A Study on Ritual Arts and Their Functions in the Film Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring

Cinema, as a modern media and one of the most affective forms of contemporary human’s art, has extended its areas and spheres of explorations effectiveness. One of these areas, which have entered into the set designing, is the aspect of traditional arts. With this way of set designing, one can make a film with a national and traditional point of view. In each country, traditional and ritual arts (as old forms of art) and cinema (as a modern art) are produced from history, historical activities, plural experiences and that nation’s beliefs. These elements have emerged in the culture. Hence, ritual arts in set designing for the films can be an important field of analyzing and studying in cinema studies. Cinema, as an art, has become a way of imagination to illustrate all things which are in human’s mind. Actually, Cinema has experienced many fields; from psychology to sociology and from philosophy to rituals. So the filmmakers who have a dominant attitude in an ideology, have used this mean to illustrate their thoughts. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring (2003) is one of this type of films. Kim Ki-Duk considering Zen intellectual foundations has organized the elements of the film. Cinema with an extent of expression can belong to the sources of eternity and the transcendental realm, just like ritual arts. With this attitude, Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring is in search of exposure mysteries and visual codes to express ontological questions and raising the sense of existence. To reach this aim, Ki-Duk has used the traditional handmade creations in a way of metaphor, symbols and visual similitude and has created foundations based on colors, light and visual compositions, accompanied with music. This essay is attempting to study on the functions of Zen traditional and ritual handmade creations in the film Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring directed by Kim Ki-Duk; Korean filmmaker. This paper has descriptive-analytical method and we are trying to study and analyze traditional and ritual handmade creations. The results show that the traditional and ritual handmade creations in this film have several different functions. They have used not only as decorative elements but also as elements which make a believable space of a Korean position for audience. In some sequences they also have used to respect the traditions and this is a nostalgic attitude. Given that Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring is a transcendental film, we have to notice that the main function of these elements, based on Zen ritual, is a symbolic function. And this is because of eastern traditional thought of filmmaker; Kim Ki-Duk. So this function is preferable to the other ones. In other words, Kim Ki-Duk with an eastern point of view has acted to make an internal relation between these traditional and ritual handmade creations which are made by human and transcendental affairs.