Fear of the Bodies: Envisioning the Gendered Masses in South Korean Documentary Films

Abstract: Through the ongoing struggles—from the 1990s feminist movements to the 2000s candlelight protests, the #MeToo movement, and beyond—South Korean women have challenged patriarchal norms and reimagined women's bodies as political subjects. Focusing on the contemporary South Korean documentary films made by activist-feminist filmmakers, such as Candle Wave Feminists (Kangyu Ga-ram, 2017), Us, Day by Day (Kangyu Ga-ram, 2019), and Boundary: Flaming Feminist Action (Yun Ga-hyǒn, 2021), this paper examines how these films interrogate gendered precarity and mobilize fear as a transformative force for feminist resistance. Built upon the complex tapestry of feminist activism from the 1990s to the contemporary era, these filmmakers critically document and intervene in South Korea's evolving public discourse on gender, social movements, and political activism. The analysis draws on the theoretical frameworks of multitudo (masses), political affect, and relational embodiment to illuminate how these documentaries portray women's bodies as both sites of societal fear and agents of transformative power. In particular, the dual nature of fear takes a pivotal role in challenging the negative framing of women's emotions and precarity. This perspective offers a critical lens for understanding the political transformation of female masses and the emergence of counterpublic. By examining the interplay of fear, activism, and documentary filmmaking, this paper illuminates how South Korean feminist movements and women's filmmaking intersect to foster a new mode of political subjectivity and ethical engagement in South Korea's precarious society.