Why ‘My Name Is’ is a Must-See Film: Uncovering Hidden Histories of Korea’s Past

On the afternoon of the 2nd, a press conference for the film ‘My Name Is’ (director Jeong Ji-young) was held at CGV Yongsan I’Park Mall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Director Jeong Ji-young and actors Yeom Hye-ran, Shin Woo-bin, Choi Jun-woo, and Park Ji-bin attended and spoke about the film.

‘My Name Is’ is a character-driven drama set against the 1949 Jeju 4.3 incident. Through the story of Jeong-sun (Yeom Hye-ran), a mother forced to hide her name for 78 years, and Young-ok (Shin Woo-bin), a boy desperate to shed an embarrassing name, the film approaches a painful chapter of Korean history.

◆ ‘My Name Is’ finds elegiac sorrow wrapped in beauty

Director Jeong, who has previously mined Korean society’s undercurrents in films such as ‘Broken Arrow’ and ‘Black Money,’ returns with a project that brings a little-known historical tragedy to contemporary viewers. He admitted he was hesitant to take on the film — not wanting to repeat himself — but felt he couldn’t let the screenplay’s central idea go and spent two years refining it before moving forward.

Jeong said he hopes the film will spark historical curiosity among younger audiences. Jeju’s story is one of deep pain, he noted, and many island residents still live with that trauma. Yet the broader public remains largely unfamiliar with the incident. I expect this film to prompt viewers to learn about the 4.3 incident and seek out more information, he said.

He added, The film’s visual beauty carries a raw sadness. We’ve seen strong reactions from Korean expatriates and international film professionals, but I am anxious to see how audiences in Korea will respond.

◆ Yeom Hye-ran: grounding ‘My Name Is’ in unvarnished testimony

Jeong cast Yeom Hye-ran as the film’s center. He recalled working with Yeom on his earlier film ‘The Boys,’ where she played the protagonist’s wife. Her role was small then, but her performance struck him as vivid and textured, and he wanted to collaborate with her on a larger project.

Jeong said that when he began preparing this script, Yeom contacted him expressing a desire to work together again. After that call, he wrote the role with her in mind. He admitted he had worried she might turn it down because the character is much older than the actor, but he believed Yeom would be drawn to Jeong-sun’s complexity.

Yeom said she accepted the project with care, knowing it depicted a real tragedy, but that she found the material literarily compelling. The film doesn’t merely recount the past; it asks how we, on the 78th anniversary, should confront and understand this history, she said.

Yeom’s character, Jeong-sun, embodies both the wounds and contradictions of Jeju’s people. Jeong-sun can be seen as both perpetrator and victim in different ways, and that moral ambiguity appealed to Yeom. Conveying such immense pain was the most difficult task, she said, but she identified with the character’s strength as a mother who had endured Korea’s history with her whole being.

To prepare, Yeom studied existing works about the Jeju 4.3 incident and found survivor testimonies particularly instructive. Their unfiltered language informed her approach, she said, and she also trained seriously in traditional Korean dance for the role.

◆ ‘My Name Is’ focuses on a family shaped by 4.3

Jeong avoided depicting the full extent of violence from the Jeju 4.3 incident directly. Instead, he used scenes of analogous brutality to tell the story, and he deliberately drew parallels between societal violence and school bullying to fold historical trauma into the students’ experiences.

Shin Woo-bin makes his screen debut as high schooler Young-ok. Nervous but excited about his first film, Shin said he initially worried about whether he could embody the role. Reading the script helped him see the film as the story of a family affected by 4.3, and that responsibility made him study the history more deeply.

Choi Jun-woo returned to commercial cinema after two years to play Min-su, Young-ok’s close friend. He said he deliberated on how to honor the story’s historical weight without letting that weight overwhelm the characters. I worried that playing it as a history lesson would make the performance too heavy, he said. Instead, I tried to ground Min-su as a friend within a family touched by 4.3 so Young-ok would stay centered.

Park Ji-bin, who plays Kyung-tae, the character who incites violence, said he believes figures like Kyung-tae existed then and still exist now. Although he has played antagonists before, this role was especially challenging. I asked the director about every scene, he said, and tried to portray Kyung-tae’s impact on Young-ok without distorting the character.

In closing, Jeong urged audiences to see the film. It’s a difficult watch, he acknowledged, but one he hopes many people will see. The film had no single major investor; 10,000 people pooled funds to get it started, and additional support came later. Productions like this typically cost 6–7 billion KRW, but our cast, crew, and I made sacrifices to complete it, he said. (The 6–7 billion KRW figure is roughly $4.5–5.25 million USD.)

Yeom also appealed for public interest. This film is a precious work, she said. Please give it your attention.

[TV Daily reporter Han Seoyul news@tvdaily.co.kr]