 |
| ▲This photo shows, actor Troy Michael Kotsur at the appointing ceremony. (Yonhap) |
 |
| ▲This photo shows, actor Troy Michael Kotsur and the president of Korea association of the deaf at the appointing ceremony. (Yonhap) |
SEOUL September 7 (Yonhap) -- “Deaf-muteness people are just like everybody else. I personally believe that if given an enough chance, they will be able to do anything.” announced the American actor and director Troy Michael Kotsur, who participated at the appointing ceremony of the ambassador of “XIX World Congress Of The World Federation of the Deaf” and the press conference which followed on September 6.
Born with the disability, Troy Michael Kotsur was awarded with best actor award from The British Academy Of Film and Television Arts and Screen Actors Guild Awards from Academy Awards through the movie “Coda” released in 2021. South Korean actress Youn Yuh-jung’s act of announcing the winner’s name using the sign language and awarding Troy Michael Kotsur with his trophy at the Academy Awards drew a lot of attention in Korea.
Actor Troy Michael Kotsur who visited South Korea for the first time stated “I would love to meet actress Youn Yuh-jung and engage in an in depth conversation regarding acting.” While reminiscing the Academy Awards, Troy Michael Kotsur stated “Youn Yuh-jung’s act of used sign language to say I love you during the ceremony which left a strong long lasting impression. Also the way she held the trophy for me to comfortably use sign language to deliver my acceptance speech was very considerate as well therefore I was very thankful.”
Continuing on actor Troy Michael Kotsur stated that “I believe Movie ‘Minari’ describes the life of Deaf muteness people very well, because the movie is about the life of a Korean immigrant in an American society,” adding “I hope one day I could participate in a film where I could act with Youn Yuh-jung.”
Actor Troy Michael Kotsur who started off his career through theater, gradually developed and expanded his career from theater to dramas and to movies showed his love for acting by stating “As long as my will to act stands strong I will never give up and keep on plowing through.” However he also stated “Acting for me was very hard,” adding “I had to overcome every hardship without help from the government; however I hope South Korean actors with disabilities will have more opportunity of receiving governmental support in the future.”
“Commonly made mistake of all time is judging that deaf-muteness actors are limited to certain characters. Deaf-muteness actors are not that different from what we commonly think as normal actors. We all have our own lives, we go through sadness, happiness and pain and suffrage just like everyone else. Within the film industry in United States, more deaf-muteness people are trying out for roles and there are more productions which features those actors. I hope the movie industry in Korea opens up to actors with disability and treat them the same as those non disabled actors.” Actor Troy Michael Kotsur stated throughout the event.
Troy Michael Kotsur who is receiving a lot of offers from different movie projects after his role in “Coda” stated “If there is a which suites me, I will not hesitate and participate in the production. I wish to pave the road for upcoming actors with disabilities so that they can follow my path and become successful. I hope actors with disability will never give up to the hope and keep on trying.”
“XIX World Congress Of The World Federation of the Deaf” which is 19th of its kind will be held in Jeju island on July of 2023. South Korea became the second Asian country to host the event. World Federation of the Deaf hosts the event every 4 years and total of over 131 countries participate share their efforts and progress among the fields of education, art, culture, sign languages and more throughout the event.
“’XIX World Congress Of The World Federation of the Deaf’ is a place where people can participate in order to collectively think of the policies which can be beneficial to Deaf muteness people throughout various industries.” adding “I hope the Korean government or officials will work together and help out with the good cause.” American actor Troy Michael Kotsur stated throughout the event.
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Joonha Yoo)
(END)
(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved
