My favorite show is a Korean drama called Itaewon Class. An emotional and inspiring television series following the story of a young man avenging his father by creating the largest food company in Korea. I had to constantly fight the urge not to watch it all at once and to space each episode out so I could properly take it in. It wasn’t just the story but the way each scene was shot and choreographed that had me immersed. This show was directed by Kim Seong-yoon, a South Korean television director who was awarded the 2020 (56th) Baeksang Arts Best Director title. He also directed other iconic K-Dramas such as Dream High and The Sound of Magic.
Kim Seong-yoon takes an atypical approach when it comes to how a film looks and feels. Often contrasting and blending both contemporary and vintage styles in his projects, creating a uniquely realistic cinematic experience. He is known for proficiently using bold lighting and colors to smoothly convey to the audience what a character is feeling, resulting in many intimate scenes where the audience can seamlessly connect with the characters. You can see this especially well in Itaewon Class, where he uses dimmer natural lighting for serious moments and vibrant neon lighting for more lighthearted scenes.
As a professional industry director and filmmaker, Kim Seong-yoon is light years ahead of me when it comes to knowledge, skill, and intuition when making a film. But there are still similarities and contrasts within our styles. While at the moment I don’t use lighting to convey emotions or set the mood of a scene, I try to connect viewers to a film through colors. For example, in a recent film I created from an existing screenplay, I used dull and dark colors to set the emotion and circumstance the characters were feeling throughout the film. I also try to create a blend of cinematic and realistic scenes, making the characters relatable through dialogue and emotions while still keeping the artistic choreography of a more cinematic piece.
While I could have written about independent filmmakers, who might have been easier to compare to, as I am just beginning to learn the basics of film. I chose Kim Seong-yoon because I deeply admire his artistic vision and philosophy on filmmaking. He is an inspiring and creative director whose work resonates with me as both a viewer and filmmaker. There is much I can learn from his approach, and I look forward to seeing the changes in the similarities and differences in our styles and methodologies as my own understanding of filmmaking evolves.
The Learning Repository 