‘I Am God’ PD “An expression of horror, not sensationalism”

The Netflix documentary 'I Am God: The People God Betrayed', which depicts the ugliness and horror of pseudo-religion, is causing social repercussions. Producer Seong-hyeon Cho, who directed the film, said he saw people around him being harmed by cults and thought it was a topic that needed to be addressed at some point. He said that the explicit description of the damage was a way to convey the 'fact' as is, and appealed to respect and respect the victims who confessed to the damage.

On the 10th, a press conference was held at the Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul, for PD Cho Sung-hyun of the Netflix documentary 'I Am God: Those Who Betrayed God'.

‘I Am God: Those Who God Betrayed’, which was released on the 3rd, is an 8-part Netflix documentary series that tracks the ‘messiahs’ in modern Korean history and the events and people behind them. It consists of episodes such as ‘JMS, Brides of God’, ‘The Five Oceans, 32 Dead Bodies and God’, ‘Children’s Garden, In Search of Paradise’, and ‘The Man Who Became the God of All People’. Among these, the episode dealing with the true identity of JMS Jeong Myeong-seok is causing particular stir.

JMS President Myungseok Jeong was arrested and indicted on charges of committing sexual violence (quasi-rape, quasi-rape, quasi-rape, forcible molestation, forcible molestation) against two female believers on 17 occasions from 2018 to 2019, and was sentenced to the 12th Division of the Daejeon District Court Criminal Agreement (Presiding Judge Sang-hoon Na). ) is on trial. Previously, President Chung was sentenced to 10 years in prison on similar charges in April 2009 and was released in February 2018. Immediately after his release from prison, he was arrested and handed over to trial in October last year on charges of forcibly molesting or quasi-raping a female Hong Kong citizen on a total of 17 occasions at a training center in Geumsan-gun, South Chungcheong Province, between February 2018 and September 2021.

PD Cho expressed his thoughts, saying, "I thought it would be good if many people knew about this incident and raised a social topic, and I personally feel good because it seems like social change is taking place." Regarding the reason for planning, he said, "Originally, I was going to do it at MBC, but it became difficult internally, and I personally felt it was a waste, so I proposed it to Netflix." He continued, "There are victims of cults among my family. There are victims among my friends right next to me. It was my own story, not someone else's. It was a topic like atonement that I had to deal with at any time." The decisive moment for creating this content was “when I heard Professor Kim Do-hyung’s story about his father,” he recalled. Producer Cho said, "Kim Do-hyung's father couldn't close his eyes his entire life. He put oil on his eyes. He couldn't even squint one eye. But he said, 'I was happy because I suffered a terrorist attack instead of my son.' After seeing that, he told this story to people. “I thought I should let you know,” he said.

Producer Cho from MBC said, "If it had been 'PD Notebook', it would have taken about 8 to 10 weeks to produce. I would have met far fewer people. While producing this documentary, I interviewed over 200 people. The production period was also "It took longer than I thought. It was closer to two years. We went more in-depth than any other broadcast and covered the stories we wanted to cover," he said. He also said, "We waited 40 days to meet a friend named Maple, who appeared as a victim, and interview him in person. Until that friend decided to interview us and came to Korea. If I had produced it in PD Notebook, it probably wouldn't have worked. There was a lot to do with the programming, method, etc. “It was good for me not to have to worry about anything,” he said.

PD Cho confessed, "I thought I had to show the truth. Rather than ending with 'the cult leader did something bad to the believer,' I wanted to include what kind of damage the victims suffered and why people still believe them to be the Messiah." He continued, "I think you can be followed and threatened as much as you want, but the most difficult thing was that many of the victims who were supposed to be interviewed suddenly disappeared or did not respond. I couldn't relax throughout the filming. They knew how much of a cult it was. “We knew that it was a dangerous and scary entity. So many people changed their minds, and that was difficult for the production team,” he said.

Viewers are responding that they cannot bear to see the explicit production, such as exposed breasts, exposed body hair, and the bodies of people who committed suicide with only their faces mosaiced.

Producer Cho emphasized, "I know that there is a keyword called sensationalism. I think it is natural to have awareness of the problem. However, this is not a movie or entertainment show, it is the fact that someone actually suffered. Please pay attention to that." did. He then raised the issue, saying, "Many media and broadcasting have covered this incident so far, but I would like to ask the question, how did these religious groups exist and how did this happen repeatedly?"

PD Cho said, "I think there are a couple of things that are controversial. The transcript of Jung Myeong-seok and Maple saying 'I did it 50 times'. JMS tried to show how it educates believers. They say it was manipulated through AI. “This is not the first time that a scene showing naked women in a bathtub has been broadcast. It has been shown in the mosaic state several times before,” he explained. PD Cho conveyed the religious group’s position. He said, "I will tell you exactly what I said there. The first explanation was that 'women selling their bodies received money and intentionally manipulated it to make such videos.' And then it was said that an insider had made a mistake by revealing it. Then, she wore a bikini swimsuit and “I said it was a video I took,” he said.

Regarding the reason for showing it so clearly, PD Cho said, "I think that if we don't show the facts as they are, we will build another defense for the people inside. Showing it very clearly, even if one or two of the people inside are true, is true." “I think they will figure it out and come out,” he emphasized. Also, "As for the provocativeness, are there people who see it and think it is sex appeal? It's such a terrible and ugly thing. Myung-Seok Jung may have felt it was provocative while watching it, but I think men and women in general would feel devastated when they see it. Netflix said it was a scene like this. “Some expressed concerns about including it. However, from the producer’s perspective, I had to include ‘I wrapped it 50 times’ at the very beginning,” he said.

