Since Oldboy, it has been a dream of mine to create something for legendary film director Park Chan-wook. Suddenly, 22 years later, I found myself on a Zoom call with Director Park discussing his latest film, No Other Choice.
The story follows Man-su, a veteran "paperman" who loses his job and, compelled by a tangle of forces, begins killing his competitors for a single job opening. The narrative struck a deep chord within me. The film employs a range of cinematic motifs to frame the story, particularly the use of light to illuminate the hidden desires and sins of its characters.
I wanted the print itself to function as a vessel of light. I discovered an extraordinary material called Unryu-shi, or "cloud dragon paper", composed of long, resilient kozo fibers that spread like veins through delicate connective tissue. It proved to be an astonishing and fitting substrate, something my printmaker, Brad Keech, and I had never attempted before. Gloss accents the water flowing from the crepe myrtle bonsai above, while the musical notation in the corners, drawn from Man-su's daughter's imagination, glows like stained glass in the light.
No Other Choice was selected as the South Korean entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 98th Academy Awards. We had hoped this would finally be the year Director Park received the nomination many feel he deserves. All the pieces seemed to be in place.
Yet sometimes the light reveals what golden trinkets cannot. In the end, trophies gather dust, and the light leaves bare the truth.
Print: 33-1/2" x 23"
Image: 29-11/16" x 20"
Signed by James Jean and numbered
Edition Size: 300
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