(Korean Movies) Silenced, 2011

2000~2004 Students with disabilities at 00 School (7~22 years old, 8 or more) habitually sexually assaulted
On June 22, 2005, some faculty members reported sexual assault on students to the Sexual Violence Counseling Center for the Disabled.
On July 8, 2005, the Sexual Violence Countermeasure Committee was formed, which consisted of 26 civic groups.
November 1, 2005 MBC PD Notebook “Hidden truth, accusation of sexual assault case at special school” report
On November 17, 2005, two people, including the former chief of administrative office and a rehabilitation teacher, were arrested on charges of sexual assault.
From May 16, 2006 to January 12, 2007 (242 days), a tent demonstration calling for an order to dismiss the foundation officers
On August 21, 2006, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea recommended the dismissal of executives and charged 6 additional perpetrators.
December 8, 2006 00School Sexual Violence Countermeasures Committee, Korea Human Rights Award
March 19, 2007 18 middle and high school students start refusing to attend school
April 26, 2007 ~ May 25, 2007 Students from School 00, a tent class in front of the City Office of Education
May 28, 2007 Students throw eggs and flour at the principal
On May 31, 2007, the school principal sued students for assault.
On June 13, 2007, a faculty member who was released from office for sexual assault was reinstated.
June 24, 2007 A group that loves deaf students signed the complaint withdrawn
September 27, 2007 Disciplinary action such as dismissal, cancellation of appointment, suspension, reduction of wages, etc.
The daycare worker who first reported the situation to the outside world was placed on standby and eventually dismissed.
On October 10, 2007, the former principal sentenced to five years in prison for sexual assault.

However, the principal was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months and 3 years probation at the appeals court. After one year in prison, he was released from prison and died of cancer.
Administrative office staff accused of charges, but sentenced for damages of 20 million won without imprisonment
Plaintiff sentenced to 10 months in prison. However, no punishment was ever executed due to the expiration of the right of prosecution.

Published the novel ‘The Crucible’ in June 2009 (Author Gong Ji-young)

In 2011, 00 School, attempted to change the school name to ‘☐☐School’, and applied for a change in the Articles of Incorporation to broaden the scope of the rehabilitation project from hearing and speech disabilities to intellectual disabilities.
On July 6, 2011, the 00School Sexual Violence Countermeasure Committee held a press conference condemning the application to change the name of 00School and the Articles of Incorporation.

The perpetrator of sexual violence and the person in charge still officially go to work as a member of 00 School.

The only downside of the truth is that it is terribly lazy. Because of the pride that the truth is always the only truth, she shows off her raw body and doesn’t try to convince her with any decorations. So the truth is sometimes outrageous, usually illogical, and often inconvenient. While the untruths work tirelessly to cover up inconsistencies, apply anger, and tremble diligently, the truth may simply lie down and wait for the persimmons to fall into your mouth. In fact, there is a good reason why the truth is turned away from everywhere in the world.
-Gong Ji-young, in ‘The Crucible’

“I went to a church where a deaf child attended. While watching the silent worship service in the back seat, I suddenly thought of that. ‘If someone has a bad heart and attacks those children, they will succeed so easily.’ At that moment, I desperately realized how weak and in need of protection these deaf children are. Even thinking about the actual events of <The Crucible> now, I feel resentful and I think it is something that should never be overlooked. It will be happy and rewarding if a social atmosphere with interest and respect for children with disabilities is created through <The Crucible>. Besides, <The Crucible> is fun to touch the basic definition and anger we have. The process of seeing how these children reveal the unbelievable truth to the outside world on an isolated island is also one of the things that makes the film so much to look forward to.”
-Gong Ji-young during an interview with <The Crucible>

[ About Movie ]

Forgotten incident in the world in 2011,
Rising to the surface with the movie <The Crucible>!
In the four years since 2000, an unbelievable thing happened at a school for the deaf. School staff, including the principal, continued to sexually assault deaf children, and the people at the school ignored it. What is even more surprising is that most of the perpetrators and those responsible for the incident still stand in the denomination without being punished by law. The case was quickly forgotten due to the flimsy punishment of the legal community and the indifference of the media, and the victims are still fighting a lonely struggle.
Meanwhile, films based on shocking true stories such as <Memories of Murder>, <Children> and <The Voice of the Gnome> have had a huge ripple effect on Korean society beyond the film industry. In particular, <The Crucible> requires greater social attention in that the victims of the incident are minors and disabled people who cannot speak or hear. The film <The Crucible>, which deals with the difficult process of telling the truth to the world for children who are abused at school, will rise as the hottest issue in 2011 with the power of shocking truth and emotion.

