In '3670,' a gay North Korean defector embraces identities with eye on the future

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In '3670,' a gay North Korean defector embraces identities with eye on the future

Published: 11 Sep. 2025, 20:10

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A scene from the film ″3670,″ which revolves around a gay North Korean defector named Cheol-jun, trying to find a sense of belonging in South Korean society [ATNINE FILM]

All we need may be love, but more than that is a sense of belonging — something that may not come easy for a gay North Korean defector living in South Korea studying for his college entrance.

A film titled "3670" is hit local theaters last week with a rare peek into that life. The numerals in the title stand for "Jongno 3-ga, Exit 6, meet at 7" — a phrase used as coded language among members of the queer community in Korea.

The protagonist, Cheol-jun, played by actor Cho You-hyun, is a diligent young man studying for college entrance exams while working part-time at a convenience store. He is both gay and a North Korean defector — two minority identities.

After meeting a peer named Young-jun, played by Kim Hyun-mok, Cheol-jun gradually opens up and finds a sense of belonging in the queer community. But when Cho Dae-hee's character, Hyun-taek, "the cool one," enters the scene, the dynamics begin to shift.

What sets the film apart is not only the detailed observation of the everyday lives of the queer and defector communities of Korea, but the fact that Cheol-jun embraces his identity from the outset and faces neither overt discrimination nor trauma. Rather than focusing on tragic backstories, "3670" centers on Cheol-jun's present and his process of adaptation in South Korean society, setting it apart from typical narratives about defectors.

Director Park Joon-ho of film ″3670″ [ATNINE FILM]

"3670" won four awards at the Jeonju International Film Festival, including the Korean Actors’ Award. The festival described it as “a work that resonates with universal emotions beyond a specific group.” Director Park Joon-ho, aged 38, talked in more detail about the film during an interview held in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Thursday.

The following are excerpts of the interview, edited for length and clarity.

Q. What inspired you to begin the project?

A. I planned a trilogy of short films in 2017 about North Korean defectors. This film is the second. The first was 'Eun-seo,' which features a defector in her 30s as the lead. I’m drawn to characters who experience dissonance and conflict with society. With support from the Korean Film Council, I expanded this one into a feature.

A scene from film ″3670,″ which revolves around a gay North Korean defector named Cheol-jun, trying to find a sense of belonging in the South Korean society [ATNINE FILM]

How did you become interested in defectors?

When I was in university [at Korea National University of Arts], I volunteered as a tutor for defector students. Spending time with them made me realize how often defectors are portrayed in the media as miserable or maladjusted. I wanted to make a film that focused on their present, not their past.

But why did you also make the character of Cheol-jun gay?

The defector and queer communities are both close enough to touch if you take a single step toward them. In a society full of discrimination, both communities often have to ‘pass’ to survive. I thought it would be interesting to show Cheol-jun adapting to South Korea through the queer community.

There are many specific, realistic details — like Cheol-jun looking up his old house in North Korea on Google Maps. How did you come up with the idea?

There was a student named Cheol-jun who once showed me his house on Google Maps while I was volunteering. Other scenes — a defector friend who could only speak briefly with family in the North due to surveillance, street food like tofu rice from North Korean markets and bowing three times during ancestral rites — all come from real experiences.

A scene from film ″3670,″ which revolves around a gay North Korean defector named Cheol-jun, trying to find a sense of belonging in the South Korean society [ATNINE FILM]

What did you focus on most when portraying two marginalized communities?

I didn’t want to make a didactic film that only advocates for minorities. I wanted to go beyond stereotypes and depict complex, individual characters. One viewer said, ‘I want to live as confidently as Cheol-jun,’ and there are many defectors who live just as boldly.

How did you make the romantic emotions Cheol-jun experiences in the queer community feel natural?

The core of this film is Cheol-jun’s desire to belong and his struggle to find connection. I used the [tvN] drama series "Misaeng" [2014], which shows a newcomer’s journey in the workplace, as a reference. Everyone can relate to the experience of being deeply influenced by a mentor and then going through a rupture in that relationship. Such things also happen in the queer community. I also wanted to show that community in its everyday form.

Didn't some critics say that the absence of prejudice or hostility toward minorities in the film may be too unrealistic?

Portraying hate onscreen can lead to its reproduction. I believe that showing the ordinary lives of marginalized people, rather than emphasizing conflict and hate, is a better way to reduce discrimination. My own understanding deepened through volunteering.

One defector character says, ‘Aren’t we all here just trying to be happy?’ What was the meaning behind it?

I made this film hoping we can all be a little warmer toward people who, like Cheol-jun, are taking their first cautious steps forward. That’s why I created a coming-out scene where those around Cheol-jun accept him without him even needing to say it. Meeting people, getting hurt, healing — these are recurring parts of his life. I chose the song ‘Merry-Go-Round’ [2021] by sokodomo as the ending track because of that.

BY JUNG HYUN-MOK [[email protected]]