All-female cast 'Siren: Survive the Island' to challenge prevailing biases

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

Entertainment & Arts

Tue, September 26, 2023 | 07:20

Shows & Dramas

All-female cast 'Siren: Survive the Island' to challenge prevailing biases

Posted : 2023-05-25 08:23

Updated : 2023-05-25 17:33

From left, stuntwoman Kim Kyung-ae, soldier Kim Bom-eun, firefighter Kim Hyun-ah, police officer Kim Hye-ri, athlete Kim Hee-jung and former bodyguard Lee Soo-ryun pose during a press conference for Netflix's new survival show "Siren: Survive the Island." Courtesy of Netflix

By Lee Gyu-lee

Producer Lee Eun-kyung, who is known for co-creating Netflix's talk show "Paik's Spirit," shared that her latest show on the platform, "Siren: Survive the Island," will offer a new perspective on male-dominated professions.

Producer Lee Eun-kyung / Courtesy of Netflix

Netflix's 10-part survival show, set to be released on May 30, invites 24 female participants from six different physically demanding professions: police officers, firefighters, bodyguards, soldiers, athletes and stuntwomen. The participants spend a week on a remote island to compete against other teams for survival and to determine the strongest team.

"Previous survival shows mostly revolved around men. And the professions in the show are often represented by males. In 'Siren,' it will be refreshing as it will show those who you've never encountered before," the producer said during a press conference for the show held in Mapo District, Seoul, Wednesday.

Lee said she wanted to create a platform to explore unfamiliar professions and the passion of those dedicated to their job.

"I started with the intention to 'tell a true story.' From my previous experience working on 'The Dictionary of Useless Human Knowledge' and 'You Quiz on the Block,' I've learned that nothing can beat being real. I wanted to create a show that brings together those who are true to their jobs," she said.

"I felt we can present an authentic story of how people in these professions move and work so we made it into a physical survival show."

A scene from the show "Siren: Survive the Island" / Courtesy of Netflix

The cast members said they joined the show to challenge biased perceptions about being a woman in their particular line of work.

"All firefighters are doing fine on the scene, regardless of their gender. But I would get skeptical eyes just because I'm a woman. I prove myself on the scene and people would give me a thumbs up, but until then they would have doubts," said Kim Hyun-ah, the leader of the firefighter team on the show. "I decided to join because I felt I could show (my ability as a firefighter) on the show."

The bodyguard team leader, Lee Soo-ryun, who used to work as a presidential bodyguard for many years, shared that she is happy to have such a platform to show off her professional skills.

"When I say I used to work as a bodyguard, there are people who think 'Do women also do such jobs?' I'm pleased that I can have a chance to proudly represent my profession," she said.

The producer expressed that she hopes this show can help eliminate such bias. "I don't want to hear people saying 'for a woman, they did well' after watching the show. That's something that I'm worried about the most. The participants came out to represent their profession not as a female police officer or female soldier," she said.

gyulee@koreatimes.co.kr