Black-and-White Film Depicting Nakdong River Battle Discovered and Restored After 70 Years

Director Jeon Chang-geun's 'Nakdonggang' Premieres at Busan International Film Festival
Includes Title Song of Same Name Composed by Yun Isang and Written by Lee Eun-sang

The black-and-white sound film Nakdonggang is an educational film produced by the Local Culture Research Association. It premiered in February 1952 in Busan and other locations during the height of the Korean War. The story follows a young man who, after graduating from university, returns to his hometown and takes the lead in cultivating a better place to live together with his lover, a female teacher.

Director Jeon Chang-geun combined a dramatic film style with actual battle footage to create a semi-documentary. The tragedy of fratricidal war is depicted through the Battle of Nakdonggang, which took place from August 1 to September 24, 1950. It informed refugee audiences about the war situation while offering consolation.

Nakdonggang, produced about 70 years ago, has been restored in 4K digital format. According to the film industry, it will be premiered at the Busan International Film Festival held on the 5th of next month. The restoration was carried out by the Korean Film Archive, which discovered the original 44-minute film reel. It is the third dramatic film made during the Korean War period to be restored. It is uniquely valuable both as a record and as art because neither its visuals nor sound were lost.

Nakdonggang was directed to first present the horrific moments of war, thereby lending credibility to the solemn determination of the male and female protagonists. The background features locations such as the Nakdong River area, Dosan Seowon in Andong, Tongdosa Temple in Yangsan, and the reed fields of Eulsukdo. The Local Culture Research Association, responsible for production, was a group of cultural artists from Busan. Filming took place over about 40 days in 1951 with support from the Public Relations Department of the Gyeongnam Provincial Government.

Nakdonggang is also regarded as an important resource in the history of Korean music. This is because the film features the song Nakdonggang, composed by the world-renowned composer Yun Isang and with lyrics by Nosan (鷺山) Lee Eunsang. The main melody is similar to Yun Isang’s handwritten score Poem of Nakdonggang, discovered in 2017. The Busan International Film Festival stated, "The choral piece played at the beginning and end of the film adds grandeur to the movie."