'Wolnam Bosal' Shaman Embraces Korean and Vietnamese Roots

The 24-minute short film 'Wolnam Bosal' (Vietnamese Shaman) centers on Su-yeon, a woman of Korean and Vietnamese heritage who finds herself chosen by both Korean and Vietnamese deities. After undergoing a ritualistic 'Nairim-gut' (spirit-entering ceremony), she is advised to receive a new spirit from Vietnam. Initially reluctant to leave Korea, Su-yeon attempts a 'self-Nairim-gut' with friends, inadvertently summoning both Korean and Vietnamese spirits, ultimately leading her to become a 'Wolnam Bosal', a shaman embodying both traditions.

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If you say you're mixed-race, you tend to fall into a dichotomy in society. They ask, 'Are you Vietnamese? Are you Korean?' But I don't think you have to choose one or the other. I wanted to portray someone who perfectly embraces both identities and has potential that others don't.

Directed by Kim Geun-ho, the film garnered significant attention after winning the Grand Prize in the Comedy category at the 22nd Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival. It weaves together diaspora themes with shamanistic beliefs and a Gen Z sensibility, achieving viral success on YouTube with shorts garnering up to 310,000 views. Director Kim explained his intention was to portray Su-yeon not as someone forced to choose between her identities, but as an individual who perfectly embraces both, possessing unique potential stemming from this dual heritage.

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In the past, and even now, people ask, 'Which country are you from, Vietnam or Korea?' It might just be a question, but for me, it felt like pressure to choose. I think those memories surfaced while working on 'Wolnam Bosal.'

Lead actress Kwon Yu-kyung, who shares Su-yeon's Korean-father, Vietnamese-mother background, related to the character's struggles with identity. She noted that the question, "Are you Korean or Vietnamese?" still carries a burden of expectation for her. Kwon expressed that the film humorously captures the complex inner lives of second-generation multicultural individuals, challenging the assumption that they are merely objects of pity or discrimination.

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Shamanism is something you can't choose, just like how you can't choose where you're born. But once you decide to do it, you can do it like Su-yeon.

The film humorously contrasts a formal shamanistic ritual with Su-yeon's friends' makeshift "self-Nairim-gut," which uses snacks and K-pop music instead of traditional offerings and instruments. Director Kim, who admits to having no personal interest in shamanism, approached the subject as a genre element to explore diaspora themes, finding parallels between the uncontrollable nature of spirits and the unchosen circumstances of birth. The film is currently available on Netflix.

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I wasn't worried at all. I wasn't worried about spirits coming, but I thought, 'If a spirit does come, let it be the spirit of acting.'