A new independent film is set to examine the specific complexities of the Korean adoptee experience. Peter Thurnwald, known for his work in XO, Kitty, has signed on to star in and produce Beat Drives Me, a musical dramedy directed by Quentin Lee. He is joined by veteran actress Nicole Bilderback and Charlie Kersh in a project that prioritizes representation both in front of and behind the camera.
The film follows Luke, a young Korean American rapper who grew up in a white Midwestern family. Luke travels to Los Angeles to search for his birth mother, but his journey quickly expands. As he navigates the streets of Koreatown and the friction of the music industry, he begins to piece together a sense of self that has felt fractured since childhood.
A Production Led by Adoptees
What distinguishes Beat Drives Me is the makeup of its creative team. Director Quentin Lee has assembled a group of collaborators who share the life experiences depicted in the script. Along with Thurnwald, who was raised in Australia, the team includes producers Victoria Keum Jee and writer Koji Steven Sakai.
The film’s music will be composed by Junseok Kim, a Dutch Korean adoptee based in London. This shared background is central to the film’s mission. Thurnwald noted that connecting with other adoptees feels like meeting a “big family” with a massive amount of common ground. “I believe we can make something that is both highly entertaining and truthful to Korean adoptees,” he said.
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While the film features a romantic connection between Luke and a character named Sunny, played by Bilderback, the actress emphasized that the story avoids clichés. Bilderback, who is twenty years older than her co-star, said the film is not about a “gratuitous” age gap.
“It’s about two adults who are finding their own truths,” Bilderback explained. She believes the film illustrates how unconventional relationships often appear at exactly the right time to facilitate healing. “A connection is a connection no matter the timing of when you meet or how many years stand between you.”
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Producer and actress Victoria Keum Jee, who helped develop the script, spoke to the emotional weight of bringing these specific stories to the screen. She described the common struggle of feeling “not Asian enough” in some circles and “too Asian” in others.
“Adoption is complicated and personal,” Jee said. “Bringing these experiences to the screen helps others understand that it’s okay and normal to feel like you don’t fit into either culture.” For the cast, the project is an opportunity to provide the kind of representation they lacked while growing up.
Written by Sakai and directed by Lee—who first collaborated on the 2009 comedy The People I’ve Slept With—Beat Drives Me has been in development for nearly ten years. The production is slated to begin filming in Los Angeles this fall.
