2020 JB LIFE! Magazine Spring Edition

House Facts
Words by AARON SNOWBERGER
Screenshots from CJN Behind the Scenes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdD2OnID6hQ
Park House
The Park’s home first floor and spacious front yard were built on
an empty lot in Jeonju. Each room interior was built on separate
sound stages, and the second floor was added digitally later
with a green screen technique. In fact, director Bong admitted
that there are over 480 digital shots in the film, but you’d “never
know it.” At the Cannes Film Festival, a number of big name
directors thought the house was real, given the fluid scene
cuts and art direction. Bong also confessed that much of his
inspiration for the film came from his experience working as
a tutor for a rich family when he was young, admitting that he
often felt like he was “spying” on them.
The art director (Ha-Jun Lee) said that if the whole house
followed the structure and size of the first floor, it would be a
550 pyeong (1818.18 m 2 ) home. But as it is, only 200 pyeong
(661.57 m 2 ) was constructed for the film.
The Kim’s home and alleyway was built inside a water tank
in Goyang that has been used in multiple movies for open
water scenes. The Admiral’s open sea battle was filmed here.
This choice was important as one of the film’s thematic
elements is illustrating the flow of water downward from
rich (inconvenience) to poor (chaotic). By building the alley
street in the water tank, the crew was able to flood it for the
crucial scene.
The film’s art director also had his department visit multiple
homes that were to be demolished in order to collect props
such as old clothes or old furniture for the film. He wanted to
make it feel as authentic as possible. They included rotting food
in the street garbages, flies and mosquitos buzzing around,
grease around the gas cooker, and a moldy smell in the house’s
wallpaper. The actors admitted that the smell was “real.”
The song that plays during the credits roll is called “Soju One
Glass” and actor Choi Woo-sik (Mr. Kim’s son, Ki-woo) sings
of the amount of time he would have to work at his current
salary in order to afford to buy the house his father is trapped
in. It would take 540 years.
Additionally, the Kim house does not receive much sunlight, so
uses fluorescent lamps most of the time. This gives the shots
inside the Kim house a greenish / gray tint. In contrast, the
Park house is filled with higher quality lighting which gives
shots inside a yellowish glow and a much more luxurious feel.
Kim House
44 Jeonbuk Life Magazine / Spring 2020 • Issue 18