POK DONG (2006) – part of the KAFFNY – L.A. Riots 20th Anniversary Program – June 10th
June 1st, 2012 by Mr. C
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Directer: Alex Dongwan Ko
Producer: Jarrett Lee Conaway and Joseph Suh
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I couldn’t find a better way to celebrate KAFFNY by acknowledging the Korean-American experience by wrapping my eyes around POK DONG, a no frills documentary telling the story of Alex Ko’s (director) family and their life changing experience during/after the 1992 L.A. Riots as narrated by him and his parents. No – this was not a controversial in your face short film to blow your mind but rather a subtle & honest look at an immigrant family from Korea and their struggle with life while living the american dream. The documentary was a bridge of sorts for the family to open up their feelings, relive their experience to let go of the past, and to learn from their emotional scars in order to move on to a new rhyme and verse. Old family photos and video footage would help tell their tale. It’s less about a story of the riots and more about the aftereffects of the family dynamics resulting from it.
The Ko family had moved away from Korea to escape the chaos in their own country only to experience a bit of chaos in the streets of L.A. after the unjust verdict of the Rodney King case on April 29th, 1992. The Ko’s american dream with their video store that they had opened up in 1985 on Catalina & 3rd in Los Angeles began to slowly fizzle away on April 29th, 1992 – literally. The desecration of their store after the L.A. Riots had also destroyed a bit of their soul & spirits which left deep scars even a decade later. The parents fought constantly which left a gaping wound of emotions to ponder about for their children. This documentary was served up and directed by the son – Alex Ko which seemed to provide a nice therapy session for the family in order to fully come to grips with their ordeal. The parents had a zen like aura about them at the time of filming with their life of ‘building a new dream’. Some hard hitting quotes from the film included:
“In life, the only thing you truly have is family.”
“Don’t give up to hardships, there’s always another chance.”
“It’s not the end of the world. You have to live with determination.”
“I have to be buried here. This is my country too!”
The Ko’s story shares a similiar tale to many 1st and 2nd generation immigrants coming to America to plant a better seed of life for their children. It’s certainly a story that will hit home!
Pok Dong screens at the Korean American Film Festival in New York on June 10th at 12:00pm (Free): Part of the L.A. Riots 20th Anniversary Program. The screening will be held at the Anthology Film Archives in Manhattan.
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Tags: kaffny 2012, korean american film festival 2012, L.A. Riots, pok dong
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