''The Schoolgirl's Diary'' (or ''The Journal of a Schoolgirl'') is a 2007

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

n film directed by Jang In-hak. It debuted at the 2006 Pyongyang Film Festival as one of two films produced domestically that year, and was released in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

at the end of 2007. In 2016,

Radio Free Asia Radio Free Asia (RFA) is a United States government-funded private non-profit news service that broadcasts radio programs and publishes online news, information, and commentary for its audiences in Asia. The service, which provides editoriall ...

, a U.S. government-funded agency, claimed that the film had been banned in North Korea. However, this was proven false, as the film has been broadcast on North Korean state television

KCTV KCTV (channel 5) is a television station in Kansas City, Missouri, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Gray Television alongside MyNetworkTV affiliate KSMO-TV (channel 62). Both stations share studios on Shawnee Mission Parkway ...

and archived on the state-controlled news website

Uriminzokkiri ''Uriminzokkiri'' () is a North Korean state-controlled news website, much of whose content is syndicated from other news groups within the country, such as KCNA. Aside from on their own website, Uriminzokkiri also distributes information over ...

Plot

The film depicts a North Korean teenager's struggle to understand her father's devotion to his country, and to scientific achievement at the expense of his own family's happiness. Spending the vast majority of his time at work as a computer engineer in a distant town, he leaves his two daughters, wife, and mother-in-law to live in their dilapidated rural home. In questioning her father's values, the rebellious teen begins to defy her mother, a hardworking librarian who spends her evenings translating scientific articles for her absentee husband. The protagonist realizes how selfish she has been only after her father makes a major breakthrough in his scientific research and is lavished with praise for his self-sacrifice and devotion to the state.

References

External links

* * 2007 films 2007 drama films 2000s Korean-language films North Korean drama films 2006 drama films 2006 films {{2000s-drama-film-stub