When he still lived in North Korea, Jung Haneul could see the other Korea with his own eyes every day. Stationed as a frontline soldier, the nearest South Korean post was just a few thousand feet away.

Jung grew up in rural North Korea, where his mother sold shoes to pay for her son’s dream to become a professional soccer player. 

But life had different plans for him. Jung’s family struggled with finances, and instead of joining the national North Korean team or even a soccer club, he was conscripted into the Korean People’s Army at 16 and sent to