Youn Yuh-jung is a pro. She’s been acting in film and television for over 50 years. Over that span, she’s won numerous accolades in Asia, but it’s her role in Lee Isaac Chung’s autobiographical drama “Minari” that has turned her into an awards season darling. Over the past few months, Youn has won 21 different year-end Supporting Actress awards including honors from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and the National Board of Review. She’s also earned Independent Spirit Award, SAG Awards, and Gotham Independent Film Awards nominations. And that means the inevitable “O-word” is now a constant until the nominations are announced on March 15.
READ MORE: Steven Yeun faces his father’s generation in “Minari” [Interview]
“It’s kind of scary because I never even dreamt about it. You know, Oscar is a very big wall, higher than Trump’s wall,” Youn says with a clever smile. “We never [thought of] being nominated or whatever, so it’s not weird to me. I cannot feel anything, but the Korean [people] just with the pandemic and everything, they are very depressed. You have the expression about don’t count your chickens before they hatch. They’re doing it like that. Scary if I failed or whatever, not being nominated or whatever. They will be very disappointed, so I’m not good position now. [Laughs].”
During our conversation, the morning she was nominated for a SAG Award, Youn took some time to discuss her experience working with Chung, that harrowing fire scene, and playing the grandmother to her scene-stealing young co-star, Alan Kim.
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The Playlist: Congratulations on the SAG award nominations. How do you feel about it?
Youn Yuh-jung: Thank you very much. Actually, I don’t feel anything because I’m not familiar with this kind of award because I’m from Korea. Just overheard from the news. So to me, it’s not weird to me.
Well, let’s talk about this project then. Am I correct, this is your second English language project?
Actually, I was in with the Wachowskis’ “Sense8” on Netflix. I had some English line as a prisoner. Actually then after that, I had some pilot program – I forgot about that – It just didn’t pick up. “Highland,” with Margaret Cho, but it didn’t pick up. I had an English line with her. Then “Minari,” I don’t have to speak English, so it was very free.
Did Isaac reach out to you? How did you find out about the role in the first place?
I was at the Busan Film Festival in Korea and Isaac was teaching in Korea, University of Utah teaching film, I think. So, he liked to bring his student and have a Q & A with me as an actress, so I said “Yes.” And so we had a Q&A and Isaac mentioned my first movie [“Woman of Fire”]. It was a long, long time ago. It was 1970, so I was very surprised that the young man remembered my movie. So we’re trying to have a conversation about film, but all the student was not interested about my movie. They were interested about my reality show [“Sisters over Flowers,” a travel show], so Isaac was very disappointed. And next year, maybe one year later, Ina, my friend brought me the script “Minari,” and she asked me to read it. Isaac wrote it so it was written in English. My English is not perfect, so I try to read it and maybe 30 or 40 pages, I called Ina. “Is it a real story?” And she said “Yes.” So, I said, “O.K.” I will do it.” That’s the way we started.
When you finally talked to Isaac about the project did he tell you about his real-life grandmother? Did that help you with the role?
He doesn’t talk much. Well, we had the first meeting after that, after I said yes. And then he was a very quiet man. He said he’s very happy to accept me accepting that role, so just polite way, then he didn’t mention about… Oh, yes! Maybe I asked him, “Should I just imitate your grandmother?” “No, no, no. You don’t have to do that.” So, he gave me freedom. I liked [that] very much.
When you finally showed up on set you’re shooting in Oklahoma, which is in the middle of the United States. You’re not in a city, you’re a little bit in the middle of nowhere. Did you ever wonder what you might have gotten into?
Well, when you’re at work, I don’t expect much. I don’t dream or I don’t have a fantasy. Work is work, so I just expected it. This is a low budget movie, so I expected enough. “O.K., I will just do it.” I will do my job, but always it happened worse than what you expect. [Laughs.]
The fire scene seemed so intense and hazardous on screen. Was that your personal experience shooting it or was that a little bit of movie magic to make it seem like you were that involved?
Not movie magic. Actually, we have to [shoot] it in one take. One take. Cannot do it over and over again. Budget, it’s not a luxury one. So, I had to do it once. And then Isaac was very, very nervous, of course. My flame was [very near] my face, and everybody was very nervous about the situation. I’m an old fashion actress. I have to go on until the director says “Cut.” I couldn’t hear him saying cut, so I kept fighting over with [the fire] and then he forgot to say cut, so I almost barbecued myself.
I’m glad that you made it through all safe and sound. I wanted to ask you about Alan, the young boy who plays David. Is he that precocious and energetic a kid in real life?
Yes, yes. He is. And luckily, I was very scared because he didn’t have any acting experience. [When I found that out] I said, “Oh my God, seven-year-old boy. I need to share the lines together. What I’m going to do? What am I going to do?” But no, my expectation was wrong. He was well-prepared with his mother I think. He memorized all the lines, so what we did was we took a master shot just from the beginning to the end, then if Isaac needs some kind of expression from his face, I can do it over and over because I’m professional, but he’s not, so Isaac is smart enough to handle him. He asked him, “Look at me, look at the camera, and smile at me.” And then he gave me the direction to him, then I think he had used the magic editing, I think.
I was lucky enough to review it out of Sundance. Were you there? I can’t remember if you were there.
Yes, I was there. That was my first time to see that movie. Yeah.
Oh, so you saw it for the first time with that audience? Do you remember your reaction?
Usually being an actress, in my case, I don’t enjoy watching myself on the screen. “Oh, why would I do that? I could’ve done better than that.” That’s always my thought, so I cannot enjoy it at all. I was the dialect coach for Steven, speaking Korean. I said, “Steven, you didn’t lose your accent when you were speaking in Korean after the grocery shop or something like that.” I’m not a very romantic person, and people were laughing. I was in the audience and the people laughing and some of them crying, so I asked my friends, Ina was there [and she said] “You are the only one not crying.” Then later Isaac was on the stage after the movie is done, and then everyone giving him a standing ovation I cried.
How do you think the movie will play to Koreans?
I’m still curious about that. They are going to release March 3rd or something like that. That’s what I heard. And then I don’t know how the Korean audience reacts. I’m really curious about that because most of the Korean people that I know, they really like extreme movie, extreme, radical, whatever you say, very, very…
Extreme, I guess?
Yeah, extreme movie. But this one is not, so I was just wondering and still curious about what they’re going to react.
My last question for you follows up your SAG nomination. You’ve had a lot of buzz. People like myself writing that you have a shot at getting an Oscar nomination. How do you feel about that? Would you be excited about it or are you just trying to pretend that’s not happening?
It’s kind of scary because I never even dreamt about it. You know, Oscar is a very big wall, higher than Trump’s wall. We never [thought of] being nominated or whatever, so it’s not weird to me. I cannot feel anything, but the Korean [people] just with the pandemic and everything, they are very depressed. You have the expression about don’t count your chickens before they hatch. They’re doing it like that. Scary if I failed or whatever, not being nominated or whatever. They will be very disappointed, so I’m not good position now. [Laughs].
“Minari” is now in theaters. It will be available on PVOD on Feb. 26.