Song Joong-ki “My mother-in-law is also Colombian”… Such an unfamiliar and beautiful ‘Bogota’ (Comprehensive) [DA: On-site]

The movie ‘Bogota: Land of Last Chance’, which audiences have been eagerly awaiting for over 4 years, will be coming to theaters on the last day of the year. Expect Song Joong-ki‘s passionate acting that expresses a person’s life from his teens to his 30s, exotic scenery, and a variety of characters.

On the afternoon of the 19th, a press conference was held following the press screening of the movie ‘Bogota: Land of Last Chance’ at Megabox COEX in Bongeunsa-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Director Kim Sung-je, Song Joong-ki, Lee Hee-joon, Kwon Hae-hyo, Park Ji-hwan, and Kim Jong-soo attended the event.

‘Bogota: The Land of Last Chance’ is about Guk-hee (Song Joong-ki), who heads to Bogota, Colombia on the other side of the world with new hope right after the IMF, and gets entangled with Soo-young (Lee Hee-joon) and Byeong-jang Park (Kwon Hae-hyo), who are influential figures in the Korean community in Bogota. Filming began in early 2020, but was halted due to the spread of COVID-19, and the film wrapped up the following year. Considering the time of filming, it has been held back for a whopping 4 years and has finally come out into the world.

Director Kim Sung-je said, “I was afraid of making a chronicle film, but I took on the challenge. It looks great, but it doesn‘t seem easy to have fun. Capturing the characters’ changes in 2 hours was quite an interesting and painful challenge for me. I learned a lot by watching the characters enter and leave with different faces and emotions. I came to respect the actors a lot. I hope those parts resonate well with the audience,” he explained.

‘Bogota: Land of Last Chance’ is set in Bogota, Colombia, and features exotic scenery such as the Caribbean resort city of Cartagena and the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus. Despite the beautiful scenery, the film depicts Bogota, Colombia as a city where drug trafficking, smuggling, and assassinations are very common.

Regarding concerns about negative portrayals, Director Kim said, “I wasn’t careful because I was worried that our work would be embroiled in gossip,” and mentioned the late Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar. He also emphasized that Bogota used to be the most dangerous city in the world.

Director Kim said, “It’s true that the aftershocks still lingered even in the era depicted in our film. I didn‘t try to use genre fiction, but rather than trying to damage the country’s image, I tried to deal with the criminal elements in a way that deals with the story and conflict using realistic materials,“ he said. ”The local production staff were Americans, and since they had made much more violent movies, I remember that they didn‘t care about the parts that I was worried about.“

Song Joong-ki added, ”I also remember some people asking me questions,“ and added, ”My mother-in-law is Colombian, so a lot of my wife’s family lives there. I heard that they used to be ashamed of that image and tried to get rid of it, even though it‘s a little bit of knowledge.“ He continued, ”The Colombia I lived in was full of excitement, and the food was crazy. It was so delicious. I enjoyed seeing the efforts of people trying to break away from their old image. I don’t know if it‘s a friendly place because I have family there.“ He added, ”I didn’t have many opportunities to come into contact with Colombia while filming, but I think it‘s easy to get information through YouTube and other platforms. I wonder if that past image has been erased. I think less that people will look bad because of our movie,” he emphasized.

Song Joong-ki also revealed that the reason he chose this project was because he was curious about the new environment. He confessed, “I like doing things I’ve never done before. I’ve always liked working with people from new cultures and environments that I’ve never worked with before. I was really curious.”

He also said, “I was curious what it would be like to speak Spanish in ‘Bogotá: Land of Opportunity,’ just like I did the Italian line in the drama ‘Vincenzo.’ My curiosity played a big part in my choice.” He continued, “Also, if we talk about the character’s narrative, isn’t it about a pure and innocent child who comes to believe that he has to survive because of his father? I really wanted to express that change well,” he said.


Song Joong-ki plays the role of Gook-hee, a young man who lives fiercely in order to enter District 6, the highest place from the lowest place. Lee Hee-joon gave a passionate performance as Soo-young, the number two customs broker in the Korean smuggling market. Kwon Hae-hyo played the most powerful man in the Bogota Korean community and a big shot in the smuggling market, Park Byeong-jang, Park Ji-hwan played the small Park Sa-jang, and Kim Jong-soo played the role of Gook-hee’s father, Song Geun-tae.

Kim Jong-soo said, “The unfamiliar site was a great force in leading the drama and giving it a sense of presence. I didn’t have much prior knowledge, but the staff prepared a lot, so I was able to focus on filming.” Park Ji-hwan recalled, “We were together every day and had meals together, so we could talk more about the project. It was a good time.” Kwon Hae-hyo confessed, “The film set us in District 6 of Colombia. It was a pretty peaceful place. Whenever I had time, I felt the breath of people on the street, and whenever I had time, I went to the rooftop of the hotel to tan, trying to feel like someone who lived there.”

Lee Hee-joon said, “I wanted to feel the local rhythm, so I went to a salsa school. I also went to a dance school on my days off from filming. It was a confined space and could be dangerous, so I was in a safe space. I think we just talked about our work every day.”

Song Joong-ki said, “I filmed every episode. I envy my seniors because they seem to have fun.” He said, “Filming overseas was not easy because there were a lot of unexpected variables.” He added, “Rather than focusing on the unfamiliar environment, I focused on the narrative that this film deals with the conflicts of Koreans in a place that is far away from us. I got a lot of unexpected ideas from talking a lot with my seniors and the staff. “I gained a lot of strength from my colleagues,” he said.

‘Bogota: The Land of Last Chance’ will be released in theaters on the last day of the year, December 31st, to meet audiences. Lee Hee-joon said, “We have also waited for a long time, and I am deeply moved that we can greet you in theaters.” Kwon Hae-hyo said, “We live in an era where cinematic imagination is overwhelmed by reality, but I hope ‘Bogota’ will be remembered as a film that deals with people. I will also be waiting for the audience with anticipation.”

Jeong Hee-yeon, Donga.com reporter shine2562@donga.com