by Hyun Soo Kim
AAJA-Asia Seoul co-hosted a screening of the documentary “Zero Waste” created by director Danny Kim on March 19, at the Chungmu Art Hall Theater.
The film is a character-driven, social impact documentary that narrates the stories of four individuals — an artist, urban ecologists and activists — who are addressing South Korea’s plastic waste problem in their own creative ways. The various footage of overwhelming plastic waste shown in the film reflects the increasingly dangerous reality that environmental problems pose to South Korea.
Danny Kim, who is also the founder of documentary production company Docu+, was inspired to create the documentary after the environmental hazards that Covid-19 brought forth hit home. He wondered where all the waste from people’s senseless use of plastic would end up.
Kim said the purpose of the screening event was to create a space for feedback for the rough cut of the movie, which he plans on submitting to various upcoming film festivals after his final revision. After watching the 71-minute film, the audience had a Q&A session with Kim. When asked what his goal was when creating the documentary, Kim answered that it was to share Korea’s point of view on the issue and let foreign audiences know that this was how some Koreans approached the environmental problem.
Kim hopes to dig more deeply into renewable energy content in the near future. “I consider it a success if this documentary made at least one person consider going green. Small steps make big ripple effects in society.” Kim said.