UN CERTAIN REGARD – Madonna, interview with Shin Su-Won

The third feature film by South Korean director Shin Su-Won, Madonna is inspired by Edvard Munch’s work of the same name. It’s a blurred and murky reflection, like the face of the nurse Hye-rim at the beginning of this new opus.

 
How did you begin to work on this film?
One winter’s day, I was in a cafe in my neighbourhood when a homeless woman in her twenties came inside, sat down on a chair, put her head on the table and fell asleep. Unlike other homeless people, she looked normal and sane. Seeing her in that state, I began to wonder when and how she had become homeless, and what had caused her life to shatter in such way. I felt sympathetic towards her, but at the same time, fear swept over me as I thoughtt about how my life could take a turn for the worse like hers at any moment. She left a lasting image in my head and, thinking about all the women around me who lead unstable lives without proper job security, I began writing Madonna.

Film still © RR

Please describe your working method and the atmosphere on set. Any anecdotes to share?
I really enjoy long shots since they convey the mise-en-scene very well, and rather than using sets that feel artificial, I prefer to shoot on location. For this reason, we did a lot of location scouting. It was a difficult production, but I tried my hardest to not disrupt the actors’ moods, I do not like cutting off performances, so rather than shooting many short takes, I prefer to shoot long takes and allow the actors to take plenty of time before and after the cut, so they can play out the scene. Filmmakers who are used to fast-paced MTV style or mainstream style shoots do not understand this method and feel lost by it. Having worked on two or three films with same crew, they know how I work and follow my lead. The shoot was managed far more proficiently than before.

One notable experience on the set took place while shooting the VIP hospital scenes. Because this was a low-budget film, we could not afford to build a set, and instead rented a motel room in the country. We dressed the room to make it look like a hospital room, but because we didn’t have enough money to continue paying for the room, we shot for five days without a break. These scenes were crucial to the film, we were all on edge and I barely got any sleep. On the way back to Seoul, I suffered shortness of breath and when I went to a local clinic, they asked me to go to the ER right away. During those few minutes in the cab, I prayed: ‘There are still several more days of shooting left, I can die afterwards, but let me live through this day.’ Fortunately, it was just a common occurrence due to fatigue but for a few hours, I felt like I was one of the characters in the film.

Please share a few words about your actors
Unlike Mina, the protagonist Hye-rim is a stoic and quiet character who needs to convey deep psychological suffering through her detailed performance. As an actress, it could be an irritating character to play, and due to our limited budget, we obviously couldn’t shoot the scenes in order, but Seo Young-hee maintained her tone throughout the shoot and performed impeccably. She and Kim Young-min had great chemistry together on the screen, and at several points during the shoot, I even forgot to call ‘cut’ because I was so drawn into her performance.

Actress Kwon So-hyun has never acted before, even in a short film. I casted her solely based on her image, and giving her the part was a major gamble on my part because her acting ability was unverified. I was so worried that I gathered the actors who would work alongside her for rehearsals on weekends prior to the shoot. After taping the performance, we reviewed the footage to discuss performance and blocking. She had a tremendous amount of concentration, and with each rehearsal, she slowly transformed into Mina.

Actor Kim Young-min, who played Sang-woo, showed off his acting chops in director Kim Ki-duk’s ONE ON ONE, playing multiple characters. Sang-woo is a morphing and adaptable character who is like a chameleon, and is capable of expressing good and evil at the same time. He prepared so much for the shoot, and flawlessly performed long cuts without using many takes.
Actor Byun Yo-han was cast as Dr. Lim because I sensed that he could convey feisty and soft personality traits at the same time. Even though he didn’t have much screen time, he was passionate about the film, and poured so much into his role. He’s an actor capable of very high levels of concentration in front of the camera. Despite being a relative newcomer, he held his own while sharing the screen with veterans like Seo Young-hee and Kim Young-min.

What are your views on the film industry in South Korea?
Over the last few years, there have been many hugely successful films and many mainstream films are being produced as a result. As the film industry expands, investment has flowed in, but the rich have got richer and the poor have got poorer. It is very difficult to get funding for films that do not have mainstream appeal. There was a time when a creative film could receive funding from the government and investors. Whenever I shoot a film, I wonder if this’ll be my final film.

What sources of artistic inspiration have you drawn upon in your work?
I had many nightmares about my fear of water. Whenever lakes or rivers appear in my dreams, I always woke up in cold sweat, fearing that I might fall in and drown. While writing the script, I used lots of water imagery. Mina is passed out on a dirty stream, and Hye-rim is standing on a riverbed. Hye-rim’s water breaks while riding a bus… Aside from that, Edvard Munch’s Madonna was a source of inspiration. Unlike how the Virgin Mary has been perceived throughout history, Munch’s rendition is striking. I wanted Hye-rim’s reflection on the river’s surface at the beginning of the film to resemble Munch’s painting.

Can you tell us about your next project?
There is a melodrama script called BLUE SUNSET. I do not yet know if it’ll ever see the light of day. I’m still debating about that.

SCREENINGS

Wednesday 20th May / Debussy Theatre / 11 am

Friday 22th May / Debussy Theatre / 4:30pm

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