Bechdel Day 2025 Successfully Concludes! Talk & Screening Filled the Audience!

The content festival ‘Bechdel Day 2025’ (hosted and organized by DGK (Korean Directors Guild), sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the Korean Film Council) that reflects on gender equality representation through Korean films and series concluded on September 7 amidst the support of the audience. Bechdel Day, which has established itself as a content festival that highlights gender equality narratives and contributes to the spread of cultural diversity, received enthusiastic responses this year as well. From September 6 to 7, Bechdel Day 2025 held screenings of the Bechdel Choice 10 films and Bechdel Talks, with some of the Bechdel Talks and screenings selling out one after another, garnering more interest than ever. Guests at the event actively communicated with the audience, sharing in-depth stories about the challenges of the production process and the motivations behind creating gender-equal content.

First, at the ‘Meeting with Bechdelian’ held right after the awards ceremony for the film and series categories, host Lee Hwa-jeong, Bechdel Day Programmer, took the stage with the Bechdelian awardees in the film category: 〈About My Daughter〉 Director Lee Mi-rang, 〈Victory〉 〈High Five〉 Producer Ian Na, 〈Minimal Goodness〉 Writer Kim Soo-yeon, and in the series category: 〈The Daughter〉 Director Jeong Ji-in, 〈Quiet Sales〉 Producer Shin Hye-mi, who shared their experiences.

Director Lee Mi-rang emphasized, “When we deeply look into a person's inner self, stereotypes disappear,” stressing that creators must explore the inner depths of their characters. Writer Kim Soo-yeon explained, “It was not easy to unfold the story due to misunderstandings that could arise from the subject of a teenage girl's pregnancy. I wanted to talk about life through the most instinctive and universal sense of ‘hunger.’” Producer Ian Na stated, “I feel that the perception around dealing with female characters as protagonists has improved a lot. Ultimately, what matters is the strength of the character itself, whether male or female.” Director Jeong Ji-in conveyed, “I wanted to newly implement the boyish comic formula within a female narrative.” Producer Shin Hye-mi shared, “This work, which is a period drama with R-rated material, multi-casting of women, and focuses on middle-aged women, was a project where I made all the choices that should not be made as a producer. I was so happy when it was selected for the ‘Bechdel Choice 10’ that I was overwhelmed with emotion,” expressing her ambition to continue the narrative of women's growth. 

After the screening of 〈The Daughter〉, a special talk was held where Actress Lee Hwa-young and Director Min Gyu-dong took the stage to discuss the theme ‘One and Only! Actress Lee Hwa-young: Expanding the Boundaries of Female Actors.’ Director Min Gyu-dong mentioned, “When a script with a female protagonist is created, there are many parts that are difficult to get investment for. However, I think the real hurdles we were trying to overcome were not only in the outside world but also the distrust and fear within ourselves.” He spoke about the process of creating female characters in 〈The Daughter〉. Actress Lee Hwa-young responded, “The role of ‘Piece’ that I played in 〈The Daughter〉 was a character that I, as a woman, took on, but it would not feel awkward if a man played it. What matters is not gender but the essence of the character, and I believe there should be more roles that are not bound by gender in the future.” During the event, various questions about the actor's character-building process and the expansiveness of female characters were raised, concluding with a strong sense of empathy in the room. 

The special planning talk program ‘The Drive for Equality: Awakening the Suppressed Desires and Challenges of Women’ was organized to explore the meaning of women's bodies, desires, and challenges revealed through sports and popular culture. SBS 〈Goal Diggers〉 Director Kwon Hyung-gu, Actress Lee Young-jin from 〈Goal Diggers〉, and Mnet 〈World of Street Woman Fighter〉 Director Jeong Kyung-wook participated as guests, while Kim Min-jeong, Professor of Creative Writing at Chung-Ang University, served as a panelist, and Cineplay Editor-in-Chief Joo Sung-cheol acted as the moderator.

Director Kwon Hyung-gu stated, “At first, the sight of women playing soccer was unfamiliar, and the processes of injury and rehabilitation also felt strange. However, as time passed, it has become a very natural and familiar process, and that’s why I think this program is very meaningful.” Actress Lee Young-jin shared, “While men could grow up enjoying team sports from a young age, women could not. I am happy to finally experience the ‘desire for the game.’” Director Jeong Kyung-wook added, “Challenges do not exist independently of gender; rather, the direction of challenges is becoming more diverse. As genres mix and the distinctions of gender expand, the scope of challenges is also broadening, which I think is significant.” Professor Kim Min-jeong evaluated, “I believe that ‘Goal Diggers’ and ‘World of Street Woman Fighter’ are works that create cracks in the solid male cartel. Beyond simply having women appear and succeed, they provide freedom and expansion to both women and men by endowing women with the language of the body and physical struggle, which is of great significance.” 

Following the screening of the film selected for the Bechdel Choice 10 in the film category, 〈Victory〉, a dialogue with the audience ensued. Host 〈Romance Without Love〉 Director Jeong Ga-young, 〈Victory〉 Director Park Beom-soo, and Actress Park Se-wan took the stage to share behind-the-scenes stories of the work and communicate with the audience. Director Park Beom-soo expressed, “While writing the script for 〈Victory〉, I first conducted the Bechdel test. Being selected for the Bechdel Choice 10 has been a great gift for our actors and production team.” Actress Park Se-wan conveyed her gratitude, saying, “It has been a year since the release, and I am thankful for the many people who love 〈Victory〉. It makes me think again, ‘I really made a precious film.’”

Bechdel Day 2025, which successfully concluded this year's event, will officially release event videos through the DGK (Korean Directors Guild) YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/@dgk_official) in the future. Additionally, at the upcoming 30th Busan International Film Festival Community Biff ‘All Day Cinema,’ the Bechdel Choice 10 selected work 〈Minimal Goodness〉 〈High Five〉 will be screened on September 20, followed by a dialogue with the audience. Detailed announcements can be found on the Bechdel Day 2025 website and SNS (@bechdelday).