'Blue Grey' by Fourth-Year Katie Kim and Alumna Flora Jiwu Hwang '20 Wins Best Short Award at SESIFF

The short film Blue Grey, written and directed by Directing Student Katie Kim, with Creative Producing Alumna Flora Jiwu Hwang ’20 as Producer and lead actor, won Best Short Award at the 12th annual Seoul International Extreme Short Image and Film Festival (SESIFF). 

In Blue Grey, it is 1989 when Jiho, played by Hwang, and Moonsik are set up on a date in Seoul. Their families hope the meeting will lead to marriage, and Moonsik, eager to settle down after a string of bad dates, does too. Jiho wants to return to New York and is not interested in the match. The date soon devolves into chaos, yet despite this and everything else, the couple feels a connection. 

Since its inception as the first Asian extreme-short film festival in 2009, SESIFF has been committed to making itself accessible to all filmmakers. SESIFF selects films ranging in length from 90 seconds to 15 minutes. And, in the age of Covid-19, SESIFF’s online presence is particularly valuable; the festival boasts programs like the Yeongdeungpo Academy, E-CUT for the Director, Short Film Review, and Extreme-Short Rewind.

Kim is a writer, sound mixer, producer, and director. She is credited as sound recorder and sound mixer on Same, Old and A Woman’s Gaze, respectively; producer for the short film Human Resources; and writer and executive producer for the short film Egg, a drama in which five characters try to define love with an egg. 

Hwang is an actor and producer. She has starred in Andrew C. Jacob’s short film Hotel Crucible and in So Young Yang’s feature-length drama Krazy Beautiful, in which she plays Kristen, a young woman with schizophrenia who wonders if she also possesses supernatural powers. 

Blue Grey has also been selected to screen at the Korean American Film Festival New York. It will premiere on October 20, 2020 and remain available until October 31, 2020. To view, purchase an Eventbrite ticket.