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Feeling respected, recognized, and valued
'Open' tells a moment in the life of Kim Hando (played by Youngnam Cha, an actor known for his roles in 'Seoul Mates' (2014) and 'Summer' (2015), a young student who has a big secret that his family, friends, and all his classmates don't know: he's gay.
Hiding his identity hasn't been easy for him as he navigates between love, friendship, and authenticity in a heterosexist school environment and society, such as South Korea's.
The story follows his efforts to protect his identity when one night, while studying at home with Junjae (Yoonho Jo, in his acting debut), his friend and classmate, his boyfriend (played by newcomer Seon-Hyuk Kim) arrives. Our protagonist will experience a moment of gay panic, as he externalizes the shame caused by internalized homophobia.
The interesting thing about the short film directed by Jun Beom, a South Korean filmmaker who directed his second film, 'Secret Spectacles', in 2017, is the joy and freedom Kim feels (which he expresses with a smile and small gestures of satisfaction) when he discovers that his friend has accepted his sexuality.
Kim has won a real battle by feeling respected, acknowledged, and valued by his friend and classmate.
I have no doubt that a path now opens up for Kim where he feels he can be himself, without hiding who he loves or how he identifies, and can live his homosexuality completely naturally without perceiving it as inferior to heterosexuality.
Hiding his identity hasn't been easy for him as he navigates between love, friendship, and authenticity in a heterosexist school environment and society, such as South Korea's.
The story follows his efforts to protect his identity when one night, while studying at home with Junjae (Yoonho Jo, in his acting debut), his friend and classmate, his boyfriend (played by newcomer Seon-Hyuk Kim) arrives. Our protagonist will experience a moment of gay panic, as he externalizes the shame caused by internalized homophobia.
The interesting thing about the short film directed by Jun Beom, a South Korean filmmaker who directed his second film, 'Secret Spectacles', in 2017, is the joy and freedom Kim feels (which he expresses with a smile and small gestures of satisfaction) when he discovers that his friend has accepted his sexuality.
Kim has won a real battle by feeling respected, acknowledged, and valued by his friend and classmate.
I have no doubt that a path now opens up for Kim where he feels he can be himself, without hiding who he loves or how he identifies, and can live his homosexuality completely naturally without perceiving it as inferior to heterosexuality.
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