Film poster designer Park Si-young is stepping back from the public eye.
According to Sports Seoul, Park announced the decision in a social media post on October 14, writing that he would pause YouTube appearances and interviews. He will honor his promised engagements but take no new requests.
Park said he felt he was losing the value he cherishes most: freedom. “Freedom is the most important value in my life,” he wrote, “and I’m losing it.”
He revealed that what weighed on him most was not hate comments but painful messages from strangers asking for help — people writing that they wanted to die or begging him to save them. “I can ignore hate comments, but I can’t ignore concrete suffering,” he wrote.
The responsibility of being a visible, successful minority figure added to the burden. “A sense of mission erodes my intellect and binds my freedom,” he said.
Park made his name with the 2006 film “The City of Violence” and designed posters for “The Wailing” and the recent hit “The Man Who Lives With the King.” Earlier this year he drew attention after sharing a post about his 15-year relationship with his same-sex partner. He has pushed back against being reduced to a symbol, saying, “I’m good at design because I work hard — not because I’m gay.”
For now, Park plans to finish his scheduled commitments and step away from having to explain his life in public.
