WELCOME TO NORTH KOREA
Original language title: NOORD KOREA

Country of production: Netherlands
Year: 2001
Language: Korean, English
45 mins.

WELCOME TO NORTH KOREA is an unusual tour document from the perspective of a Dutch film crew. In this country like no other, gigantic monuments to heroic leaders are seen by almost no one, deluxe hotels hold next to no guests, and traffic police direct traffic that does not exist. Those few foreigners who do visit the country are told straightforwardly about the superhuman feats of the supreme leader Kim Il-Sung, and his son, the dear leader Kim Jong-Il. Those feats seem to be the subject of every public event. Meanwhile, somewhere on the countryside, scores of people die of hunger and are buried three bodies to a body bag. WELCOME TO NORTH KOREA's filmmakers certainly revel in the exoticism of their subject, especially in the pervasive voiceover. But they also show something of the reasons for that self-cultivated exoticism.

Director: Peter Tetteroo
Script: Peter Tetteroo with Dr. Raymond Feddema
Cinematography: Pieter Groeneveld
Production Company: KRO Dutch Television
Source:
Andrea Traubner
Filmakers Library
124 East 40th Street
New York, NY 10016, USA
andy@filmakers.com

Peter Tetteroo has worked as a senior reporter for KRO Television Netherlands since 1987.

Saturday, March 22
9pm
Facets Cinematheque
Screening with THE PARADE

Sunday, March 30
3pm
Gallery Theatre
Screening with THE PARADE

FILMS ABOUT NORTH KOREA