Rising Star Dae Hyun Kim On The Five Things You Need To Shine In The Entertainment Industry
An Interview With Edward Sylvan
The core of the entertainment industry is the creation of art. And art is expressing an individual’s uniqueness to the audience, making them feel something, delivering messages and ideas, and sharing. Each gender, sexual orientation, race, each nationality has its own unique voice and culture, which will create its own unique art. I think it is important for all of us to explore and experience these cultures directly and indirectly so that we all can share feelings and understandings.
As a part of our series about pop culture’s rising stars, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Dae Hyun Kim.
Born and raised in South Korea, Dae Hyun Kim studied Cinematography at Columbia College Chicago. During his college years, he found his passion as a Camera Operator/Steadicam Operator and went on to study at the American Film Institute. After graduating, Dae has worked in narrative film, music videos, and commercials. He enjoys collaborating and working in various forms of visual storytelling.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
I had a classic Korean childhood before I moved to America. I was an ordinary kid doing what others do and living a life similar to my friends. My brother went to America to study and every summer vacation he shared his stories about America. Ever since then I’ve wanted to go to America too. Luckily I had an opportunity to do so as an exchange student when I was 16. After the exchange program, I moved to Idaho and graduated high school, then went to Columbia College Chicago to study film. I graduated from American Film Institute. Now, I live in LA and am pursuing the career of becoming a camera operator in the film industry.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
Until I graduated high school, I did not know what I wanted to do in my life. I had to think about it when I was going to college because I had to choose a major. My father has an interest in art. He painted, played guitar and he also took photographs. He likes watching films and when I was young, he would take me to theaters or rent VHS to show me films. I think my interest in the image comes from my father. I loved going to theaters and watching films. Since 6th grade, I went to theaters and watched films with my friends or even by myself, and I always really enjoyed the experience. So when I had to think about what major I would choose and what I would do for a living, I thought it would be awesome to be working on films.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
One of the most memorable moments I had was shooting a Music video with Snoop Dogg.
I was a Steadicam Operator for the Banda MS’s music video Qué Maldición featured with Snoop Dogg and Becky G. I grew up listening to Snoop Dogg’s music when I was young in Korea. And years later I grew up, chased my goal to work in the film industry, and became a Camera/Steadicam Operator where I had a chance to operate the camera capturing Snoop Dogg’s performance right in front of me. It was a surreal moment. And the best part is that after the production ended, I was wrapping up my gear outside, and Snoop Dogg was leaving. As he passed by I said “Thank you,” and he tapped my shoulder and said, “Thank you, Brother.” He treated me with respect and appreciated my contribution to the day’s shoot, which I think is really important.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
When I was new in Steadicam Operating, I was called for a job that had a very long walk and talk scene, probably 5–6 minutes long walking on the grass to the pavement. At that point, I had never done that long and I did not know how to conserve and utilize my energy to keep on going with the numerous takes. Soon after a few takes, I was exhausted — my back was hurting but the director wanted to keep on shooting with different angles and many other takes. Towards the end of the shot, my back could not bear more holding the rig so my legs were shaking and my legs were about to collapse. Thankfully I had a really good key grip who was spotting me, and he held up my vest, holding me up so that I could finish up the shot before I collapsed. I felt very embarrassed and I was criticizing my body for not holding it long enough for the take. But what I did not realize is that a long take like this is hard for everyone, and there are ways to conserve energy, and I could have utilized different tools like a rickshaw or dolly to save my muscles. I also learned that I should listen to my body, and if I need the rest, I should demand it so that I don’t torture my body to extreme conditions.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
I think every project is very interesting, I get to see how other filmmakers with their unique stories and visions are being created. Every set is different, every story is different, and every crew is different. I think all of them are interested. I might be jumping onto TV pilot later on if everything works out, and I am very excited about that. [What about mentioning GUIDE ON here?]
You have been blessed with success in a career path that can be challenging. Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path, but seem daunted by the prospect of failure?
I think failure is inevitable, no matter where you are at and what you do. Failure is embedded in the challenge. So knowing that failure will happen, and it is okay to fail, and the fear of failure gets a little less. And I think it’s important to remember that it doesn’t matter if you fail or not, people who love you, people who know your passion and effort, will continuously trust you and love you just with you being who you are.
We are very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?
The core of the entertainment industry is the creation of art. And art is expressing an individual’s uniqueness to the audience, making them feel something, delivering messages and ideas, and sharing. Each gender, sexual orientation, race, each nationality has its own unique voice and culture, which will create its own unique art. I think it is important for all of us to explore and experience these cultures directly and indirectly so that we all can share feelings and understandings. Also having diversity means more equal opportunity to any gender, race, and nationality rather than being concentrated into certain gender and race. This could open up to more artists to express their talents and we as an audience will have more opportunities to experience a wider variety of arts that could potentially impact our lives.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
- It’s okay to fail.
