Zainichi cinema

Earlier Zainichi-themed films

The earliest Japanese films featuring Koreans or resident Koreans in Japan can be traced back to the propaganda films of the early 1920s, when Korea was still under the Japanese colonial rule. During this period, Koreans in Japan were often depicted as members of the peripheral society rather than the main characters. Moreover, the film of this era exclusively tied this particular population to the two-way images of poverty and cheap laborers. For example, in films such as Look at This Mom (1930) and The Brick Factory Girl (1940), Korean laborers in Japan were primarily depicted as impoverished residents of the marginal slums where they closely lived with other poor people. Additionally, in a film titled Mr. Thank You (1936) directed by Shimizu Hiroshi, a scene, where nomadic Korean construction workers and their family move from one place to another in Japan, was inserted while highlighting the exploitive treatment of laborers from Korea.
In the postwar era, several films played an instrumental role in publicly visualizing the struggles and oppression experienced by Zainichi Koreans. In doing so, however, the Zainichi-themed films often replicated the stereotypes of Zainichi Koreans as “violent” and “criminal.” Prominently, Death by Hanging (1968) directed by Oshima Nagisa drew the struggles of a young Zainichi Korean prisoner. The main character named “R” allegedly murdered two Japanese women after raping them. Following his arrest, the trial decided that R be executed by hanging. In the film, his violence was portrayed as an explosive manifestation of his complicated identity crisis, while his delinquent past and domestic violence within his family exclusively colored the personal character of R. Other films of this era included By a Man's Face You Shall Know (1966) by Kato Tai, Three Resurrected Drunkards (1968) by Oshima Nagisa, and Empire of Kids (1981) by Izutsu Kazuyuki. These postwar films of the 20th century were generally illustrative of the struggles and difficulties faced by many Zainichi Koreans. At the same time, Zainichi characters were repeatedly represented as Yakuza members or criminals, thereby sustaining their image as violent social outcasts.
In 1975, a movie titled River of the Stranger was shot and released by director Lee Hak-in. Unlike the earlier films with the depiction of Zainichi characters, this film was the first Zainichi-themed film that was directed by a Zainichi Korean director. Subsequently, his work was followed by other Zainichi Korean film directors such as Sai Yoichi, Lee Sang-il, Yang Yong-hi, Oh Mipo, and Sugino Kiki, while Japanese directors continued to produce Zainichi-themed films.

Contemporary Zainichi films (1990s-Present)

In 1993, director Sai Yoichi released an award-winning movie titled All Under the Moon. The unveiling of this film was seen by many critics as the major transition in the existing representation of Zainichi Koreans in the film industry. Based on a novel called Taxi Crazy Rapsody, the story unfolds when a Zainichi taxi driver, Tadao, fell in love with a Filipino bartender. The melodramatic portrayal of Zainichi characters was unconventional in that it broke the recurring representation of Zainichi Koreans as Yakuza members or violent criminals.
Since 2000, many Zainichi-themed films such as Go (2001), Blood and Bones (2004), Break Through! (2005) have been released. In comparison to the limited availability and representation in the earlier Zainichi-themed films, the recently released films have enabled more humanistic representation of Zainichi Koreans. Moreover, Zainichi-themed films such as Our School (2007) and Anarchist from Colony (2017) were directed by South Korean film directors, respectively Kim Myeong-joon and Lee Joon-ik. This transnational trend has brought some new insights into the contemporary Zainichi cinema while reflecting this rapidly changing film industry.