[Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요

AMOREPACIFICMay 12, 2023

“Why did we decide to make a film?”

As designers working in a corporate environment, we have few opportunities for creation that is purely artistic.
Film, however, is a comprehensive art form that integrates various disciplines—visuals, literature, acting, art, and music—and
allows for a truly multi-sensory form of expression. Although we knew a low-budget short film would have its limitations,
we wanted to take this creative project as an opportunity to challenge ourselves with the art of filmmaking.

A second reason was our desire to gain more experience in planning and producing for video, which is undeniably
the most dominant medium today. Within our team, we have been building our video skills through an internal
‘broadcasting club.’ We wanted to see how the skills we’ve developed as designers and through this club could
be expressed in a different medium like film, and to deepen our experience with visual storytelling.

Third, we wanted to use the medium of art to talk about our profession: design. We thought it would be a
fascinating experience to recreate our daily work through a different mode of expression.
After working at a company for several years, it’s easy to fall into a routine and view our
work from a purely subjective perspective. We believed that through the process of writing
a script and reimagining our work, our colleagues, and ourselves as characters in a film,
we could gain a more objective viewpoint and a deeper understanding of what we do.

The very first words at work, Hello

What does “work” mean to you?

Caught in the gap between personal
ideals and the reality of work,
this is the
story of three designers striving to live
authentically—imperfectly, but without
losing their own light.

Synopsis

Min Seok: A highly-regarded senior designer and project leader, is suffering from burnout. Design, which was once his “dream,” now feels like just another “job” to get through, and a sense of disillusionment is setting in. He feels overwhelmed by the monotonous routine, the burden of mentoring a junior designer from scratch, and the constant need to accommodate a team member’s personal issues.

Jae In: A fresh college graduate who always believed landing a good job was the happy ending to her story. After dominating design competitions in university, she was the first among her friends to start a glamorous career at a large corporation. But in reality, she feels stuck with menial tasks. She thought she knew so much, yet she constantly shrinks under Min Seok’s critical feedback.

Eun Ji: A 10-year veteran designer who is also a first-time mother. Always competent and driven, she now finds her carefully planned schedules constantly upended by the unpredictable variable of her child. She hates having to ask her project members for special consideration. She wants to excel at both motherhood and her career, but this ambition leaves her with the nagging feeling that she is failing at both.

The three of them are working together on the ‘Nasan Factory A’ project.

Characters

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_02

Min Seok

Deputy Manager, Project Leader, 13 years of experience A pure designer’s mindset; lacking in empathy; currently experiencing burnout.

“Until last year, staying up all night for work wasn’t that difficult. But I’ve recently realized that’s no longer true. I was pushing myself too hard, and now, I’m just exhausted.”

He is someone who truly loves design and sees it as a form of self-realization. Min Seok has an unwavering personal style, evident in everything from his clothes and shoes to the notebooks and pens he uses at work. But after so many years at the company, he has fallen into a rut.

Design, which was once his “dream,” has become just another “job” to be cleared from his desk each day. Though he is a respected project leader, he can’t shake the feeling that something is missing.

When his boss asks him, “Are you still having fun?” Min Seok is forced to look back at his once-passionate younger self. What is the one thing that’s missing for him now?

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_03

Eun Ji

Manager, 10 years of experience, working mom A veteran at work, constantly hitting the wall of a reality she can’t control.

“My life is currently a one-woman show.”

Am I even doing this right…?

Before her baby, Eun Ji was a designer who was great at her job and loved taking care of herself. For her, a normal life was simple: focusing on design while at work, and enjoying a day of shopping when she wanted to treat herself.

Now, Eun Ji’s entire world revolves around her child’s schedule. No matter how early she leaves, she’s often late for work after getting her child ready. Her project schedules are constantly upended by the unpredictable ‘child’ variable.

Eun Ji hates the person she’s become—always flustered, always behind—but she doesn’t even have the time to properly hate herself.

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_04

Jae In

Team Leader, Project Junior, 3rd Year Efficient and capable, but often lost in her own imagination. Currently snowed under with all the team’s miscellaneous tasks.

“I thought getting a job at a big company was the happy ending.”

“Ugh… I have a million things to do… Can’t you just meet the deadline?!”

