What motivated you to become a writer?

My father originally came to America from North Korea but nonetheless
was eventually able to become a published author in this country – in
English, no less!  But very early on, he had a family, a job,
mortgage, etc., so he was never really able to fully live out his
dream of being a writer. He introduced me to all the classic
literature — Shakespeare, Melville, Joyce, Fitzgerald, Hemingway,
Tolstoy, Jane Austen, Henry James — but at the same time, he also
shared with me his love for sci-fi, Marvel comic books, the great
movies of the 70’s, classic foreign films by directors like Bergman,
Polanski, Kurosawa, and music from the Beatles, Dylan, Miles Davis. So
it was really all of the influences that I got from him that motivated
me very early on to want to write.

Starting on a blank page is not easy- where does your creativity come from?

I don’t know if any of us really ever start from a literal blank page
– like I said earlier, I have so many influences – I think all writers
do. But just for example, “The Human Element” sprang from something I
was hearing so much of in the industry – and that was: there simply
aren’t enough good roles being written for women – particularly in
regards to their relationships with each other. Feedback I’d gotten
from previous scripts I’d written had always been very positive in
terms of my female characters – so I thought, you know, I can do this.
I thought back to Callie Khouri’s amazing screenplay “Thelma & Louise”
which I loved so much – I think I must have seen it three times in the
theaters the first week it opened – and some of the early cyberpunk
sci-fi of William Gibson, who created a lot of really memorable female
characters. At the time, I was also deep into reading about all the
advances being made in AI and machine learning, how they’re trying to
make AI interactions more human-like – but the thought that really
struck me was this: how so many businesses and industries – call
centers, fulfillment centers, what have you – are trying to make
humans more machine-like. And from there, a story kind of formed in my
mind.

Do you write projects knowing that so many other factors need to
happen to get it to screen and does that come into your project
creation?

I’ve gone through the development process with independent producers
before on some of my other projects – making the rounds with
interested parties, tailoring the script to suit a certain actor or
director, making it fit different sized budgets – learning that there
are so many externalities that come into play in actually getting a
film made. The process certainly taught me to be flexible! That was
one of my primary inspirations behind “The Human Element” – the idea
that a project – especially one that was commercially viable –
featuring a couple of really exciting leading roles for women would
make it attractive to name talent and consequently, to financiers and
the marketplace.

What is your dream for this project and what other ancillary revenue
do you think it could generate? Please include script title in reply.

It’s every writer’s dream to see their work up on the big screen, and
of course I’m no different, but in today’s current climate, I think
the streaming world makes a lot of sense for “The Human Element.”
Netflix recently released a Charlize Theron vehicle called “The Old
Guard,” which is similar to my project in that it’s sci-fi/action with
two female leads.  And Jessica Chastain recently starred in ”Ava” – a
female-centric action picture, which although it got a brief
theatrical release, seemed much more suited or intended for its
current platform on Amazon Prime. The same could be said for her film
“The 355”.  And although we tend to think of video games being turned
into movies – I think “The Human Element” – with its twists and turns
and atmospheric futuristic-but-familiar setting – could be an ideal
candidate for a totally immersive video game. The film could also
easily spawn multiple sequels or spin-offs as well, in either the
motion picture or television world, given its dual female lead
structure and the unique self-contained universe I’ve created in this
alternate world, with so many other potential characters and
storylines to explore.

How has your experience been with screenwriting contests for this
project so far?

The response to “The Human Element” has been great so far! It was
selected as one of the Capital Fund Screenplay 2021 Competition’s “Hot
100”, named a semi-finalist at this year’s LA International Screenplay
Awards, and was an award-winner at the WRPN Women’s International Film
Festival. More to come, hopefully!

If you could stand in a room full of investor partners looking at many
projects what would you like them to know about you and this project?

I would love to be able to tell them that “The Human Element” is a
highly marketable, intelligent sci-fi action picture with a leading
role for a star actress – a part complex and three-dimensional enough
to attract a major talent like Charlize Theron, Blake Lively, Jessica
Chastain or any number of kick-ass actresses currently working today –
along with a female co-lead part perfect for a rising young star eager
for the challenge of portraying a psychological chameleon!

Do you have any website links for your writing, credits, background,
etc. that you would like to share?

In addition, I also write fiction and recently had a serious literary
novel published – “The Superhero Memoirs” – a lyrical rumination on
love, longing and remembrance – the company subsequently went out of
business, and the rights reverted to me. I was approached by other
publishers about releasing a second edition – I elected to go with the
Amazon Kindle imprint – as they ultimately allowed me complete
creative control. It’s gotten rave reviews on Amazon and is available
in both paperback and e-book formats.

Kenneth H. Kim
kennethkim7717 @ gmail.com