the first draft of my screenplay, LEGACY

 Vana Kim, [2025-08-16 오전 6:56]

Hi family,

I've finished the first draft of my screenplay, LEGACY, and I'd love to get your feedback. I wrote it during a two-month intensive with Harvardwood, alongside a great group of experienced screenwriters.

The final meeting for this stage is next Wednesday. After that, we'll be working on pitching the film. If you can find the time to read it, please let me know your thoughts so I can include them in the final draft.

Thanks so much!

Vana Kim, [2025-08-16 오전 6:56]

FYI, to make it manageable, this draft covers the story from 1928 to 1964, ending with the family's departure for Brazil. I plan to write the sequel (1964-2010) later.

Vana Kim, [2025-08-17 오전 8:17]

Vana Kim, [2025-08-17 오전 8:24]

An outline for a screenplay "LEGACY: Her Story, Her Time," based on the autobiography of Lee Nam-soon. The story is structured into two main periods of the protagonist, Ilsun's, life.

Part 1: The Namho Era (1928-1948)

This era focuses on Ilsun's early life and the profound influence of her father, Namho. He is portrayed as a visionary whose ideals of social reform and integrity clash with the political and personal realities of the time. Namho teaches Ilsun that true wealth lies in people, not profit, a principle he demonstrates by giving away his fortune to build schools and communities. This period covers Ilsun's move to Seoul, her education, her development as a leader, and her marriage to Jihoon, a man who represents a more practical, stable path compared to her own grand ambitions.

Part 2: The Post-Namho Era (1948-1951)

This section begins with the birth of Ilsun's children and the growing ideological differences between her and Jihoon. The political turmoil of Korea's division serves as a backdrop to personal tragedy, as her father, Namho, disappears on a "long journey." The Korean War erupts, thrusting Ilsun into a brutal fight for survival. She is imprisoned, accused of being a "traitor," and forced to escape from the frontlines of the war's ideological purges. The provided outline concludes with Ilsun's harrowing journey on foot, symbolizing her unwavering determination to survive in a devastated world.

Vana Kim, [2025-08-17 오전 10:12]

https://cms.hanion.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=35439

[김반아 칼럼] 영화 "그 여자의 시대" 시나리오 요약

기자명 김반아 객원편집위원   입력 2025.08.17 09:33  수정 2025.08.17 09:36  댓글 0

 

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Scenario Outline: "LEGACY: Her Story, Her Time"

격동의 한국 현대사를 한 여성의 파란만장한 삶을 통해 깊이 있게 조명하는 영화 시나리오 "LEGACY: Her Story, Her Time"를 소개합니다. . 이 작품은 저의 외조부와 어머니의 이야기를 바탕으로 쓴 영화 시나리오 초본입니다. 어머니의 자서전이 출간되었을 때, 2010년 경, 한국에서 이러한 영화를 만들기 어려운 시기에 착수한 것이였기에 미국과 캐나다 관객의 시각을 고려해 영문으로 썼습니다. 이 각본은 격변의 시대를 살아낸 한 여성 제 어머니 일선의 삶과 그녀의 이상을 깊이 있게 담아내고 있습니다.

시나리오는 일선의 어린 시절, 아버지 남호의 이상주의를 따라가는 것에서 시작됩니다. '금광왕'이라 불리면서도 재산을 학교와 공동체에 아낌없이 기부했던 그의 삶은 이윤보다 사람을 먼저 생각하는 정신의 상징입니다. 하지만 이러한 이상은 현실의 벽에 부딪힙니다. 남호가 미군정청의 억압으로 좌절하고 "긴 여정"을 떠나는 모습은 해방 이후 우리 사회에 드리워진 이념 갈등과 외세의 그림자를 여실히 보여줍니다. 일선은 '세상이 스승'이라는 아버지의 가르침을 통해, 강인한 자아를 형성하며 시대의 소용돌이를 헤쳐나갈 힘을 키웁니다.

한국 전쟁은 일선의 삶을 송두리째 뒤흔듭니다. 남편 지훈이 미국에 있는 동안, 교사였던 그녀는 '인민의 적'이라는 정치적 누명을 쓰고 서대문형무소에 수감되는 비극을 겪습니다. 그녀가 겪은 고통은 이념의 광기가 개인의 삶을 어떻게 파괴하는지를 생생하게 증언합니다. 전쟁의 폐허 속에서 살아남아 가족을 재건하려는 그녀의 처절한 노력은, 전쟁의 진정한 피해자는 바로 평범한 시민들이었음을 깨닫게 합니다. 가족의 생존을 위해 미군 부대에서 일하고, 산속에서 들마늘을 캐는 일선의 모습은 그 어떤 영웅담보다 강렬한 생존의 기록입니다.

휴전 후, 일선과 지훈은 작은 모터 펌프 공장을 운영하며 재건의 희망을 품습니다. 하지만 1961년 군사 쿠데타 이후, '타협'과 '접대'가 미덕이 되는 사회의 부패 앞에서 이들은 갈등합니다. 원칙을 굽히지 않는 지훈의 고집 때문에 사업은 위기를 맞고, 일선은 사회의 "치명적인 결함"을 온몸으로 마주합니다. 그럼에도 불구하고 이들은 정직한 파트너십으로 위기를 극복하며, 굳건한 신념이 곧 최고의 유산임을 보여줍니다.

