A State of Mind
Documentary | UK | 2004 | 93 minutes 
Director: Daniel Gordon
Language: Korean, English + English subtitles
Produced by VeryMuchSo in association with Passion Pictures
BBC, ARTE, WNET & Koryo Tours
Film website: http://www.astateofmind.co.uk/
A rare documentary offering a surprisingly intimate look at one of the world’s least known societies, North Korea.
Synopsis
Described in the op-ed page of The New York Times as “the most bizarre… most regimented, militarized and oppressive country in the world,” North Korea seems completely sealed off from outside influences. The country follows its own communist ideals, a strict philosophy known as Juche wrapped around the worship of the Kim dynasty – Kim Il Sung, their Eternal President who died in 1994 but remains Head of State, and his son and successor, Kim Jong Il, known as the General.
North Korea may be unique among nations in not having had a single political demonstration in the past 50 years; however its officially devised Mass Games is a spectacle of extravagant proportions: tens of thousands participate in elaborately choreographed, dazzlingly colourful, jaw dropping gymnastic displays, after months of daily, grueling rehearsals. It is simply the biggest and most elaborate human performance on earth.
UK filmmaker Daniel Gordon and his crew began filming in February 2003 with unique access to the two families’ day to day life, from home, at work in the city, and to countryside. It offers a remarkable insight into a part of North Korean society. For an unbelievable period of nine months, the lives of two girls were documented as they were training for the Mass Games. Gordon paints a candid portrait of their difficult (though by North Korean standards, very privileged) lives in this fascinating look at one of the world’s most hidden societies. Through the voice of three generations of North Koreans, the film reveals more of North Korea than anything that’s ever been seen before…
Selected Awards
2005 Official Selection Sydney Film Festival
2004 Official Selection Pusan Int’l Film Festival
Official Selection Int’l Documentary Festival Amsterdam
Special Film Award Pyongyang Int’l Film Festival, North Korea
The Filmmaker
DANIEL GORDON (Director/Producer)
Daniel Gordon set up VeryMuchSo productions in January 2001. An independent production company based in Sheffield, England, VeryMuchSo productions is dedicated to the production of innovative, entertaining and stimulating programming. He has produced programming for BBC, Channel 4 and Sky Sports. In 2003, his debut film ‘The Game of Their Lives’ won the Royal Television Society award for best sports documentary. Daniel was also nominated Best Newcomer at the 2003 Grierson Awards, where the film also received a nomination for Best Historical documentary. In the same year, the film also received a nomination for Best Documentary at the British Independent Film Awards and won first prize at the Seville Film Festival.
“Ninety-three unblinking minutes of insight into the lives and minds of the people living in one of the last locked-down Communist dictatorships.” ~ Bruce Wallace, Los Angeles Times
“A rare glimpse into an opaque world, letting North Koreans have their say while illustrating the hardships of their lives in a manner almost never permitted by the Pyongyang government.” ~ Anthony Fiola, Washington Post
