Eight seniors over 70 try filmmaking for the first time

Here are eight joyful ‘big sisters.’ With an average age of 75, they are neighbors that live in Myeongju-dong of Gangneung City. Living there for 35 to 70 years, they got together to attend a gardening course. They thought of other things they could learn together and came up with the idea of taking photos using mobile phones. At first, they took photos of mostly flowers and said that they were too embarrassed to take selfies. After gaining confidence, they decided to learn video filming. A glimpse into these women’s sunny daily lives and filming were created into a documentary film titled “Small Garden,” which opens on July 12. The film was shown at the Seoul International Senior Music Festival in May and received a good response.

“While making the movie, I imagined what kind of life I would lead in 20 or 30 years. I hope that the audience would also ask themselves what kind of life they wish to have in their later years,” said director Mario Lee in a press conference held at the Lotte Cinema in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, on Tuesday.

Director Lee met the ladies for the first time in the photo class. After holding a photo exhibition, the classmates suggested trying something new together and began filmmaking. “I wish my husband would make his own meals,” said a lady in a self-taken video. “I wish I hadn’t married and lived with my mom,” said another, making viewers smile.

Moon Chun-hee, Kim Hee-ja, Kim Hye-sook, and Choi Soon-nam among the ladies attended the premiere. “It was fun shooting a movie when we don’t even watch movies,” said Moon with a smile. "It was a wonderful time making many good memories."


Ji-Sun Choi aurinko@donga.com