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Bong Joon-ho encourages filmmakers to speak out against hate and racism

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ABC/Rick Rowell

Parasite director Bong Joon-ho is urging his fellow filmmakers to help stamp out hate and racism.

Bong, who recently served as a masterclass guess lecturer for Chapman University's Dodge College in Orange, California, opened up about his thoughts regarding America's current racial turmoil and discussed what the film industry can do to help.

"I’m far away in Korea and I have to see everything in the news from an outsider’s perspective, but as someone who is a part of mankind, as a person, it’s quite fearful to watch the hate crimes against Asian-Americans and the BLM movement," said the three-time Oscar winner, via Deadline.

Bong admitted, "I do think about what the film industry can do at this time. With films, creating a film takes a lot of time and a lot of money; it’s a big unit that can’t really respond quickly to issues that are currently happening in society."

"It’s a medium that’s difficult to use when you are trying to respond in real-time," he added. "But ironically, because of that, I think creators and filmmakers can be bolder with dealing with issues and they shouldn’t be afraid to confront them.”

The Korean director used Spike Lee's Do The Right Thing as an example, saying that while the movie wasn't made to predict the future, it relied on insight to "portray the issues that are currently boiling underneath the surface of society that can explode later on."

"For me, Parasite was a film where I tried to take that approach," said Bong. "As creators and artists, you sort of have to see through the essence and the central questions in our society through the days that you live through and send a reply to those questions through your work.”

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