As a 3rd year student at Crean Lutheran High School in Irvine, Jenny Kim is at an important stage in her high school life where she has to focus on her studies to prepare for college. In the midst of her studies, Kim still manages to find time to play the violin, do volunteer work and most importantly, do what she loves to do – making films. Little did she know that what started off purely as a hobby has opened doors for her to opportunities as a career choice. One opportunity in example was the recent ‘15th Annual Holocaust Art and Writing Contest’ in which Kim won 1st place in the high school film category and was awarded with a $500 prize and an expense-paid study trip to Washington D.C. at the awards ceremony at Chapman University on March 7. More than 5,600 students from 175 middle and high schools from throughout California and several other states including New York, Illinois and Pennsylvania entered the contest this year. The ‘15th Annual Holocaust Art and Writing Contest’ is an annual contest co-sponsored by Chapman’s Rodgers Center for Holocaust Education, which is one of the largest and most active Holocaust survivor organizations in the U.S. This year, the students were given with the theme of “Memories Spoken and Heard: Intersecting Perspectives of the Holocaust” where participants were asked to listen to a Holocaust survivors’ full length testimony (usually 60-90 minutes) to show what you “speak” from what you “hear” as a writer, artist or filmmaker. Kim expressed her thoughts with K-Herald on her first ever experience in entering a contest and discussed about her strong passion for filmmaking.
1. K-Herald: What made you want to enter this contest?
Jenny Kim: This is the first time that I’ve entered in an actual film contest. The contest invites each school to submit a total of three entries. I was selected for the film entry to represent my school. Since I’ve made several promotion videos for my school, my teachers thought it would be a great chance for me to participate in this, and wrote me a recommendation letter to the contest. I personally find the Holocaust fascinating because, as a Korean, I share a common culture bound of the tragic history. But since now, I didn’t really get to put serious thought into it, so I wanted take this change to learn and communicate about our history.
2. KH: Did you have any experiences in filmmaking before this contest? Do you plan on continuing to enter in other contests?
JK: I’ve made several films including “Every Fifteen Minutes” campaign, which is an anti-alcohol driving awareness program in conjunction with the Irvine Police Department, California Highway Patrol, California Office of Traffic Safety, and Orange County Fire Authority and some other school projects. I’ve completed Apple’s Final Cut program and also participated in editing work for some film projects such as ‘Lines of Hope.’
Currently, I’ve entered the High School “Artist of the Year” hosted by the Orange County Register, and submitted my film for “Toyota’s Teen Driver Video Challenge.” I’m planning to continue with making a documentary film to raise awareness to the support children in Guatemala, and to enter more contests with this work.
3. KH: What does it mean to you on winning this contest?
JK: I love creating films, but it is important how they speak to the audience. It means a lot to me that I won this contest because it shows that not only the judges, but the survivors also communicated with me through my film. Following the Award Ceremony, I had the opportunity to meet with the Holocaust survivors. Even though the survivor, Selene Bruk, the inspiration for my film passed away in 2011, I got to meet her daughter, Carlin, who was in the main theme for my film.
I am planning to create a documentary inspired by the ‘Lines of Hope’ project I participated as an assistant editor. I plan to visit Guatemala in June and help out underprivileged children. I hope my work can inspire people to understand and care about others. I will continue making films with different genres and themes. Making films enriches my life. By participating in this contest, I was granted the opportunity to learn from others and was able to enlarge my perspective and scope of understanding.
4. KH: Can you tell us more about the film you entered for the ‘15th Annual Holocaust Art and Writing Contest’?
JK: The title of my winning film is “See It Through My Eyes.” I chose a testimony by a woman named Selene Bruk because it has a strong message of memory and legacy. She lost her family members one by one during Holocaust and witnessed tragic death and fear. She survived with great courage, pertinacity and pursuit of life, but she never wanted to go back to the scene of Holocaust. Then, she decided to visit Poland when her daughter wanted to see where she came from. To her daughter Carlin’s eyes, Poland was a just beautiful and peaceful place, but to Selene, it was a history where the memory lives and where the lessons should continue. Selene wanted her children and others to see what she saw and feel what she felt. Sharing the story is to live on history. It is important to see it through her eyes, so we can not only to listen but to learn the pain of tragedy. I mainly wanted to focus on awareness and empathy by sharing the survivor’s own perspective that translates in her daughter’s eye.
5. KH: How were your able to create the shots you wanted?
JK: I basically wanted to focus on the eye theme. The old women’s eye represents Selene’s view and the young girl’s eye represents her daughter’s view. Then, I also wanted many eyes that will represent diversity of audiences regardless of age and race. I went down to Huntington Beach where I can meet various group of crowds and I asked permission to shoot their eyes. I shot about 50 eye shots of people from different age, gender and ethnicity. Putting those eyes at the end of the film, I was able to deliver a message of ‘Do not forget, Do not be ignorant.’
6. KH: How did you first get interested in filming? Do you have a director that you admire?
JK: When my dad first bought me a video recorder, I immediately started shooting self-interviews and was mesmerized by the idea of moving pictures. From then on, I created videos for school projects like “Every Fifteen Minutes” and school promo videos. I use inspiration from music into my film to communicate with others. I love Guiseppe Tornatore, Director of Cinema Paradiso. He has such a great sense of delivering musical inspiration into his film. His other film, The legend of 1900, is also another of my favorites. I like how he creates scenes with background music as if they were in another language.
7. KH: If you could work with any filmmaker/director, who would you want to work with?
JK: I would love to work with my favorite directors, Guiseppe Tornatore and Julian Schnabel. However, I would also like to work with Ang Lee. Recently, I watched Life of Pi and it was a great film with the perfect music and visual effects. As his filmography speaks, I believe there will be a lot to learn, but I especially like him because he understands both Asian and American culture while successfully delivering his film to a varied audience. Because Lee is the paragon of cross cultural backgrounds in the film industry, I would like to learn from him and his influences.
8. KH: What was the most difficult part in telling a story through your film?
JK: I had to deliver an hour-long message into a three-minute film. It was challenging to condense the story because there were lots to tell. But I decided to pick the most important message and used the eyes to transfer the two different views of the Holocaust – memories and ignorance. I wanted to express those two difference view by symbolic ideas. Instead of using documentary footage or people’s perspective, I shot symbolic things to show the contrast between destruction and innocence of lives of the unheard and the unseen, reminding us not to repeat the tragic history. I didn’t just want to focus on what survivor saw, but also what others need to see. Not only the survivor, but those who speak for them should also carry on the memories and share lessons with others.
9. KH: What are some of your hobbies?
JK: I love playing musical instruments. I play violin in orchestra called Ainos ensemble and sponsor under privileged children in Guatemala. I also perform in concerts for senior centers and share my musical talents with the community. I felt so blessed that I was able to contribute and inspire others with my musical talents and I always wanted to do more. Music is my biggest inspiration. I enjoy listening to all kinds of music including Hip-Hop, Rock, Alternative and New Age. With such broad knowledge of music, I think about suitable background music more quickly. Occasionally, I happen to come across a right song for a specific scene. I developed the ability to sense the perfect song for my films; it is my sixth sense.
10. KH: What are some of your goals for the future?
JK: It has always been my dream to work in the film or media-related fields. I’ve had some great opportunities to work with talented editors when I did an intern at Arcade Edit last summer. I got to take a quick peak on the real industry environment. Working in the film industry is not easy because it requires active participation and original creativity. However, with excitement come challenges. I would like to be a filmmaker who conveys emotions and truths simply through seconds of moving pictures.
Yuna Hwang
K-Herald
