“Treeless Mountain” is the brilliant film by Mrs. So Yong Kim and it starts its limited release tomorrow at the Film Forum in New York. It has won several awards at recent film festivals (Berlin, Toronto, etc.) and has received universal praise from many film critics – even the curmudgeons can’t but smile at her work. Surprisingly, Treeless Mountain is only the second film that Mrs. Kim has written and directed, and this from a person who had no real formal training in film. What many don’t know is that she was rejected from film school. When I spoke with Mrs. Kim on the eve of Treeless Mountain’s release on Wednesday, she surprised me with her candor and humility. She’s a wonderful filmmaker, a caring mother, and an inspiration for many young filmmakers because she took the road less traveled. There is nothing formulaic about Mrs. Kim.

You’ve had a whirlwind tour through festivals. How has your life been since post-production?

It hasn’t been crazy. I was shooting my husbands film before we went to Toronto. We had to schedule two films: one into production and the other entering a world premiere. The only time it was crazy was during that period. We had two films in Berlin and that was more of a scheduling thing. It was totally manageable. And also, we had a lot of people helping out.

When you look back and see all that you’ve accomplished with Treeless Mountain, what has been most satisfying about the experience?

It’s been so intense for me. All films are difficult to make. It’s just been that every step of making this film has been amazing. When I look back at the Treeless Mountain journey, it seems like everything was a miracle that happened. When we were casting for the two main characters, one of the girl’s mother gave us permission to work with her because the first day she saw us, she saw me carrying my baby and so she remembered us in that light and thought that we were working with babies in our arms; she trusted us. Everything was miraculous. What are the chances of this happening? All the stars aligned to make this film, and at a certain point it felt like it was inevitable that it was going to be made. There were so many things. I shot in my hometown and living there for a month and to soak it all in was great. It was rewarding because it was vigorous.

You’ve received a lot of accolades for your work on Treeless Mountain. Do the awards from film festivals and praise from critics mean anything to you or do you just move right along?

I’m just trying to move along with my next project. That’s the healthiest thing. And I did that after In Between Days. I think that really helped me because I only read one or two reviews of In Between Days. I just kinda let that be. After you send your kid away to college, you cant do anymore upbringing. I kind of want to focus on writing my next story. Treeless has been something I’ve been doting over, like a helicopter mom. So I kind of feel bad about that. After the release this week in NY, I gotta refocus. Any great review from A.O. Scott and Melissa (Anderson) is great because it gets people to see the movie. I try not to read them (reviews) because it becomes to distracting I don’t want to go there. It’s fantastic that they’re supportive but I don’t want to dwell on that and I want to invest my energy into my next film.

What did you enjoy most about creating this movie? Was it difficult bringing it to fruition?

It took a long time. I submitted the first draft in 2005 to PIFF (Pusan International Film Festival), It took a long time. We actually shot in 2007. It didn’t take that long and i guess it is average.

Was it challenging directing two young kids in Korea? Critics have praised their performances.

I don’t remember it being hard. I’m sure it was difficult when I was in the thick of it. I think I had a lot of fun and I learned a lot from them. I didn’t think of it as any different challenge or anything more, but there are additional elements because they are young and they can’t mask how they feel. When children show up, they express exactly how they feel. At the same time, they’re pretty straightforward and transparent. They’re not difficult to decipher. There were certain things that were delightful and sometimes it was difficult because you had to explain adult things to them. The biggest fear I had going into the film was working with two young people. I had such a hangup initially, but if another filmmaker were to ask me now, I’d say go for it.

Though the movie is about the experiences of these two little Korean girls, do you think their experiences translate to other cultures?

That’s not up for me to see if it does or not. I hope it does. I’m crossing my fingers that it can. I’m hopeful that it can. It’s a very specific and particular story. I made the film because i wanted to make this story.

You’ve written In Between Days and Treeless Mountain. What are your influences in writing a script? How do you decide on a subject matter?

When Brad (husband) read In Between Days, he said you can’t make that into a film. So to make the film, I focused on a specific period in life: the teenage years because it’s a complex time. Treeless Mountain dropped in my lap. I did a drawing and I was taking a creative writing class and I wrote a story about two girls catching grasshoppers. For my next one – unless I do something completely off the wagon like horror or action – for me the most personable place of writing is to write from personal stories. It’s what I know and I see where it can go. I feel comfortable at that moment. I think the weakest strength is in writing. I need to take more classes and learn more. I was telling a young (14 yo) filmmaker after a screening that he should learn how to write and to also read a lot; practice writing and telling stories. My personal hangup is that I need to improve on my writing.

What compelled you to go into film as a career?

I never thought I would be making narrative films. I studied performance arts and I wanted to make some projections for performances. I kind of started taking film classes and started to making experimental films. My husband Brad went to school at USC. He did a film in Iceland and I learned through that experience; boom mic, driving them around. It was a crew of three people. The difference between a student filmmaker and a filmmaker – I don’t know what that is. I don’t know where the jump happens. I think the best way to make a film is by just doing it. That’s maybe the best way. What people don’t know is that I applied to film school after working on Brad’s film but I got rejected. He said why not spend the money you would spend on school and use that as your budget for a film. And that’s how it happened for In Between Days.

OK. Last question. What’s your favorite Korean food?

Miyuk guk. I’ve been totally into it lately. I just made a huge pot of it.

Thanks So Yong. I’ll see you at the Film Forum.

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