature film inspired by these events. 

I questioned whether Korean Collectivism, so called ‘We-ness’, coupled with a sense of ‘Otherness’ treating immigrants as strangers, caused this tragedy. (I asked myself whether the engagement of ‘Otherness’, which treats immigrants as strangers, and Korean Collectivism, so-called ‘We-ness’, led to this tragedy) Then my questions followed one after another. What evil spirits did they believe in? Was the incident caused only by religious hysteria and madness? By repeating the questions, I built the structure and developed the story. 

I have always been fascinated by the imperfect figure standing on the edge of the boundary, and have been eager to work on her/him/them as the anchor of a plot. I note those who lose the balance in their life, within the normal and abnormal categories defined by society and its systems, as motifs of creation. 

Since moving to Germany, I have felt this sense of Otherness myself. Germany’s exclusive view of immigrants has intensified since the pandemic crisis in March 2020. I had to go to extraordinary lengths to protect myself from the violence permeating in the air. These personal experiences influenced my dramatization of the Sulzbach events. I have tried to make a story about the pain of marginalized groups, not about deformed religious beliefs or the evils of pseudo-religion. 

Those diagnosed as unfit for society have the opportunity to resolve emotional instability through grouping with common tastes and norms. The characters in the story comfort each other’s flaws, and hope to restore their life balance from the bonds they have built up. However, their distorted worship of God is used to destroy each other. 

I am planning to direct my film to focus on the psychological path taken by Ga-eun, the one who received the trustful grace of God (the name ‘Ga-eun’ means a person who is blessed by God in Korean), rather than on directing to the genre tension. I hope the audience will participate in ‘the ritual’ conducted by Ga-eun, feeling the illusion of faith, and asking their own questions about the form of faith I create through the film.