Lee Isaac Chung on Minari & Telling His Story in Film | The Daily Show

Thank you so much, Trevor.

So good to be with you.

Um, let's start with congratulations.

Your film has been nominated for six Academy Awards, which is-- I mean, it's huge to be nominated for one, but this is six in some of the most prestigiousRespected and admired by many people. categories ever.

And what makes it even more impressiveCausing admiration because of its size is, just a few years ago, you were thinking about quitting filmmaking so you could get a "real job."

That's right.

Uh, yeah, you know, I-I told myself, by the time I hit 40, if-if nothing's happening, I have to really grow up and-and, uh, take on a responsibleHaving an obligation to do something or having control over someone. job.

So, for me, that was becoming a professor.

Uh, and I signed on to become a professor, and I had a few months to write a script.

And this was kind of, like, my last swingAn attempt to hit a ball in baseball at it, basically.

Hey, man, it was-- it was your last swing, but it was o-one of the most amazing swings.

'Cause you s-- y-you know, you swung for the fences -and you hit the ball out of the park.

Thank you so much.

Um, everybody agrees that, um...

Minari, some people-- obviously, Minari, when they say it in English-- will go, "It is...

just..."

It's-it's a film that connects with everybody, and it's a story that everybody understands and yet is uniquely yours.

Because you tell the tale of a Korean family trying to integrateTo combine one thing with another so that they become a whole into rural Arkansas and the journey that follows.

And, on the surface, it seems like, "Oh, this is gonna be one of those sad stories that's-- it's just heartbreakingCausing great sadness or distress. and..."

it's just-- it's an everything story.

Some of the scenes will make you want to cry.

Some of the scenes had me laughing so hard that you-you want to pauseTo stop doing something temporarily. the movie just so you can finish laughing at what's going on.

Thanks so much, Trevor.

Yeah, I mean, it's-it's been wild to see people really connecting with this.

'Cause I-I just wanted to tell an honest story.

Uh, my-my main audienceThe group of people who watch or listen to a performance for this, I was thinking about my daughter.

Uh, she's seven years old right now.

But I was thinking about the type of film I want to leave behind for her i-if, uh, she's gonna even just be reading the scriptThe written text of a play alone.

I didn't know if I was even gonna be able to make this film.