"Each film is a miracle of will"
John Cho has discussed his latest film Columbus, which was screened at the closing night of the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival.
Cho made an appearance at the closing night of the Los Angeles Pacific Film Festival, where his latest film directed by Kogonada was screened.
Speaking at the LAAPFF award ceremony, Cho discussed his experience first watching independent films. “By seeing the world through great filmmakers, I didn’t know anything and many times I left the theatre feeling confused, but it was always very exciting.”
Discussing this in reference to LAAPFF, Cho said, “Better Luck Tomorrow and the films I was in that were shown this week, Columbus and Yellow, remind me of the feeling i had watching independent movies during that time when you were watching something that wasn’t conforming with the party line that was resisting convention. Like me, they were trying to stretch and express myself.”
“Speaking as an older man, one thing I’ve learned is that every independent film is a hair away from not existing. Each film is a miracle of will.”
Following the screening of Columbus, which Cho described working on as “one of the great pleasures of my life”, Cho shared his thoughts about the themes of the film.
“I really enjoy watching this film apart from me, which is always an impediment really,” Cho says jokingly. “I see the themes and relationships and lines that Kogonada is drawing. It’s like poetry in the sense that poetry is the most economic way of saying things.”
“A word can mean multiple things and person can be multiple people. A parent can be a child and a child can be a parent. These are the things i receive when i watch it and it’s richer with each viewing. It’s like a good book.”
