In the Absence (Korean: 부재의기억) is a 2018 South Korean–American[1][2] short documentary film that depicts the sinking of the MV Sewol in 2014, in which three hundred people – mostly school children from Danwon High School – lost their lives.

[3] The film was requested by the film distributor Field of vision, who was looking for a short documentary regarding the background of the 2016 Candelight Vigil for the impeachment of then South Korean president Park Geun-hye.

In the original version, there was a scene involving the mothers of the drowned students crying as the salvaged vessel approached the dock, but it was cut from the final version, for fear that such overwhelming reactions would prevent the audience from empathizing with the mothers.

[4] The film was produced by Gary Byung-Seok Kam and directed by Yi Seung-Jun, with Seung-Jun beginning the process of interviewing the victims families on camera in 2017.

[6] The documentary utilizes audio from first responders and government officials, aerial video from helicopters, and cell phone video and multi-media messages from the victims of the ferry sinking to showcase the disaster in real time.