“You could never give the truth to a dog”
Film adaptation of the novel ‘The Crucible’ by Gong Ji-young, one of Korea’s leading writers
Gong Ji-young, Korea’s leading writer, such as ‘Mackerel’, ‘Bongsoon’s older sister’, and ‘Our Happy Hour’.
Her novel ‘The Crucible’, published in 2009, turned the world upside down. This novel, which deals with a case of sexual assault on a child with a disability that actually occurred at a school for the deaf, was serialized online for six months on the portal site Daum from November 2008 to May 2009, and recorded a whopping 16 million clicks. Writer Gong Ji-young, who said that the first line of inspiration for the novel was a newspaper article, said, “As soon as their light sentences released on probation were translated into sign language, the courtroom was filled with the incomprehensible cries of deaf people.” Said the article ‘occupied’ himself. In the face of an unbelievable real-life incident, Gong Ji-young stopped other novels she had been preparing for and began to devote herself to writing ‘The Crucible’. In the novel ‘The Crucible’, many netizens were heartbroken as if they were their own, and they hoped that the forgotten incident would be known to more people. The reader’s support eventually led to the publication of the novel ‘The Crucible’ in print in 2009, and the film ‘The Crucible’ was released in 2011.

As she said, “The truth can never be given to a dog,” I hope that the truth that the movie <The Crucible> wants to show moves the hearts of Korea once again.

Gong Yoo launches the movie <The Crucible>.
Gong Yoo, Korea’s representative sweet guy. His soft and romantic image in works such as the drama [The 1st Coffee Prince Store] and the movie <Finding Kim Jong-wook> captured the hearts of Korean women in an instant. Sometimes like a younger brother, sometimes like a friend, he steals women’s hearts with comfort, but he tries to transform into a mature man with <The Crucible>. Kang In-ho, played by Gong Yoo in <The Crucible>, is a thoughtful and serious art teacher who comforts hurt children and tells the world the truth for them. Gong Yoo received sign language training two months before filming and became immersed in the role of ‘In-Ho’, a teacher at a school for the deaf.
There is a special reason for this effort of sharing. It is said that he was shocked and moved by the novel ‘The Crucible’ by Gong Ji-young, which he received as a gift to commemorate his promotion while serving as a sergeant in the military. Gong Yoo, who said, “I felt a lot of resentment against myself and a lot of resentment against myself that something like this could happen in the world we live in, why did I know now,” said Gong Yoo, expressing an active interest in making the novel into a film, and his interest eventually turned to novels. Crucible’ was made into the movie <The Crucible> and released to the world.
In other words, the starting point of the movie <The Crucible> was Gong Yoo, and Kang In-ho, played by him, “wants to tell the world the buried truth” can be said to be another Gong Yoo himself.

[ Production Note ]

There are real tears in <The Crucible>!
The phrase about the ‘court scene’ that made writer Gong Ji-young fold the novel she was working on and write <The Crucible> came to have an important meaning for director Hwang Dong-hyuk. This is because the scene where the perpetrators were punished with a light sentence and the deaf people were angry at this was the climax that made this case an unfinished fight. Director Hwang Dong-hyeok, who was struggling to produce a more realistic scene, decided to cast real deaf people as court audiences, which led to a surprising coincidence. The person who attended the school in which <The Crucible> was set took part in the filming. As someone who watched the unbelievable event more closely than anyone else, the filming of <The Crucible> reminded him of the memories of that time. He was immersed in the situation in the play while filming the scene in which the perpetrator was released on probation, and he wet the eyes of many with his sincere tears and cries. His real tears captured in the camera will be passed on to the audience as they are, leaving a deep echo.

Gong Yoo & Jung Yu-mi were sick with the character for 4 months.
The filming of <The Crucible> made the two main actors consume more energy than any other action movie. When I was hit by water cannons at the protest site, I was about to stagger because of the actual water pressure, not the smoke, and I was injured while breaking glass with my bare hands. However, what bothered Gong Yoo and Jung Yu-mi more than anything else was the weight of the actual incident that they had to feel throughout the filming. Filming Crucible was not an easy film for actors who had to get closer to the actual event and express their shocking emotions than anyone else. Gong Yoo confessed, “It was only after filming was over that I realized that I had been very sick for 4 months with the character.” Jung Yu-mi also said, “I checked every moment if I was acting sincerely. “I thought a lot about how I should think about this incident and people,” he said. The two actors, who endured hard times to tell the truth to more people, are now preparing to present hot tears and emotions to the audience after overcoming the pain of four months.

Yeondu, Yuri, and Minsu’s dazzling performances by mature child actors!
If In-ho (Gong Yoo) and Eugene (Jung Yu-mi) lead the audience to the center of truth, it would be Yeondu, Yuri, and Minsu’s fragile and hurt faces to greet the audience at the center. The movie <The Crucible> would not have been possible without Yeondu, Yuri, and Minsu, who had the courage to change the situation without losing human trust in Inho and Eugene despite suffering inhumane abuse. Despite the young age of 12 and 14, the three child actors, who could only communicate in sign language due to the setting of the deaf child, performed dazzling performances, causing the viewers to burst into tears and anger. Jung Yu-mi said that she felt that she was a ‘really great actor’ when she saw the child actors who act with sincerity to the point where she couldn’t stop crying even after the cut was over. Gong Yoo also revealed his affection for the child actors by revealing that he deliberately tried to keep the atmosphere of the filming set bright for fear that the children would be hurt by his sensitive acting.