Private Project

Crossroads

“Crossroads” explores the ever changing face of South Korea since the Sewol ferry disaster that tragically killed 304 people, mainly High school children, in April 2014.
The film takes us on a journey through Korean modern history exploring the changes the country has gone through since April 16th 2014.

It encompasses emotional re-enactment narrations from survivors, interviews with family members, activists, historians and the general public, as we go in search of how Korea came to yet another crossroads in its history.

Will the raising of the sunken Sewol ferry reveal the truth about the accident, hidden for so long?
Can the families finally put their loved ones to rest, and allow themselves time to grieve after their endless struggles and never ending battles with an ever oppressive government intent on hiding the facts?
Can the new Sewol generation alter the destiny of South Korea and bring about much needed reform after the impeachment of the President?
Will the Chaebols continue to rule? Will the silent majority continue to hold sway over a young, fresh and vibrant generation, all of whom are fighting for change in what appears to be a dysfunctional system?

At a time in the world where people feel so divided can what is happening in South Korea provide a beacon of hope for others around the world?

  • Neil P. George
    Director
    After the Sewol
  • Neil P George
    Writer
    After the Sewol
  • Neil P George
    Producer
    After the Sewol
  • Hankyul Kim
    Producer
  • Matthew Root
    Producer
    After the Sewol
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Genres:
    Documentary, Asian, Political, social, Korean, Korea
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 22 minutes
  • Production Budget:
    22,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Korea, Republic of
  • Country of Filming:
    Korea, Republic of, United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English, Korean
  • Shooting Format:
    RED, HD
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1:85
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Neil P. George

Neil George is the producer and director of the award winning film ‘After the Sewol’. He was born and raised in Exeter, England and has been living in South Korea since 2011 teaching film production at a media university as well as producing documentaries related to Korean society.

The producer and director of over 100 TV programmes for Sky in the 2000’s he took the decision to move to Korea when offered an opportunity to teach documentary production at a media university near Seoul and has been there ever since.

After moving to Korea he took great interest in the society and culture and found a passion for human rights film making. He produced the award winning film, ‘While they Watched’ (2014/15), a film about North Korean defectors and after this he went onto to co-direct and produce the film, ‘Beyond the Picture; The story of Sohn Kee Chung’, a film about Sohn Kee Chung, the marathon runner who won the 1936 Berlin Olympic gold medal and the only gold medalist, to date, to never hear his own national anthem played whilst standing on the podium.

After completing this in late 2015 he moved onto produce and direct the award winning documentary, ‘After the Sewol’ (2016) and has now spent the last 2 years working on ’After the Sewol’ and ‘Crossroads’ his latest film related to the Sewol tragedy.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Sadly, the world we inhabit now is one of conflict with successions of tragedies making headline news, albeit for a brief time, until we move on to the next one. The victims, and their families, are left in limbo to fight, unnoticed, for truth and justice. The Sewol ferry disaster is one such instance and I hope that my film will highlight the inherent capacity for perseverance of the Korean people.

One of the main purposes of this film is to show that the people of South Korea never give up in the face of adversity. Even after struggling through dictatorships, since the armistice in 1953, leading up to the Gwangju 5.18 uprising (1980) and the 1987 6.10 democratic movements, the people were always at the forefront of these battles, often resulting in massive casualties and death. After the country became a democracy, in 1987, it once again went through many new battles while fighting for a new society that puts the people first. The issues with North Korea are well known and documented and the powerhouse created by the Kim family remains an ever present threat to the stability of the Korean peninsula but often overshadows what the South have endured.

I hope to highlight how Korean society has changed, at great cost and with many sacrifices, especially in relation to the case of the Sewol tragedy. I want to share the stories of the victims’ families, the survivors and the activists, in the hope of inspiring other people, by showing that even after the Sewol families have lost so much, they have never given up searching for the truth and trying to bring about much needed changes to their society.

All the time whilst filming I have been so inspired by their actions. What they been through and endured since 2014 is such an incredible story of pain, sadness, determination and change that I wanted to do my part in sharing it with the world.

This film, like Korea, is a big part of my life now and what I witnessed over my time filming has given inspiration not only to me but to others. We saw this determination assist in bringing down a President and we can only admire the efforts put in by the families and activists. I hope that this remarkable story can give hope to others that it is possible to affect change, it just take a lot of time and effort.

I believe that the message of the film rings true for many people around the world and it is my hope everyone can identify with these families and be inspired to make changes in their own communities.

This has without doubt become one of the most defining moments in Korea’s modern history and I hope that people can learn lessons from the Sewol families and their truly remarkable story.