Through failure, we grow up and learn. Without it, we won’t move forward and become better. I have failed to deliver numerous shots that I was asked to do, there are many shots I wish I could have done better or I wish I could have one more take. But the show must go on and I learn from my mistakes so that next chance I get I am prepared
2. It’s not always fun
I chose this job because I love what I do, but not every day is fun and not every moment is amazing. There are times that I question myself and ask if I really want to do this. The film industry has lots of things to deal with, such as politics, relationships, and connections. For some people, it can be easy, or for others, it can be extremely tough.
3. Remember why you started
This is the quote whenever I am stressed out, whenever I get stuck, and whenever I question myself do I really want to continue to do this. Like I mentioned above, there are lots of other aspects in the film industry that I needed to deal with outside of my work and craftsmanship. It can be stressful and oftentimes it’s hard to find the fun in it. That’s when I try to remember this quote, to remember why I chose this path, what I love about it the most, and what it feels like when I first stand behind the camera when I first witnessed amazing performance through the viewfinder, and when I first time executing the great shot.
4. Work is part of life but it cannot be life itself
Work is a very important part of our life but it cannot be life. Building life outside of work is more important. I learned this when I burned out, realizing that I do not have a life outside of work.
5. Chase the dream that is not the money or position at work
For a long time, I thought my dream was to move to a higher level of production, work on Hollywood blockbuster films, and make good money. But I realized that it cannot be my dream. My dream should not be about my position at work or how big of a film I work on and how much money I make. My dream has to be bigger than that, and more about the ultimate happiness, happiness that I can share and give to others.
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
I experienced burnout myself and I am still navigating how to prevent it. For me, burnout happens because I have not created my personal lifestyle outside of work, like things that are more important than work. I’ve been taking all the jobs that are offered to me and my goal was to work work work. Working constantly is good, but once you are overworking because you do not want to say no to the offer, or afraid that the opportunity won’t come again, etc, then all of sudden you forget what to do when you have free time. When you reach the point where on your off days, after basic errands and housekeeping things, if there’s nothing else to look forward to it’s a warning sign of potential burnout. You can choose not to do anything, but it’s different than not knowing what to do. For me, the important thing to remember is that I love my job but at the same time, I don’t live to work, I work to do things I like, to be with someone I love, to enjoy the life that is out there in the world, not at work. With this mindset, I am still working on burnout, but I try to remind myself what are more important things in my life than work.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
This is a very hard question to answer. I’m not sure what would be the best movement that I can inspire. However, there are movements that I would like to have more support on. One is more females and LGBTQs in the film industry. The film industry is still male-dominated and it is important to have more of other genders’ voices be heard. The other is more diversity in the race in the industry. The film industry does not reflect the US’s race ratio. And finally, I’d like to work for a better working environment for the workers in the film industry. The film industry’s work environment can be brutal and also dangerous. It is important to have changes to ensure that all the crews are working in a safe environment with hours and conditions, also having more time to spend with their own family and lives.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I am grateful to all my friends and all the cinematographers and directors who gave me the opportunity to work on their project, trusting me behind the camera to capture their artistry. Without them, I won’t be where I am and I would not have any chance to challenge myself, fail and learn. Each project I was on, I learned something, every person I worked with inspired and taught me something. And to all my friends who gave me all the support I needed, understood, and trusted my passion and craftsmanship.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
When I was concerned about my age, how late I started, and how young people I work with are, my father once told me “Everyone has their own time.” Each person’s time can be different — someone may have their time when they are very young, but some others might have their time when they are older. Age is irrelevant. Time is incomparable. Each of us is walking on our own path of life, and eventually, all of us will have “our time.” Just because you are not there yet when you want to, doesn’t mean you are not talented or you are slow. The time will eventually come and what we need to do is try to be ready so that when it comes, we can fully enjoy and express our talent and potential.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)
I would say cinematographer Rina Yang. I have been following up with her work for a while and she is an incredibly talented cinematographer. Her work is astonishing and phenomenal. She also uses Steadicam in lots of her work and her way of utilizing it for the camera movement is outstanding. She works worldwide but she is based in the UK where I would love to move one day. If I have a chance I would talk about her thoughts about cinematography and her philosophy, and hear from her the way she sees stories and projects. It would be awesome to get to know her and hopefully someday work on her projects
How can our readers follow you online?
You can follow me on my Instagram: @day_by_dae
Thank you so much for these amazing insights. This was so inspiring, and we wish you continued success!
