Film Director Receives Sentence For Fraud

A film director has been sentenced for defrauding the head of a popular restaurant business.

It was reported on May 2 that film director “A” was sentenced to eight months in prison and two years of probation. From March to December in 2015, “A” defrauded “B,” the head of a popular restaurant business, out of 50 million won (approximately $42,800). “A” used reasoning such as production costs, promises for “B” to appear in the film, and featuring the business “B” runs as indirect advertisements.

“A” is also said to have repeatedly taken money from actors as well in 2016 and 2017, taking approximately 20 million won (approximately $17,130) from actors for “Bloopers costs.”

The legal representative of “A” claimed, “It takes a long time to create a film,” and “It is just taking a long time to prepare the film, this is not a case of fraud.”

However, the courts ruled, “It has been three years since filming has ended. The fact that the film has not been completed yet means the director did not have the capabilities to release the film in Korean theaters or submit the film to international film festivals,” and explained the sentencing as they said, “Even if the director settled with the victim, the director has a history of similar criminal activity and the financial costs have been very high for the victim.”

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