"Silmi Island" Captures Best Film Prize at Blue Dragon Film Award
- Chang Dong-kun, Lee Na-young got away with best actor and actress awards

Kaleidoscopic lights, woos and ahs from the crowd as award winners were announced with winners, some in tears thanking the Blue Dragon Film Award organizers for their awards marked this year's 25th Blue Dragon Film Award ceremony. It kicked off on Nov.29 at Haeorum Theater of the National Theater in Seoul. Daesang Corp. and Sports Chosun were among supporters of the annual film community extravaganza.
Worthy of a special note is that Daesang Corp. has been a sponsor of the colorful annual event for the past 25 years since 1963 and is considered to have made a substantial contribution to the development of the local film industry to the extent that a number of performers and directors won awards at international film events such as Cannes and Venice.
The company since its birth in 1956 has been a food maker well known by its condiment brand Miwon. From 1996, the company has been producing foodstuff under an integrated brand name, "Chungjungwon," boosting the level of the dining culture in the country a step, said President Kim Yong-chul.
As an integrated foodstuff maker with top-notch fermentation technology, the company recorded a sales revenue of 1,280 billion won last year with a total employment of around 2,700.
The best film award went to "Silmi Island," directed by Kang Woo-suk, who also captured the best director award. The best actor award was given to actor Chang Dong-kun for his role in "Waving Taeguk Flag!" The best actress award was snatched up by actress Lee Na-young for her role in "Knowing Woman."
The best supporting actor prize was awarded to actor Chung Jae-young, with the best supporting actress award going to actress Yom Jeong-ah.
The cinematography award was handed to Hong Kyung-pyo for "Waving Taeguk Flag," the best music award was awarded to Cho Sung-woo for "When Flower Blossoming Spring Comes," the best scenario award to Choi Dong-hoon for the "Recreation of Crime."
The film "Silmi Island" by the winning best film award showed that the best film could also be a popular film among the public. It also brought the best director award to its director, which was very unusual.
Actor Chang by capturing best actor award swept all awards given to actors including best actor, best supporting actor, new actor, and popular star actor awards during his career. In 1997, the actor won the new promising actor award with his role in "Losers Revival Match," which was followed by his winning best supporting actor award for his role in "Don't Go Easy on Him." The ambitious actor won popularity awards in 2000 and 2001 before clinching the best actor award this year.
Jurors voted three times to finally pick the winner of best actress award, which went to actress Lee. Her win over such well-known female starlets as Kim Hei-su, Chun Do-yon, Kim Ha-nul and Lee Eun-ju, made her a star in the Korean filmdom overnight.
Actor Chung clinched best supporting award for his role in "Silmi Island," while actress Yom Jung-ah captured the best supporting actress award for her role in "Recreation of Crime," playing a femme fatale to perfection. Director Choi Dong-hoon won the best new director award with his movie, "Recreation of Crime," in addition to winning the best scenario award for the film.
Best director Kang Woo-suk said he thanked all the actors and staff who worked on the film, "Silmi Island," which is a real story on the 684 unit of the Korean military and got away with best film award. He also produced the movie.
The film attracted 10 million fans for the first time for a domestic film in the country. He said he tried to face the issues head on with society, not trying to evade it or detour it. "I think that helped the film," he recalled. "I put my neck on the line to make the movie that no one dared to make and I feel that I got the public endorsement for my effort," he continued.
He recalled that after four months of filming on the island, every one got tired and became very edgy and nervous. During a telephone conversation with Kim Hyung-joon, co-producer, he yelled at him saying, "Why did you decide to make this film." "I'll kill you when you visit the island here," he recalled he said on the phone. He said he was most grateful to extras, which were soldiers in training on the island. He was also very grateful to veteran actor Ahn Sung-ki, who never complained during the location on the island, although there were many discomforts. He lived and acted like an extra.
Director Kang, who now knows that films with real social messages can work, is in the process of making another film with hot social issues, entitled, "Public Enemy No.2."
Director Choi Dong-hoon, who captured both best new director and best scenario awards, said he was thankful to actors and staff who worked for him in, "Recreation of Crime."
He said he never expected to win the awards running against such a fine group of film directors and writers.
He said since every one worked so hard for the film and was so helpful to each other, he thinks that is what got the awards for him. He said he would like to work again with all of them for a film, as they were such a nice bunch of people. He said he is especially thankful to actors Paik Yune-shik and Park Shin-yang for their passionate acting. They worked hard for a fighting scene in the rain so hard that it moved him so much. He felt that he should work harder as a director, knowing that those actors worked really hard to perfect their roles in the film. The director said he is still thinking about what he will do next, but something will come out as he is in the middle of writing a script. One he is sure is that it will be a film noire.
Still a bachelor, Choi said its strictly a private matter asked if he has a steady girlfriend.
Actor Chung Jae-young, who got away with best supporting actor award, said he hit a home run the first time at bat. He registered his name on the candidates list for the first time since his debut, but he won the award, putting his name on the winners' list. He said he didn't expect to win the award as there were too many good actors on the list of candidates and he is thankful to those candidates. He said he is so glad that actress Lee won best actress award, adding that he wished that they both could have won the best actor awards in a display of his wish that he will one day shoot for best actor award. He said the film, "Silmi Island" had many difficult scenes one after another and all the performers didn't use stuntmen to do difficult scenes for them, encouraging each other and telling each other not to get hurt. He said it was why the film attracted over 10 million fans. He wished that Huh Jun-ho, who starred in the film with him and was nominated for best supporting role with him could have won the award with him together. He said his second son who was born 15 days ago brought him the luck to win the award. He thanked his wife and his five-year old son for letting him stay away for such a long time from home due to filming. But putting the joy of winning the award behind, he left for Pyeonchang, Gangwon Province, to join the crew for filming of a new movie, "Welcome to Dongmak Gol," along with actor Shin Ha-kyun and actress Kang Hea-jong. The movie is about what happened in Dongmak Gol during the Korean War.
Actress Yom Jeong-ah, who won best supporting actress award, coolly thanked his co-stars, the crew and the director for her award. She also congratulated director Choi for winning best new director and scenario awards for the film, "Recreation of Crime," saying that the film became a triple award winner.
She said all she can remember from filming the movie was having a lot of fun with no hard work. She loves the movie because all characters in the cinema have distinct personalities.
The award-winning actress spared words for her ability to play any roles including thrillers to comedy, except to say that she still has long way to go to become a real star. nw