New Hire Q&A: Meet Director of Strategy, Christine Yi

Introducing the newest member of Great Big Story, Christine Yi. Here are a few fun facts we learned from Christine in our latest sit down:
1. Name a storyteller you look up to and why.
Werner Herzog is one of my favorite storytellers, particularly for documentary film, though he’s done everything from feature films to opera. He may be one of the least cynical, most empathetic filmmakers with an apparent endless curiosity about the world. To use his own words, he seeks “ecstasy of truth” in his work, and one of my favorite parts about his documentaries is listening to his extraordinary and distinctive German-accented English narrating his quirky and unique perspective on the world. I’d recommend “Grizzly Man,” “Encounters at the End of the World” and “Little Dieter Needs to Fly” as good starting points to explore his work.
2. What do you value most from your earliest days in the professional world?
During my first job out of college as a junior management consultant, I learned early on that I had to get comfortable with ambiguity. You can strive for perfection or absolute knowledge, but you’ve still got to deliver an end product against a deadline and sometimes there aren’t enough hours to answer every question or finesse every aspect of a project. So you learn to prioritize and focus on answering the most critical questions. This is true whether you’re running a business or producing a creative work, although who wouldn’t love infinite time?
3. Favorite Great Big Story?
My most recent favorite piece is “Curry Vendor,” and my affection for it probably stems from an intense nostalgia-soaked love of Japanese curry rice. It was a staple in my Korean household growing up. For my busy working mom, it was an easy meal to whip up, and I still love it to this day. I frankly marveled at the obvious pride and care that the curry vendor, Tadashi Yoshimoto, put into his farm-to-vending-machine meals. It’s humble, cheap fare, but he’s as particular and precise as 3-star Michelin chef Jiro Ono in “Jiro Dreams of Sushi.” This Great Big Story pulled together all the elements I love about Great Big Stories in general. A delightful and unusual subject, perfect musical accompaniment, a bit of education (about Japanese vending machine culture) and quick visuals that instantly transport you to a specific place (those tiny Japanese trucks!). I felt simple, unadulterated joy watching this Great Big Story, and it’s like a balm for my soul. And, yes, this does make me want to visit Japan and buy a curry meal from this vending machine!
Another detail that impressed me about this particular piece was that it was done in partnership with ANA, which just goes to show that work done with brands can be as compelling and powerful as pure editorial. The audience won’t mind if the content is good enough.
4. A wondrous place in Manhattan you’ve always wanted to visit, but haven’t got around to.
I don’t know whether this qualifies as a single place, but the most wondrous thing I’ve yet to see up close is the NYC skyline, which is one of the most magnificent sights in the world and one that I doubt I’ll ever get tired of looking at. So I’d like to hop on a helicopter for an intimate look at our beloved city, especially of my favorite skyscraper, the Chrysler building.
5. A podcast or album you can’t stop listening to on the daily commute.
I’m a news junkie, so I’m more often reading news on a few different apps during my commute rather than listening to something. That said, I couldn’t wait to get on the subway every day to listen to the podcast S-Town. It is lyrical and novelistic and ostensibly begins as a true crime narrative, but it’s more of an empathetic meditation on an extraordinary man’s life and his complicated relationship with himself and the world he lives in. He could have been the subject of a Great Big Story himself, perhaps one focused on his world-class horology (in fact, there already is one about an antiquarian horologist!) and his fantastic loquaciousness.

