Movies, Women and Ewha. How do these three independent words relate? They are all intwined in the life and work of Kim Su-jin (’89, German Literature), the producer of Bidangil Pictures that created the sensational thriller, Chugeokja (The Chaser).
The Ewha graduation ring on her left hand shows her love for the school. However, this was not how Kim felt when she first entered Ewha. “To be frank, unlike my wish to enter a co-ed school, my parents forced me to go to Ewha so my early years of school life was not so interesting,” said Kim. Then, a sudden decision to establish a movie-making club (Noue) with her friends, created a turning point in Kim’s life. Kim, who used to watch movies everyday after school, came up with a way to watch movies at school more frequently, and that was how she thought of making the club. “Since that time, Noue enlivened my school life and I started to love coming to school. Just hanging out with friends with common interests, and making movies, it was a life I always dreamed of,” Kim said.
Kim did not stop establishing Noue, but also discussed with her friends ways of making movies and documentaries, one of which received the Young Forum award from the Berlin International Film Festival in 1985.
However, Kim was rather critical on her own movies. “I spent a lot of time thinking about what to do in my future. I had the passion for movies, but was not a great movie director. To be frank, my movies did not meet my standards,” said Kim. Then, the advice of a friend to become a film producer caught her attention. After two years of working in a film producing company, Kim established her own company at the age of 23. “There was no other way than to push forward. Although not knowing anything about management, I wanted to do anything related to movies. Fortunately, the outcome was pretty successful that I earned five million won with my first planned movie in 1991, Camels Don’t Cry Alone,” said Kim.
Although there were some ups and downs to earn her position today as a successful producer CEO, Kim’s passion and love for movie producing did not slow down even once. “Regrets? I had never regretted choosing my path as a movie producer. Never,” Kim continued, “This is what I learned from Ewha too. Whenever you face a problem, do not ever hold back r lag behind in embarrassment. Instead, think of a solution immediately.” According to Kim, her never-ending challenging spirit was sharpened in Ewha, since self-independence is emphasized at women’s universities.
Kim says her unconditional love for movies is what sparks her passion and motivation. And she has seen a countless number of movies. When Kim was in her twenties, she kept a scrapbook in which she pasted movie tickets and wrote some opinions about each movie. All the movies that she watched annually at that time were 300 to 400. “I really was into movies. I remember myself watching ‘A Better Tomorrow’ over and over again,” said Kim.
Despite her busy life, Kim keeps in touch with not only her past colleagues, but also with the current members of Noue. Kim always feels thankful for her hubaes (juniors) continuing the club that she founded when she was in college. “Looking back, Noue was everything in my college life. That is why I strongly recommend students to participate in clubs!” said Kim. “Whatever your dreams are, just be confident and bold,” she added.
Kim, whose motto is to never look back but keep pushing your dreams forward, is busy pushing for her next dream, which is about people who love stocks. According to Kim, she dreams to make a movie similar to “Erin Brockovich”, a movie with a female as a main character. “As of now, I can’t assure if I can make it since