a few weeks ago i got an email from dwight, one of my good friends from calarts, saying that he was going to be here in seoul for a week. until about a year ago he was living in japan for two and a half years working at an animation studio and on his own project. at one point he was in los angeles for a visit, but other than that i haven't seen him in like four years.

back in 2001 he had an animated short that got into the cannes film festival, and he's spent the past three years or so expanding it to a fifteen minute version, which he's again submitting to cannes. lots of my other friends worked on it, and i've been hearing about it all this time, so i was really anticipating seeing it.

i would also like to mention that it was at dwight's parents' house on thanksgiving weekend back in 1998 that i first tasted korean food. i often think back fondly on that weekend as the best eating weekend of my life. though i never would have imagined it at the time, it definitely was the planting of the initial seed that would eventually grow into my current fascination with all things korean. had i not tasted that amazing food that weekend, i just might not be here in korea now. i was really looking forward to meeting dwight's mother again and thanking her in person for getting me started on this journey.

so wednesday night dwight called me i met him over where he's staying. we didn't really know where to go, so we ended up just sitting at starbucks chatting and catching up. after a little while he got a call from his mom saying we should come upstairs. it was great seeing her again, and she gave me a big hug. i was happy that i could thank her, and in korean, too!

after a few minutes we went downstairs to where they have a chapel in the building and a bunch of people from his mom's church were assembled to see the premiere of goo.

it was really amazing to see such a finished piece, complete with color, sound, and all the bells and whistles of any professional film, but knowing that it was independently produced and primarily made by a few friends of mine. definitely very inspiring as far as what's possible and getting me to think more about doing my own project someday.

goo takes place on a planet of the same name, where the two factions of gak and blah slip into a bitter civil war began when one foot soldier unwittingly trespasses into the other's territory. weaponry on this tiny planet, however, does not consist of bullets or anything else lethal, but of a gooey substance that sticks to the victim and hardens, leaving them stuck where they are. quickly xenophobia and the machine of war feed on themselves, and before long an arms race culminates in an epic battle between ridiculously large goo-shooting tanks.

here's some screenshots.

congrats to dwight and everyone involved in making it. your hard work paid off! if you want to see goo, look for it at an animation festival near you in the next year or so.