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Here Comes Uncle Joe

Smiles, loves, and tears are shared between 800 old people in 15 remote villages in South Korea, and the only deliveryman, Uncle Joe, who connects them with the modern world.

Series

Global Voices

Premiere Date

August 31, 2014

Length

60 minutes

Funding Type

Co-Production

He is not their uncle, and his name is not Joe. But to the old ladies of An-dong, a rural community in southeastern Korea, Uncle Joe is almost the only contact they have with the modern world. As the young leave these rural areas to acquire higher education and to find high salary jobs in the cities, there are no services or people to support old people. In this situation, Uncle Joe becomes the only man for the old.

However, his road taken isn’t always happy. Because of their advanced years, Joe often encounters his old customer-friends’ misery and death. Moreover, as he reflects on his life, he faces his inner conflict and shame. In this film, we see how Uncle Joe serves these communities with humor and attention, how love and friendship are infused in life, and how he overcomes his conflicts with his friends.