Lee Hwan on how Tarantino and Hong Kong cinema inspired TIFF crime noir ‘Project Y’

Project Y marks a major turning point for South Korean filmmaker Lee Hwan.

After winning critical acclaim with social realist features Park Hwa-young and Young Adult Matters, Lee returns with a gritty, glossy crime noir epic, led by stars Han So-hee and Jun Jong-seo.

The film, which premieres at Toronto before going on to play at Busan, has been on Lee’s mind for nearly a decade and went through more than 80 versions of the script before making it to screen.

“I had this idea even before Park Hwa-young in 2018,” Lee tells Screen. “I’m particularly interested in stories led by women, delving into ideas about human nature and desire, so I wanted to make a noir film led by two female leads.”

The story follows Mi-sun and Do-kyung, childhood friends who make their money in the seedy underbelly of a city. After losing their savings, which were meant to fund their escape from that life, the two are forced into a corner and end up stealing a secret stash of gold bars, making dangerous enemies in the process with deadly consequences.

The film is populated by a supporting cast of distinctive characters that could arguably each carry their own features, from the criminal kingpin Blackjack to his loyal female bodyguard Bull. Comparisons could be drawn with the works of Quentin Tarantino, with even the opening title card for Project Y mirroring that of Pulp Fiction.

“I respect Tarantino so much and love all his works, so perhaps that acted as an influence on me,” says Lee, who co-wrote the script with Oh Yu-kyung and Kwak Jae-min. “That being said, I am interested in observing people and their desires so when I create characters, even ones that come on screen in passing, I try to ensure that each has their own story. Perhaps in that way, I was influenced by him.

“As for the title card, I thought about films that are considered classics and I did indeed think about Pulp Fiction because I wanted to pay homage. That’s why it gives that classic feel.”

Lee also reveals the inspiration for the look of the film, which combines vibrant colours with bloody action. “I was very inspired by the golden age of Hong Kong cinema in the 90s,” he says. “I wanted to absorb and bring in the look and feel of those films.”

Produced by Climax Studio and Yeon Sang-ho’s production outfit Wowpoint, it is co-produced, presented and distributed by Plus M Entertainment, which will be selling the feature at TIFF and the upcoming Asian Contents and Film Market in Busan.

Challenges

Shooting began in December 2024, with around 50 filming days taking place mainly on location in the Gangnam area of the South Korean capital. Winter in Seoul was just the tip of the iceberg in terms of challenges.

“When thinking of the biggest challenges, what comes to mind is just how cold it was,” recalls Lee. “Also, because there are so many scenes set at night, the cast and crew became nocturnal, making filming even more psychically demanding. One of Mi-sun’s lines is that she wants to work in the daytime and sleep at night like normal people. That was a piece of dialogue that I really felt myself.”

Working with two committed leading actresses helped the process, he says. Han So-hee, who plays Mi-sun, is known for spanning action, romance and period dramas in titles such as Gyeongseong Creature, My Name and Nevertheless. She has also gained international recognition as a model and amassed 17 million Instagram follows.

Jun Jong-seo, who plays Do-kyung, made her acclaimed debut in Lee Chang-dong’s Burning – winner of the Fipresci prize at Cannes in 2018 – is also known for psychological thriller The Call, Netflix film Ballerina and US fantasy thriller Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon, which played in Competition at Venice in 2021.

“Both came on board quickly, part of the reason being that they were fans of my prior works,” says Lee. “We worked together a lot in pre-production on the characters and I took in their perspectives on the story. Once we were shooting, I tried to create the perfect conditions for them to give their performances and ensure they could express themselves without hesitation.”

Reflecting on the shift from low-budget indie films to the sweeping scope of Project Y, Lee says: “There were a lot of firsts for me working on this project. Compared to my two previous films, a lot of it had to do with the technical aspects of shooting.

“For example, there is a scene where Do-kyung parks her car very suddenly into an empty spot. Trying to figure out how to do that from a technical perspective was completely new to me. I’m the one who wrote the scene but when it came to trying to figure out how to actually shoot it, it was another matter. I got a lot of help from both my assistant director and our cinematographer in figuring all this out. One thing I definitely felt is that I should never stop learning.”

Up next, Lee may take another genre leap. “The first idea is an occult film focusing on Korean shamanism,” he reveals. “There is a story that I’ve been writing for several years now, because I wanted to make Korean shamanism more trendy… but then KPop Demon Hunters came out.

“I also have an idea related to the coming of Jesus Christ [in present day] and a family revenge film.”

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