I Came from Busan

I Came from Busan (Korean: 영도다리; RR: Yeongdodari), also known as Yeongdo Bridge, is a 2009 South Korean film written and directed by Jeon Soo-il. It tells the story of teenaged In-hwa, who gives her newborn baby up for adoption but soon regrets the decision and embarks on a journey to find the child. The Yeongdo Bridge is a key symbol in the film; In-hwa collapses on the bridge before giving birth, and the site remains a prominent part of the backdrop for the story. The Yeongdo Bridge, which connects Yeongdo to Busan, is a place where families and friends separated during the Korean War would wait to reunite; it is also a place that symbolizes the pain of loss.^[1] In-hwa is also an orphan who remembers growing up at an orphanage, which plays a part in her decision to find her child. The film focuses on the lives of young and underprivileged people who live amidst a turbulent backdrop.

I Came from Busan
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Jeon Soo-il
Screenplay by	Jeon Soo-il
Produced by	Seo Young-Woo
Starring	Park Ha-sun Kim Jung-tae Kim Min-jae Yoo Soon-chul
Distributed by	Mountain Pictures
Release dates	September 2009 (2009-09) (San Sebastian) 1 July 2010 (2010-07-01)
Running time	83 minutes
Country	South Korea
Language	Korean

The film was made on a limited budget and shot mostly in Seoul, with the later scenes filmed in Chamonix, a mountainous region in eastern France.^[2]

Plot

Eighteen-year-old In-hwa gives birth after collapsing on Yeongdo Bridge. Her best friend, Sang-min, persuades her to give the baby up for adoption, but In-hwa soon regrets the decision. She returns to the adoption center to ask for her baby. In-hwa is repeatedly turned away, but eventually obtains the address of her baby's adoptive parents, who live overseas. She embarks alone on a trip to France in search of her child.

Cast

• Park Ha-sun as In-hwa
• Kim Jung-tae as Sang-mi
• Kim Min-jae as Woo-chan
• Yoo Soon-chul as old man

Release and reception

The film was selected to participate in the 2009 San Sebastian Film Festival^[3] and was released on July 7, 2010. Variety Magazine described I Came from Busan as a despair-ridden story that is "grimly repetitive." ^[4]