Writer Moon Ji-won, who wrote the drama 'Weird Lawyer Woo Young-woo', which caused a syndrome last year, debuts as a feature film director. He, who has continuously told the story of a protagonist on the autism spectrum, returns this time with the story of a child whose parents (deaf) cannot hear.
On the 15th, Barunson Studio, which produced the movie 'Parasite', MBC drama 'Investigation Team Leader 1963' (working title), and TV Chosun's 'Assi Durian', announced that it would produce 'Def Voice'. 'Def Voice' is based on the Japanese novel 'Def Voice Court's Sign Language Interpreter'. Writer Moon Ji-won takes on his first directing challenge through ‘Def Voice.’
'Def Voice' features 'Coda (Children of Deaf Adult)', which refers to the children of deaf people (people who cannot hear well). It tells the story of the main character catching the real culprit of a terrible murder that occurred 20 years ago. It plans to showcase the charm of a relatable drama and a mystery mystery until the true nature of the incident is revealed.
Writer Moon Ji-won wrote the screenplay for the movie ‘Witness’ (directed by Lee Han). 'Witness' is the story that unfolds when Sun-ho (played by Jung Woo-sung), a lawyer who must prove the innocence of a strong murder suspect, meets Ji-woo (played by Kim Hyang-gi), an autistic girl who is the only witness to the crime scene. ‘Witness’ attracted 2.53 million viewers and received favorable reviews. Jung Woo-sung won the grand prize in the film category at the 55th Baeksang Arts Awards for 'Witness'.
Writer Moon Ji-won's second work was the drama 'Strange Lawyer Woo Young-woo'. 'Weird Lawyer Woo Young-woo' depicts the survival story of Woo Young-woo, a lawyer with an autism spectrum disorder, at a large law firm, similar to his previous work 'The Witness'. ‘Weird Lawyer Woo Young-woo’ caused various syndromes last year. It was released on Netflix and gained global popularity. Additionally, Park Eun-bin, who played Woo Young-woo, was honored with the grand prize in the TV category at the 59th Baeksang Arts Awards.
Artist Moon Ji-won, who has a close relationship with the autism spectrum and the Baeksang Arts Awards. He is now making his bid as a film director. In fact, writer Moon Ji-won has been preparing for his directorial debut by writing and directing short films since 2002. He wrote 'Keeping the Sea', 'Written on the Body', and 'Cococo Snow!' He directed short films and won awards at various film festivals at home and abroad.
Ji-won Moon is a writer who has continuously dealt with the autism spectrum through ‘Witness’ and ‘Weird Lawyer Woo Young-woo’. He said, "I have not been diagnosed with autism myself, nor do any of my acquaintances have autism. While I was planning a thriller genre piece, I wondered what it would be like if the witness to the incident was an autistic person. Since I did not know anything, I started researching." It was a story that was created by deeply researching the subject matter that came to mind while conceiving the work.
Writer Moon Ji-won said of 'Def Voice', "It is a story where the main character, who stands on the border between deaf and hearing, tries to find his identity as 'Coda'" and "At the same time, as a 'police officer skilled in sign language', he pursues the truth of a murder case that occurred in the deaf community. “It’s a story,” he explained. Writer Moon Ji-won this time chose a coda rather than an autism spectrum subject. 'Coda' became more known through the movie 'Coda', which won Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor at the American Academy Awards last year.
There are many cases where writers debuted as film directors, such as writer Moon Ji-won. Lee Byung-hun, director of 'Extreme Job' (16.26 million viewers), which ranked second in Korean box office history, also started out as a writer. Writer Han Jin-won, who wrote the screenplay for 'Parasite', also debuts as a director through the OTT 'Running Mate'. In addition, writer Cheon Myeong-kwan directed 'Hot Blood' and writer Gwang-jin, the author of 'Itaewon Class', directed the film 'Cabriolet'.
Director Moon Ji-won debuts as a feature film director with ‘Def Voice’. I plan to create a character different from 'Witness' and 'Weird Lawyer Woo Young-woo'. I wonder what it will be like for him to transform from a writer to a feature film director. In addition, expectations are high on whether 'Def Voice' will be able to achieve box office success for the third time in a row, following 'Witness' and 'Weird Lawyer Woo Young-woo'.
Kang Min-kyung, Ten Asia reporter kkk39@tenasia.co.kr