Popular Nigerian Rapper Produces
Records 600,000 Views in 8 Days After Release
A movie produced in Nigeria that imitates clich?s from Korean dramas and features the Korean language has become a hot topic. A clich? refers to a trite or stereotypical scene or technique.
On the 6th, the Nigerian film My Sunshine, My Haetsal was released on YouTube. This 1 hour and 15 minute-long movie tells the story of the female lead, Charis, who enrolls in Saint Paul Baptist High School, a Korean school in Nigeria.
Since the movie is set in a Korean school, English, Korean, and Yoruba (a language spoken in southwestern West Africa) are continuously mixed throughout the film. In a scene where two Nigerian female students with long dreadlocks chat while going to school, the Nigerian actors casually utter Korean words like "daebak" and "geunde" (meaning "awesome" and "but," respectively). The teachers greet each other with "annyeonghaseyo," and the principal even explains that "Korean is the most wonderful language in the world."
In a scene where two Nigerian female students with long dreadlocks chat as they walk to school, Nigerian actors fluently speak Korean words like "daebak" and "geunde." [Photo by YouTube channel 'KEMZ MAMA']
Most of the dialogue is in English, but Korean and Yoruba are incessantly interspersed. The Nigerian actors playing students freely use expressions like "michyeosseo?" ("Are you crazy?"), "nae mari~" ("I know, right~"), "assa" ("yes!"), "eotteokhae" ("what to do"), and "ppalli" ("quickly"), to the point that by the latter half of the film, it doesn't even feel out of place. In a scene where Charis talks with her mother, instead of using "Mom" or "Iya" (Yoruba for mother), she uses the Korean term "eomma" (mom).
Especially in the scene where the female lead talks with her mother, she uses the Korean term "eomma" instead of "Mom" or "Iya" (Yoruba for mother). There is also a scene where a male student approaches the female lead, confessing his feelings after writing "PROM gati gallae" ("Will you go to prom with me?") on his T-shirt, mixing English and Korean. In a scene where the emotions of the male and female leads intensify, a Korean version of "You Are My Sunshine" is played with imperfect Korean pronunciation. The plot and character settings are similar to Korean dramas like Boys Over Flowers and The Heirs. It tells the story of a poor but spirited female lead attending an elite school who meets and falls in love with a wealthy male lead. A kind male student who secretly loves the female lead and a group that envies the protagonist also appear.
This film tells the story of the heroine Charis as she enters St. Paul Baptist High School, a Korean school in Nigeria. Since the setting of the film is a Korean school, English, Korean, and Yoruba (a language spoken in the southwestern part of West Africa) are continuously mixed throughout the movie. [Photo by KEMZ MAMA, YouTube channel]
This film was directed by JJC Skills, a famous Nigerian rapper and producer. Nigerian actor and creator Kemi Ikusedun wrote the screenplay and played the female lead. The movie has attracted attention on social networking services (SNS) and domestic online communities. As of the 15th, nine days after its release on YouTube, it has surpassed 600,000 views.
Local media praised it as "the first Nigerian film to incorporate Korean." It is also regarded as an innovative fusion of Nigerian cinema and Korean culture. However, some critics commented, "Although it is a fresh attempt, the plot is weak, and mixing English and Korean even in short lines affects the flow of the work."
Domestic netizens who watched the video commented, "I was surprised that everyone spoke Korean well and had good pronunciation," "It was such an interesting setting that I had to watch until the end," "I was even more surprised by the high quality than I expected; I'm curious how far K-dramas will go," "Thank you for producing a movie using Korean out of love for Korean culture," "I saw it on a community site. It's really amazing," and "It's really creative and genuinely fun," among other praises.
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