결국 일선은 분열과 부패의 굴레를 끊어내기 위해 브라질 이민을 결심합니다.  "가족이 안심하고 살 수 있는 세상"을 만들고 싶다는 자신의 꿈을 딸 은미에게 전하며, 일선은 역사적 아픔을 새로운 희망으로 승화시킵니다. "이 흐름을 바꾸는 돌멩이가 되겠다"는 은미의 다짐은, 다음 세대가 더 나은 미래를 만들어갈 것이라는 강한 메시지를 전달하며 깊은 울림을 남깁니다.

이 시나리오는 개인의 삶을 통해 켜켜이 쌓인 한국 현대사의 아픔을 어루만지고, 그럼에도 불구하고 꺾이지 않았던 인간의 의지가 결국 새로운 유산을 만들어낸다는 희망을 이야기합니다.

English Outline

"LEGACY: Her Story, Her Time," is a screenplay based on the autobiography of Lee Nam-soon. It follows the life of Ilsun, a Korean woman, from her childhood in the village of Yongjam to her experiences during the Korean War.

Ilsun's early life is shaped by the sea, her mother Sooja's boundless love and grief, and the lessons from her older sister Namson. Her father, Namho, attempts to build a school in their village, Yongjam. A pivotal moment occurs when Namho recounts his grandmother's sacrifice (cutting off her finger to save her husband), which leads Ilsun to declare she doesn't want a life of quiet sacrifice like her mother.

Namho, having moved to Seoul for his mining business, sends for Ilsun to live with him. Sooja expresses sadness and resentment, feeling abandoned. Ilsun is introduced to Namho's philosophy of universal teachers and the idea that even small actions can create ripples of change. Namho, a "Gold King" who gives away his fortune to build rural communities and schools, teaches Ilsun about integrity in business and the importance of using wealth to empower people. Ilsun attends Japan Women's University, where she is inspired by the founder's vision of empowering women and her father's belief that women must lead.

Namho arranges a marriage for Ilsun with Jihoon, an engineer. Despite Namho's desire for Ilsun to have a stable home life, Ilsun finds Jihoon's practical nature clashes with her broader vision of a "world government" for global peace. They marry in 1944 at Sungkyunkwan University, a place Namho chose to emphasize building the future on the foundation of the past. Ilsun gives birth to a daughter, Eunmi, in 1946, and a son, Jino, in 1948 and another son, Yooji, in 1954. Jihoon's relief at having a son highlights societal pressures. Ilsun reflects on the balance between practical care and emotional support, noting that her daughter needs "the ointment for her knee, and the hug... for her heart."

In 1948, Namho expresses frustration with the American military government's suppression of his "self-management system" at the Samcheok Coal Mine, seeing it as a betrayal of liberation. He leaves on a "long journey," implying his departure to North Korea or his disappearance.

In 1950, as North Korea invades, Jihoon is in the U.S. for a hydraulic engineering mission, leaving Ilsun and her children vulnerable. Ilsun, a teacher, is falsely accused by her students and a Red-Armbanded Teacher of being a "capitalist lackey" and a "traitor" due to her father's past and her husband's mission. She is arrested and imprisoned at Seodaemun Prison, enduring brutal conditions and narrowly escaping execution during the Incheon Landing. Ilsun is transferred to Daejeon Prison and is released amidst chaos, narrowly escaping death by running without looking back. She makes her way back towards Seoul through a war-torn landscape.

The Korean War entirely shatters Ilsun's life. While her husband, Jihoon, is away in the U.S., she, a teacher, suffers the tragedy of being falsely accused as an "enemy of the people" and is imprisoned at Seodaemun Prison. The agony she endures is a vivid testament to how ideological madness can destroy an individual's life. Her desperate struggle to survive the ruins of war and rebuild her family makes us realize that the true victims of war were ordinary citizens. Ilsun's image, working at a U.S. military base and foraging for wild garlic in the mountains for her family's survival, is a more powerful record of endurance than any heroic tale.

After the armistice, Ilsun and Jihoon run a small motor pump factory, holding onto the hope of reconstruction. However, after the 1961 military coup, they clash with a corrupt society where "compromise" and "bribery" are seen as virtues. Due to Jihoon's stubbornness in not compromising his principles, their business faces a crisis, and Ilsun confronts the society's "fatal flaw" head-on. Nevertheless, they overcome the crisis through their honest partnership, demonstrating that unwavering conviction is the greatest legacy.

Ultimately, Ilsun decides to emigrate to Brazil to break free from the shackles of division and corruption. This is not merely an act of running away from pain. By passing on her dream of creating a world where "families can live safely" to her daughter, Eunmi, Ilsun transforms historical pain into a new hope. Eunmi's promise to "be the stone that changes this current" delivers a powerful message that the next generation will create a better future, leaving a profound resonance.

This screenplay tells a story of hope—one that soothes the deep-seated pain of Korean modern history, layered through an individual's life, and shows that the unyielding human will ultimately creates a new legacy.