Bringing in music, art, film, and other forms of entertainment into North Korea for the consumption of a highly select privileged elite has long been a controversial practice, particularly so if the cultural exchange in question involves one of the most controversial rock bands in the western world.
Laibach brought its own totalitarian aesthetics to the world’s most totalitarian state back in 2015, and Morten Traavik directed the documentary about the trip.
We speak with Traavik, and his cultural interpreter Mary Sun Kim, about how the Laibach concert became a reality, navigating censorship, and North Korea’s artistic sensibilities.
Morten Traavik is a Norwegian director and artist. Mary Sun Kim is an arts and literature researcher, interpreter, and photographer.
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About the podcast: The “North Korea News Podcast” is a weekly podcast hosted exclusively by NK News, covering all things DPRK: from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field and insight from our very own journalists.
Featured image: courtesy of Morten Traavik