[Interview] Kim Min-ju-I: Yesterday, I Saw My Movie After About 4 Months, and I Wanted to Redo the Montage

Kim Min-ju-I was born in Busan in 1990. She studied cinema at Chung Ang University and majored in directing at the Korea Academy of Cinematographic Arts. She directed short films and, in 2018, received the prize for best editing at the Mise-en-scène short film festival for Kim Heesun. "A Letter from Kyoto" is her first feature film.

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On the occasion of the movie screening at FICA Vesoul, where it won the Jury Prize, we speak with her about moving from short to feature movies, the characters and the casting, the cinematography, and other topics.

What was the most difficult part going from short to feature films?

Well, first of all the scenario. As the rhythm of the scenario for short films is not the same as for feature films, when I prepared the scenario, it's just like I was doing it for the first time. And second, it's about the production because there are not that many scenes in a short film, like 20 or 30. The shooting period also, it was longer, and of course the budget was about five times more.

And can you tell us a bit about the inspiration behind the story, and particularly how you came up with the female characters, the protagonists?

It is a bit of an autobiographical story because my mother was from Japan too. So, the main character, the second daughter, is a little bit like me. I have an older sister but the character in the movie is not really like my real older sister, so there are some aspects which were created. Also, there is no third sister in my family. So she was created as a mix of the first and second daughters.

Since you said that the second sister is much like you, how close exactly?

There is a significant age difference between me and my elder sister, eight years, so in reality I could never have had so much dispute with her, as the character did in the film. But I was always a loser like her. (laughter)

So, if you were to be friends with one of the sisters in the movie right now, who would it be?

The older sister, because the middle sister is sort of brainwashed and she cannot understand her.

Did you shoot in Japan or just Korea?

I couldn't shoot in Japan because of COVID and also there was a problem with the budget. So even the scenes of Japan were shot in Korea. To add realism, though, I used capture video and stock photos. Especially for the train scene.

Can you tell us a bit about the casting, how did that work?

First of all, the main character and her older sister, Han Sunhwa and Han Chae-ah are actually already very well-known in Korea. So it's through the casting director in KAFA, the Korean Academy of Film Arts, that I could realize their casting. For the mother, actually in Korea, there aren't so many actresses at this age who would want to work for a low budget movie. I also wanted to cast an actress who can speak the Busan dialect and who can act well. I knew Cha Mi-kyung who played the mother because I was involved in the production of another movie as a staff member and she was also there. She was the only option for me. As for the younger sister, I had an audition because I wanted someone who can act and who can also dance. There were about 40 candidates for the audition, and I picked her among them.

Does the actor who plays the mother speak Japanese or was this just for that scene?

No, she doesn't speak Japanese. It was just for the scene, she practiced to present the dialect of Kyoto.

Can you tell us a bit about the cinematography, what you wanted to do with the visuals of the film?

I knew the DP, Kim Seon-hyeong from my short films so we understand each other even without words. That is really good for the work. And what was important was presenting the scene of Yeongdo realistically, which was where the story takes place. What I wanted to share with the audience was that the space where the story takes place is Yeongdo. So in the film there are some people who are from Yeongdo, who leave Yeongdo and who come back to Yeongdo. And also those who have always lived in Yeongdo but who want to leave. It's a story about them. What I wanted to show is that Yeongdo is a home. While there are some people who come and go, home is always there so it doesn't change. It is at this place that all the stories take place. That is what I wanted to show.

Tell us a bit about the foreign guy. How did you come up with this idea and how was the casting for him?

The reason I created this foreign character is because there are so many Russian workers in Yeongdo and also I wanted to create a character who helps the first daughter to leave Yeongdo. For the casting there were some problems with visas etc, so I didn't have any options, but to pick from an agency.

Do you have foreign friends in reality, in real life?

A few because her definition of " friend " is narrow.

Can she tell us about her opinion of the Korean movie industry at the moment, particularly for women filmmakers?

Compared to before, there are more female staff and there are more opportunities. But still it's always the men who decide. So we can say there is a ceiling. I am in the middle of independent and mainstream films. So when I observe the independent cinema/film scene, I can see that there are more women who are really good. So much better than men. But it's always the men who have more opportunities. We can observe this sort of change not only in the cinema scene, but also in the literature scene or others in Korea. I think that it's a matter of time so there will be more change in the future. We will break this ceiling.

In the end, are you satisfied with how the movie turned out?

I am satisfied with the production because there were not so many problems and also I was invited by festivals to show the movie. But yesterday, I saw my movie after about 4 months, and I wanted to redo the montage. I would grade the film 6 out of 10.

What are you working on next?

It will be really the opposite of "A Letter from Kyoto", because it'll be the story of women who are bad and crazy. I am now writing the scenario. It'll be the story of a woman in the 70s, during the real estate bubble, who has a real desire for money.

Interview by Panos Kotzathanasis

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"A Letter from Kyoto" is directed by Kim Min-ju-I, and features Han Sunhwa, Cha Mi-kyung, Han Chae-ah, Ko Jae-hyun. No release date in Korea yet.