Filmmaking came to me as an accidental

necessity. I was a struggling, chunky Korean American actress trying to find

work in New York City, and no one knew which box to put me in. It was hard

enough to come across interesting roles for actresses of color and people were

often thrown off by that fact that I couldn't check the boxes of “sidekick,”

“karate girl,” or “sexy Asian vixen.” I spent a good few years angry and

frustrated at the narrow-mindedness of this industry. I was hungry to act, grow

and show the world what I had to offer but my fat body, flawed skin and

ordinary looks seemed to limit those opportunities.

Rather than try to mold myself into a

role that I couldn't fit, I decided to make my own films as a way of creating

an elaborate audition tape. It was daunting in the beginning, since I’d never

gone to school for filmmaking or writing, but I had nothing to lose. I started

by imagining characters I wanted to play, and built the worlds and stories

around them.

Wildly inspired by comedian Louis C.K.'s

self titled show Louie, In 2013 I

created Hey Yun, a comedy about an angry whimsical Korean artist. If

people could get engaged in a funny shlubby white man’s self reflections and

stories, why couldn't it be the same for an Asian woman counterpart? And I

simply went for it! With a micro-budget and the volunteer talents of artist

friends, I filmed four episodes in four days.

A part of me was scared. I wondered,

“What if I’m never cast in other people’s projects? What if all the acting I’ll

ever do is only in my own scripts?” But the result was quite the contrary. By

embracing roles in which I could own myself, I think ultimately I’ve become a

better actor. That sense of empowerment has gotten me cast in several other

projects by people who have seen me act in my own work. Writing, directing,

performing, and sharing these four little episodes, fully about me, my

experiences and observations, was one of the most invigorating moments of my

life. We had a successful launch of the first season,

garnering a strong fan base, mainstream media attention, awards,

and several film festival screenings in Los

Angeles and in New York. People dubbed it as smart critique of "hipster

racism” and microaggressions.

The process has also helped me grow

deeper as an artist. It forced me to become clearer on my voice and on the

worlds and people I am interested in. After making my own work, I learned that

what turns me on as an artist is to let people see the strange mix of who I am,

part childlike whimsy, part abrupt, explosive, and sometimes grotesque adult --

not a type of character that’s often seen in roles for women of color. I'm most

curious about these kinds of characters: the modern day misfits that are

finding their authentic voices, encountering their tribes, and their struggles

to survive along the way.

A year later, I am ready to launch Season

2 of Hey

Yun -- the Web Series. This time I crafted the series in mockumentary style.

Breaking of the fourth wall inspired stories that were more honest, immediate,

and visceral of the struggles as a misfit artist desperate to succeed. It shows the highs and lows of

striving for your dream in NYC while broke and disillusioned within a so-called

“post-racial” America. In six new episodes, we see Hye Yun toddle through life

with a film crew following her ambitious “rise to success.”

I’m excited to

share the New York City underground artist world that I live and breathe in,

through the eyes of this angry but whimsical character. The premiere is at the end of

March, launching through Wifey tv (founded

by Rebecca Odes and Jill Soloway), a curated video network for women and women

as subject. The

trailer can be found on Seed&Spark

where I’m running a

crowdfunding campaign to finish post-production.

My enduring goal as a filmmaker and

storyteller is to keep shining light onto the "ugly" and the

"uncomfortable" in human forms, behaviors, psyches, and relationships

through raw storytelling sprinkled with humor and absurdities. I’d like to keep

creating more of these ugly and uncomfortable stories and characters for myself

and other women of color. It’s amazing that the storytelling landscape in

mainstream media is becoming more and more colorful, and I simply want to add

some more dust, dirt, curves and sparks to it.

***

Hye Yun is a writer, performer, filmmaker based in NYC. She has made 3 short films and successfully launched her award winning comedy web series HEY YUN. Her viral video FIRST KISS NYC was featured on Huffington Post, Daily Mail, Slate magazine and more.