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This MBC Special covers the story of a short-term Buddhist school, sponsored by
the Chogye Order, from September 13th through October 12th at the Woljeong Temple
located in the Odae Mountains. Compared to the actual training given to those
who wish to be Buddhist priests, this one-month-long Buddhist school is by no
means inferior in its level of religious austerities and practices. By looking
at those who decide to participate in the training program, the viewers will have
a chance to think about the real meaning of leaving everything behind and devoting
one's life to a religion.
* A Documentary without narration
The MBC Special introduces the viewers to a new style of documentary; one without
any narration.
Since its start in 1985 with , the human documentary genre has always used a
narrative voice to help the viewers understand someone's life story. Producer
Yoon Young-gwan who has searched for a creative change in documentary production
said, " I just want to deliver someone's life story as it really is to
the viewers." He also said, " I hope will be considered a fresh approach
which will lead to a whole new era in TV documentary production."
* 30 Days in the Temple
A 70-year-old man, a 14-year-old middle schooler, a 23-year-old college student,
a 36-year-old copywriter and a 48-year-old housewife; these people with different
backgrounds decide to have their heads shaved all at same time. Their 30-day-long
religious training finally starts. When they get their heads shaved, they bow
after every three steps they take. Then, they receive novice ordination and
their Buddhist names.
What made them decide to participate in this training in the first place? What
was going on in their minds? The production team closely follows their 30 days
with HD cameras.
* The Meaning
Their day starts at 4 o'clock in the morning by holding worship in front of
Buddha's image. Then, followed by a food offering, fulfilling their assigned
work around the temple and their Buddhist scripture studies, their training
continues all day without a break. Some people burst into tears as they complete
their 3000 mandatory evening bows. Two weeks later, by Chuseok, some of them
couldn't keep up with the hard training and decided to leave the temple. Then
what is the meaning of this ascetic practice To find the answers to that question,
the production team will follow people who go back to their normal lives after
completing the training.
* A Documentary that Appeals to Your Senses
Most typical documentaries made prior to this have been criticized for their
uniformity while at the same time the need for a new documentary style is seen.
However, in reality, it wasn't an easy task to try a new format due to the time
constraints in program production.
For instance, required much more editing time than a normal voice-over documentary.
It actually took twice as much editing time to deliver to the viewers the vivid
pictures and touching story behind them.
*A Documentary that Appeals to Your Heart
contains the real sounds of the scene, interviews and subtitles to capture the
very atmosphere of the location. Also, it relies heavily upon music to better
show people's feelings and the situations they encounter.
To create the right music for each situation, the main theme songs ( Leaving
home, Remembering the first mind, and Ascetic Practice-Looking for a heart)
are newly composed for this documentary. These 3 songs were written by producer
Yoon Young-gwan and composed by music director Han Moon-hui. Also, in order
to find the voices matching the characteristics of the program, new singers
were selected.
They are Jeong Bong-won, who appeared in the musical , Lee Jeong-eun, who is
a graduate school student, and Lee Ji-hye. Unlike most documentary music used
as a background effect, these songs greatly contribute to better understanding
of the program.
Following the postulants' changes in feelings and attitudes over a 30-day period
without any narrative filtering was a new and experimental step in documentary
production.
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