[Interview] 'Sejamae' Kim Sun-young "Hope for a Day When Male-Centered Films Are Balanced" (Comprehensive)

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Isul] Actress Kim Sun-young said she wants to become a good actress.

On the 20th, Kim Sun-young shared various stories about the film Three Sisters (director Lee Seung-won) during a video interview.

Three Sisters is a film depicting the explosive story of three sisters?one a facade full of pretense, the second timid, and the third a troublemaker?who unravel the knots of memories they could not speak about. Actresses Moon So-ri, Kim Sun-young, and Jang Yoon-joo play the sisters.

Kim Sun-young plays the timid eldest sister Hee-sook, delivering comfort and empathy through delicate and realistic acting.

The film was selected for the 2020 Jeonju International Film Festival’s ‘Jeonju Cinema Project’ and the 25th Busan International Film Festival’s ‘Korean Cinema Today - Panorama’ section. It was directed by Lee Seung-won, who gained attention at film festivals with films like Happy Birthday and Communication and Lies.

On this day, Kim Sun-young said, “I’m happy and honored that this is the first Korean film I’m presenting this year. I’m waiting for the release with a praying heart amid COVID-19 (novel coronavirus infection),” and expressed confidence, adding, “The completed film was even better than the script.”

It was not easy to express the emotions of Hee-sook, who has trauma. Kim Sun-young said, “At first, I kept my distance from the role. I wondered, ‘How do I do this? How do I act this?’ and avoided it for a year. But since Hee-sook was always inside me during that process, the filming went smoothly.”

Kim Sun-young said, “I think the desire to be well-liked by others is something we all share. We need to love ourselves and appear well. I also have a strong desire to be free in that regard, so I felt compassion for Hee-sook.”

She added, “I believed there would definitely be audiences who would empathize with Hee-sook. I thought hard about how to hold their hands and comfort them.”

Although Three Sisters features themes of child abuse and domestic violence, Kim Sun-young was cautious about interpreting these as the central focus of the story. She said, “This is not a film centered on child abuse or domestic violence,” and drew a line, saying, “Violence can take many forms. There is violence through glances and verbal abuse as well.”

She cited the ending as the most impressive scene. Kim Sun-young said, “All the scenes are good overall, but I like the last scene the most. Taking photos while singer Lee So-ra’s song plays was really beautiful.”

Director Lee Seung-won is Kim Sun-young’s husband. After directing numerous plays, he debuted in Chungmuro with the 2004 film Contradiction, gaining attention for his bold and unconventional directing style that showcased his unique worldview. He won the NETPAC Award at the 20th Busan International Film Festival for Communication and Lies and the International Critics’ Award at the Hong Kong International Film Festival for Happy Birthday.

Kim Sun-young and director Lee Seung-won have collaborated as actor and director in many plays. They currently run the theater company Nabe together. She said, “I have participated as an actress in many plays where my husband wrote and directed the scripts over the past 10 years. Working on films together was also comfortable and smooth. We understand what each other wants just by looking into each other’s eyes.”

She added, “I like and respect Lee Seung-won as a director and writer. If you get the chance, I hope you watch his theatrical works. His sense of black comedy is outstanding. It’s so good it can make you faint. It’s fun and well-made,” showing strong trust.

Director Lee Seung-won also appeared as an actor in the film Fanfare (2020). Regarding this, Kim Sun-young said, “I told my husband clearly, ‘Don’t act.’ Recently, he secretly acted somewhere. Since I opposed it, he kept it a secret and came back after filming. I heard about it through the makeup team staff,” and seriously emphasized, “I hope he doesn’t act,” making everyone laugh.

Then Kim Sun-young said, “Please write about my daughter in the article too,” and joked, “When my daughter said she was going for an interview, she told me to talk a lot about her.”

Earlier, Moon So-ri revealed that Kim Sun-young and director Lee Seung-won had many intense discussions on set. Regarding this, Kim Sun-young laughed and said, “We only talked about trivial things, but I think So-ri felt it was intense.” She added, “So-ri unnie talks with director Jang Joon-hwan like, ‘Did you do it this way?’ ‘Yes, I will do it this way.’ That’s different from how my husband and I communicate.”

Despite theaters losing their shine due to COVID-19, films led by many women such as The Day I Died and Samjin Company English TOEIC Class are meeting audiences like wildfire.

When asked about the responsibility of presenting Three Sisters in this situation, Kim Sun-young said, “It’s a really good point,” and added, “Actors have an obligation to empathize with someone. In that sense, I feel a sense of responsibility. Empathy has a truly powerful force. If you have a sense of duty, you can look more closely and think more deeply. I try to open my heart and look more deeply,” answering with weight.

She continued, “Humans must be the subject,” and expressed regret, saying, “Why don’t we question it when men are the subject, but only point it out when women are the subject in films? Isn’t it because the world is male-centered? Because there are many male-subject works.”

She emphasized, “I hope the moment comes when women and men are not separated. I hope the day comes when the balance between works is achieved.”

When asked what kind of image she wants to show in the future, Kim Sun-young sighed deeply and said, “You have to have a drink of soju with me.” She honestly said, “Actors perform the roles given to them. We are not in a position to choose roles. If given the chance, we have to do our best within that, but sometimes I don’t like it.”

She added, “I want to act well and have many concerns. I could talk more bluntly, but I wanted to share my honest feelings,” showing a sincere side.

Photo = Little Big Pictures

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.