Woo Young-woo's 'Whale' Female VFX Director "Find Your Strengths Beyond Gender"

Interview with Hwang Jinhye, Westworld VFX Supervisor
Reality of Female Shortage in Technical Roles
From Planning to Visual Implementation and Communication
VFX Supervisor Role Suitable for Women

On the 8th, Hwang Jin-hye, a visual effects (VFX) supervisor, was met at the West World headquarters near KINTEX in Ilsan, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do.

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] One of the most impressive scenes in this year's top-grossing drama, "Extraordinary Attorney Woo," is the 'whale' computer graphics (CG) that appear when Woo Young-woo's emotions reach their peak. The whale, which appears naturally according to the situation, greatly enhanced the drama's completeness. We met Hwang Jin-hye, a female visual effects (VFX) supervisor who is gaining attention as a rising star in the virtual effects industry and the creator of the whale.

On the 8th, just before the Chuseok holiday, we met Hwang Jin-hye at the Westworld headquarters near KINTEX in Ilsan, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do. She had just finished a tight schedule until 3:30 PM. Although working on the morning before the holiday has become common, she was busy with a flood of drama and film projects, including the movie "Possession" (working title). She said, "I'm not the only one busy; many people in the company are still working."

Supervisor Hwang is a rare female VFX supervisor in the industry. A VFX supervisor, who realizes the CG visuals of a film, is a technical expert responsible for overall on-site management and supervision. Since technical positions in the conservative broadcasting and film industry have traditionally been considered male domains, the emergence of a female technical supervisor has become a topic of word-of-mouth. Hwang Jin-hye said, "VFX is ultimately about looking at images," adding, "Even around me, there are many female artists, including those in the art department, but it is true that the technical on-site part lacks women." There were many times when she was the only female among all male staff in production meetings.

However, she explains that the delicate sensibility and the nature of the VFX supervisor role?which requires continuous communication with the general director, art director, and on-site staff from the initial planning stage to the final visual realization?make it a job well-suited for women. She emphasized, "I wondered if I could endure it too, but it's more important to find your own strengths than your gender," adding, "The environment is improving, and I am no longer particularly special."

Supervisor Hwang majored in textile arts in the fashion design department at university. She started her career in fashion graphics but could not give up her interest in film and shifted her focus to video graphics. She has participated as the main supervisor in various projects, including the Netflix series "Call," the drama "Voice 4," and Apple TV Plus's "Dr. Brain."

She said, "The most challenging part of the CG was to express the whale, which everyone would recognize as CG, as naturally as possible," adding, "Viewers are less conscious of backgrounds like Sodeok-dong village, but the whale appears out of nowhere in completely unexpected settings." Since the whale appeared more than eight times, from real whales to fake ones, she worked hard to maintain consistency.

Regarding the future of VFX, she gave a positive assessment. She said, "There is a strong tendency for CG to be involved from the planning stage, which can improve production quality while increasing efficiency," adding, "Along with this, the role of the supervisor is also growing, so the outlook seems bright." In fact, it has become common to enhance scene completeness with CG, from the zelkova tree on the hill to a tiny speck of dust on the table in the drama "Woo Young-woo."

Supervisor Hwang's dream lies in meeting and creating 'good works.' Since VFX projects usually take a long time, she typically works on about three projects every two years. Due to the nature of the job, which makes multiple works difficult, it is not easy to encounter highly complete works. She said, "Looking at Denis Villeneuve's previous works, including the movie 'Dune,' each scene resembles a work of art," adding, "While art is created by individuals, films are the result of many people's efforts, so I want to create such works with good people."