Film concept design promising for Koreans

The future for young Korean designers in film concept design is bright as film production sites move from Hollywood to other countries, according to Korean-American concept designer Steve Jung.

“Koreans have this excellent dexterity and a special talent in design. They are already showing outstanding performance in video game design,” said Jung at a lecture on concept design for films at the Herald Design Forum on Friday.

“What they need is more confidence. Many students ask me whether they can succeed in the U.S. as designers in the entertainment field, and I say it’s possible.”

Jung added that concept design for films offers more opportunities for young Korean students here because it’s still new in Korea, although it has a history of more than 100 years in the U.S.

Jung also noted more movies are made in countries like India, Australia and Canada, which offer big tax incentives to movie production companies.

“If Korea offers big incentives to them and systemizes the movie production process and fosters talented young people, it can develop and open its film industry,” said Jung.

Since graduating from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California in 2003, Jung has worked with major movie production companies such as Walt Disney Pictures, Marvel Enterprises, Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks SKG. His recent works include “The Avengers” and “Transformers.”

Jung said he has worked for the “Superman” and “Wolverine” movie series this year and plans to work for the new sequel to “Planet of the Apes.”

Having lived in the U.S. since he was a kindergartener, Jung spoke to the audience in Korean about the world of concept design in films.

The concept designer directs where the film should be headed by presenting visual guidelines such as the design of scene and characters, cars, cell phones and anything that appears in movie scenes, according to Jung.

“It all starts with a single drawing. Based on the drawing, the film staff builds sets, and knows where to place lights and what will be made by computer graphics technology,” said Jung.

In the world of concept design, the key point is making people buy into the fictional world.

To make realistic scenes in movies, Jung said concept designers should have an understanding of various fields.

“You design everything that appears in movie scenes from cars, furniture and people to costumes,” said Jung, who watches three documentaries a day to understand objects and how they work in greater detail.

“It’s a really attractive job because you acquire diverse knowledge in different fields,” said Jung.

By Lee Woo-young  (wylee@heraldcorp.com)