Jae In is someone who hates inconveniencing others and excels at any task she’s given. After dominating design competitions in university, she confidently joined the large corporation with a professor’s recommendation. Now, however, she has realized she was just a big fish in a small pond and feels disillusioned by a reality that is so different from what she imagined. ‘Did I join this company to be a designer, or a dogsbody?’ she wonders.

Whenever she takes the initiative to make what she thinks is a small decision, her superior, Min Seok, inevitably scolds her for making the wrong call. But when she listens to his reasoning, she knows he’s right, leaving her unable to argue back.

Concept

This film tells the story of ordinary, yet extraordinary, corporate designers. For some, being a designer at a large corporation is a life to aspire to; for others, it’s just an ordinary life.

We see Min Seok, who seems to have achieved so much, yet feels a sense of emptiness; Jae In, who is disillusioned by a reality that doesn’t match her dreams; and Eun Ji, who tries to excel at everything but feels she is succeeding at nothing. Perhaps our protagonists’ struggles all stem from the same source: the difficult fight to live authentically as themselves, without losing their own inner light.

The film’s title, <Hello>, has a double meaning. It represents the simple morning greeting that begins another day in the real world of work, while also posing the question: “Are we, really, okay right now?”

Through this story, we hope the audience will reflect on their own lives and realize that their personal struggles and the walls they face are not just obstacles, but the very process and driving force that helps them build a life that is truly their own.

Final Film Result

Process _Screenplay Review

The four of us each wrote our own screenplay and then took the time to read one another’s work. The experience of writing a script was refreshing in itself, and reading each other’s writing allowed us to see our work and our colleagues from a new perspective. Through this process, we drew ideas from one another, making it a truly meaningful and collaborative effort.

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_06

Production Process _ Actor Auditions

We put out a casting call and selected two candidates for each role to audition. The experience of auditioning professional actors was completely new and fascinating for us. It was also a very realistic lesson; it was surprising how many candidates we had mentally chosen based on their headshots looked and performed completely differently in person, leading us to make different casting choices.

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_07

Production Process _ Actor Auditions

Ultimately, Choi Gwi Seon was cast as Min Seok, Oh Yoon Soo as Eun Ji, Kim Soo Bi as Jae In, and Jo Seong Jae as a colleague. We were thrilled because they were all a perfect fit for their roles, and their characters felt completely distinct from one another, which was exactly what we had hoped for.

And for a behind-the-scenes story: our own team leader, Heo Yoo Seok, played the role of the Managing Director (‘Sang-mu’), and another team member, Jin Hyun Jo, also appeared in a small role. Their participation added a layer of authenticity and created a fun and meaningful memory for all of us.

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_08

Production Process

The photos below show our direct involvement in the production process. From location scouting and booking, to storyboarding, costumes, art direction, illustration, editing, post-production, and filming the making-of video—we handled it all ourselves. Although it was just a short film, this project gave us a firsthand experience of the incredible amount of work, collaboration, and help from others that is required to produce a single film.

Location

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_09

Storyboarding

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_10

Set Design

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_11

Actor Costumes

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_12

Illustration

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_13_da2_01

Editing and Post-Production

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_14

Making-of Film

Film Festival Submission Plan (2023 Schedule)

After researching, we found there were many domestic short film festivals and planned to submit our film to all those for which we were eligible. Although we didn’t make the film with festival submissions in mind, we decided to give it a try as a bonus chapter to the project, regardless of the outcome. During our search, we were saddened to learn that the Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival, once hosted by Amorepacific, had been discontinued. We hope it will be revived someday.

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_16

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello mob_38_16

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_17

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello mob_38_17

After the Film: Subsequent Activities

Our short film, <Hello>, was submitted to nine eligible film festivals by October 2023. At the 44th Workers’ Culture and Arts Festival, hosted by the Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service and featuring 5,228 participants, our film won the Silver Award in the video category.

That same October, the film had its public debut as a special feature at ‘Busan story A cinema,’ a screening platform for emerging independent filmmakers held during the Busan International Film Festival under the theme ‘Small but Shining Youth & Independent Films.’

The journey of starting this film production without a clear plan was often daunting. We are deeply grateful to everyone who supported us and helped turn our clumsy challenge into a shining result that tells our story.

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요 [Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello 38_sign_set

[Short Film Project] The very first words at work, Hello

[단편영화 프로젝트] 출근하면 처음으로 건네는 말, 안녕하세요

AMOREPACIFICMay 12, 2023

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