I’m in the home stretch of the screenplay I’m trying to wrap up today–a project that anyway I’m not really supposed to be talking about for now, though hopefully at some point I can because it’s interesting, and relevant, and Lovecraftian, and set in Korea–but in any case, since I am busy and can’t discuss it anyway, here’s something else:
My friend Charles attended the recent Cthulhu Festival of Film in Seoul a couple of months ago (at the end of February), and soon after posted his thoughts about the films and the event in general. I haven’t been able to enjoy directly the several Korean-language reviews of the event and the films that have been posted online (though Mrs. Jiwaku gave me the highlights) so this was especially nice to see. It’s a worthwhile read, and though of course I’m biased (having been heavily involved in the making of the film he says that he liked best) his reactions pretty much synch up with mine.
Here’s what Charles had to say.
As for what we’re working on now:
I’m trying to finish that script I can’t really talk about (except in vague terms like this), and Mrs. Jiwaku is putting together a trailer for her most recent short film, titled 자연선택설. (English title: “Environmental Pressures and Species Adaptation” which is actually kind of pseudoscientific, though, well… zombies.)
I also recently uploaded the missing track from the soundtrack for this film. It’s just a clip from the first track, but without the bass and the distorted guitars… a spooky little mood piece. Chances are this is what we’ll also use for the trailer, maybe with a little modification:
Next up? My next big project won’t be film-related at all–I’m starting out on a novel soon, and working through some short stories for now–but Mrs. Jiwaku will be editing together a few things with video we shot in Seoul, before leaving, including 대리전 (“The Great Proxy War”) and a short comedic Lovecraftian thing.
Yeah, this one, which actually features me as an actor:
As for me, I’ll be taking time off from my novel to work on soundtrack music for both those projects, presumably, and have been rolling around ideas for 대리전. (After having recently re-watched Wong Kar Wai’s Chungking Express, and having been reminded of the Vangelis’ soundtrack for Bladerunner, I think we’ll be shooting for something vaguely in that zone… with ironic results, sometimes–sexy sax and synth bass in incongruous moments–as well as full-on fat-synth layering and probably a bit of chiptune-influenced fun here and there.
In the longer range, though, both Mrs. Jiwaku and I plan to write some scripts: her, a kind of political, multicultural kids’ fantasy set in Korea; mine, a [Lovecraftian] horror story set in 18th century Joseon court.
But we both are also thinking about doing something shorter, set here in Saigon/HCMC (or someplace close) since, after all, we’re here right now.