Fun horror short film KOREATOWN GHOST STORY starring Margaret Cho

Today I have a fun supernatural horror short film to watch, called Koreatown Ghost Story, based on a Korean ritual.

The film is the protagonist Margherita Cho AND Okano lyricand centers on a woman who “accepts a macabre offer of marriage that would allow her to pursue her dreams, for better or worse.”

Koreatown Ghost Story is a short film that was sold to Paramount Pictures in a deal to make the film version.

The film was directed by Minsun Park AND Teddy Tenenbaumand we’ve included an interview with the director below for you to read, so you can learn about the short film and the director.

This short film is shared in collaboration with the FilmQuest Film Festival, where we are looking to showcase some of the great independent genre films and shorts that filmmakers are creating.

What was the inspiration for your film? How did the idea come to you?

Minsun Park is a Korean-American director who drew inspiration from a personal story for this film. When a young man of marriageable age dies in Korea (and many other Asian countries), it is seen as a great tragedy that the deceased was unable to marry before death and will be alone in the afterlife.

In some cases, families of dead single people may invite a religious person to marry ghosts to each other so that they have companionship in the afterlife. But what would happen if a living woman was asked to marry a ghost?

Koreatown Ghost Story puts that idea into a horror setting while exploring themes of immigration and the generation of Americans stuck between the traditions of their ancestors’ country and the pressure to conform to mainstream (white) American culture.

Tell us about yourself. What is your background? How long have you been a director?

Minsun Park and Teddy Tenenbaum are a writing and directing team with combined experience in feature films and television, including pilot sales, staff writing, feature spec sales, and television and feature assignments. They have written separately and together, and currently write both as a team and as solo authors.

They specialize in genre writing, including horror, thrillers, and action, typically with a humorous twist. They recently wrote and directed an episode of Hulu’s Bite Size Halloween. With Minsun’s background as an Asian-American woman born in Korea and Teddy’s experience as a white boy from Ohio, they cover a lot of bases.

What inspires you to work in genre cinema and tell these types of stories?

We believe horror films are the best Trojan horse for exploring modern social and political themes while still entertaining audiences. We believe horror is a way for audiences to safely explore the real horrors of modern society.

What was your favorite part of the filmmaking process for this project?

Working with the brilliant Margaret Cho was our professional dream, and being able to watch Lyrica Okano create a rich, three-dimensional character from words on a page was a thrilling experience. In filmmaking, there is nothing more rewarding than having an incredible cast and crew use their craft to take a story and make it real.

What are you most proud of about this film?

The imagination and talent of our cast and crew make us immensely proud to be associated with them.

What is a favorite story or moment from the making of the film that you would like to share?

We filmed Koreatown Ghost Story in a historic house that was once part of a convent. In fact, the house next door, the famous American Horror Story Murder House, was part of the same complex owned by the nuns.

During one take, several crew members saw someone in the film who wasn’t supposed to be in the shot. But reviewing the footage, we couldn’t find the person. Most of the crew is convinced we’ve had a ghostly visit.

What was the most challenging moment or experience you had while making your film?

Cramming 15 pages and two scenes into three days of shooting is a grand adventure that we wouldn’t particularly want to experience again.

Who were some of your collaborators and actors in the film? How did you start working together?

We had Margaret Cho in mind when we wrote the character of Mrs. Moon. We contacted her agent and manager, sent her the script, asked her to join us as producers, and were incredibly lucky that she wanted to be a part of Koreatown Ghost Story. From there, everyone we wanted to work with, from the amazing actress Lyrica Okano to the brilliant cinematographer Jon Keng, was eager to sign on.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received as a filmmaker and what would you like to say to new filmmakers?

If you’re a writer, try directing. Writing is designing a house and directing is building it. If you can design a house, you can hire the best people to help you build it.

What are your plans for your career and what do you hope this film does for that? What kinds of stories would you like to tell moving forward?

We love the horror genre, although we also write thrillers and science fiction. We are currently creating an animated sci-fi/action show for a video game and film production company and continue to write new horror features. But from here on out we hope to direct them, not just write them.

Where can we find more of your work and where can interested people contact you? Do you have a website or YouTube/Vimeo channel?

Our episode of Bite Size Halloween is called Ride or Die and is the season three finale on Hulu. Koreatown Ghost Story has not been available to the public due to our contract with Paramount, but we believe we have resolved that issue and hope to stream Koreatown Ghost Story on a public website VERY soon. You can also follow us on: IG: EctoplasmEnt IG: NotSoSunnyPark IG: TeddyTbaum TikTok: TeddyTbaum

Bonus question no. 1: What is your favorite movie of all time?

Rosemary’s Baby is our favorite horror movie of all time. Hands off.