Regarding Maple, who was interviewed as a victim, PD Cho said, "This is not the first time Maple has appeared on Korean TV. She also appeared on JTBC News and was interviewed. We respect and sympathize with the awareness of the problem, but we should have looked into the production's intention to prevent another victim from appearing. “I think this form was right,” he said.

When it was said that it would have been difficult to recruit the victims, PD Cho agreed. He confessed, "It was especially difficult to recruit female victims. In some cases, the husbands did not know, and because I, the producer, am a man, there were many cases where I did not receive contact from the female victims." He continued, "We met first without an interview, and gained trust over a long period of time. After that, they told us the terrible story without hesitation. After the documentary came out, they expressed regret that they could not be more specific, but they did not agree with it." “I liked it,” he said.

When asked if there was any unrest within religious groups, he said, "From the PD's point of view, I wanted more people to watch the documentary. I thought it would be good for at least one or two people to watch it. There are cafes where post-JMS believers come in. There are people who left after watching this documentary. "There are many. There are people among insiders who are agitated and reacting. I think we have stimulated them to actually choose to leave. Personally, it is rewarding," he said.

PD Cho said, "I think cults are monsters that our society has bred. Myung-Seok Jung was sentenced to 10 years in prison after doing such terrible things to so many women. Warren Jeffs, known as the 'American version of JMS', received 20 years to life in prison. Similar types of people." It is a crime. I think the emphasis will be even stronger on Jung Myung-seok. After being released from prison, Jung Myung-seok was a sex offender wearing an electronic anklet, but he became a victim again, and among them are minors. Why is our society always becoming such a safe country for cult leaders? , I also thought about such questions while thinking about and researching items. I wondered if our society was taking a bystander position toward religious leaders. It made me carefully think about whether we should not acknowledge religiousness." He continued, "There is something we don't want to forget. It's not that people who join religious organizations lack ability or anything like that. JMS was a place where students from prestigious universities entered in the early days. Socially, these issues should be ignored in the name of religious freedom. “I think it needs to be regulated to some extent,” he said.

Professor Kim Do-hyung of Dankook University, who is the head of the anti-JMS group 'Exodus' that has been tracking it for over 30 years, appeared on KBS1's 'The Live' broadcast live on the 9th and exposed the true nature of JMS. Professor Kim appeared on 'I Am God' and testified that his father was terrorized by JMS believers due to his activities, and that even the plastic surgeon where his father was supposed to undergo surgery at the time was a JMS believer.

On this day's broadcast, Professor Kim caused a stir by revealing that KBS also has JMS. The public is also watching with interest to see who the JMS believers are in the entertainment industry. ‘Detection work’ is being done both at KBS and in the entertainment industry.

PD Cho said, "What surprised me while covering the story is that there are many people who believe in pseudo-religions, even those who call themselves high-ranking people, all over society. As a person who lives in a country where freedom of religion is guaranteed by the constitution, I think it is wrong for those people to believe in religion. "I can't do that. I had a lot of emotions when I saw that happen yesterday," he said. When asked if he ever thought he was inside MBC, he said, "I also heard that he was inside MBC. 'Why is information being leaked like this?' “When I did it, I doubted whether he was on the team and asked Netflix to check to see if he was also on the team,” he confessed. He continued, "It could be anywhere. But are we going to hunt down those people? They just chose their religion. If those people don't cause harm to society, it could be a witch hunt. The fault is the people who believe in that religion." “It’s not the cult leaders and the people above them who create religion and lead people down the wrong path,” he emphasized.

When asked why JMS is receiving more attention while handling various cases, PD Cho replied, "I think the reason JMS is receiving more attention is because there are ongoing cases." He said, "The court said it would not extend the sentence beyond April. As additional accusers were appearing, there were concerns that the cases would be merged, the detention period would increase, and the sentence would be reduced. As the court has become a case that many people are interested in, this “We are taking the case seriously, and I believe we will make the right decision,” he said.

Producer Cho is said to have put his personal safety at risk. I was also worried about my family. PD Cho said, "They are my family. As I told them in detail what happened to me, my family started to worry. I have a son and a daughter who were born late. I worry every time I send my children to kindergarten and daycare center. "I don't think something like that will actually happen. But what happened to me during the production process? I'm camped out in front of the accommodation where Maple is staying, and there's a gap between my desire to believe and what actually happened," he said bitterly. .

When asked if he was considering season 2, PD Cho said, "When my wife found out, she said, 'I'm going to take the kids and leave home.' In a situation where there was a lot of content I wanted to cover more, I started studying and met another victim. "I'm working on it. But I don't know if that medium will be Netflix or not," he confessed.

PD Cho appealed to people to think about the pain suffered by the victims and their children caused by their parents falling into pseudo-religion. PD Cho emphasized, "Victims are those who mustered up the courage to confess their harm. They should be respected and respected. They should not be objects of ridicule." Also, "There are victims who appeared in the documentary, but now I hope they turn their attention to the second generation. The second generation who were exposed without a choice should be their children. How about reporting on that? Please pay attention." “Please give it to me,” he asked.

Kim Ji-won, Ten Asia reporter bella@tenasia.co.kr