Trauma, Memory and Reparation from a Transnational Perspective. A Conversation with Cecilia Kang

Abstract

This conversation with filmmaker Cecilia Kang explores the intersections of trauma, memory, and reparation through her documentary Partió de mí un barco llevándome (2023). The Argentine-Korean director focuses on the memory of the so-called “comfort women” of the Japanese Imperial Army from a transnational and diasporic perspective. The interview examines documentary strategies for representing the intergenerational transmission of trauma and considers the potential of documentary cinema as a form of symbolic reparation. Kang reflects on how her own personal experience informs both the creative process and the construction of the film through its protagonist, Melanie. Partió de mí un barco llevándome establishes connections between wartime sexual violence and the forms of gender-based violence that continue to affect women today. Through Kang’s voice and documentary practice, the conversation offers a reflection on cinema as a space of mediation between past and present, capable of fostering processes of memory, recognition, and reparation that transcend national boundaries.