Yang Hee-kyung is a celebrated South Korean actress who began her career in theatre before expanding into television and film. She earned early acclaim with a Best Actress win at the 19th Seoul Theater Festival in 1995. Known for her natural charisma, Yang consistently delivers powerful performances, and her role in The Land of Morning Calm is no exception.

In the film, Yang portrays Pan-rye, a mother quietly enduring profound grief while holding fast to hope. Through our interview, it’s clear how much of herself Yang poured into the role, bringing empathy, lived experience, and strength to a character rooted in love, loss, and strength. Her insight into Pan-rye’s compassion towards her foreign daughter-in-law, as well as her emotional journey through betrayal and acceptance, made her role even more compelling.

During our conversation, Yang also reflected on the evolving Korean performing arts landscape, her long-standing camaraderie with co-star Yoon Joo-sang, and the joy of working with newcomer Khazsak Kramer. With warmth and humility, she spoke about the challenges and beauty of acting across languages and cultures, and the emotional connection that can form between characters and actors who truly listen to one another.

View of the Arts: In The Land of Morning Calm, your character Pan-rye is a grieving mother who refuses to believe her son has died and continues to wait for him by the harbour. Her pain is quiet but powerful. What was it like emotionally preparing for this role, and how did you channel the strength and heartbreak of a mother enduring such a loss? 

Yang Hee-kyung: Isn’t this a common trait of all mothers? An absurd yet firm belief that my child would never die that way. I tried to embody the deep longing for him to return alive. I wanted to quietly but unwaveringly hold onto the hope that my own flesh and blood, my only child, would surely come back.

VOA: When you first received the script for The Land of Morning Calm, what were your initial thoughts about the story and your character? Was there something particular that immediately drew you to this role?

YHK: The script was excellent. It contained every emotion: joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, within its two-hour runtime. Although set in a small fishing village, it captured universal human struggles. Pan-rye is a character who has clear principles and perseveres strongly. She has no despair. I trusted she would survive, no matter what.

VOA: Pan-rye is also one of the few villagers who ultimately shows kindness and acceptance toward her daughter-in-law, a foreign woman in a tightly-knit Korean fishing village. What did this aspect of the character mean to you, and how did you interpret her journey toward empathy and openness?

YHK: In the village where we lived, there were almost no Korean women around, so it was not realistically possible to find a Korean daughter-in-law. Beyond being my son’s wife, I considered Yeong-ran’s perspective as a fellow woman. Pan-rye understood the loneliness of living away from one’s homeland, having experienced it herself. That empathy turned into motherly affection, so when my daughter-in-law, whom I treated like my own daughter, decided to leave with the money my son had earned, the betrayal felt overwhelming.

VOA: You share the screen with fellow veteran actor Yoon Joo-sang, and your characters’ dynamic, filled with bickering, humor, and deep mutual care, was something that I enjoyed watching. How was the experience of acting alongside Mr. Yoon, and did your shared history in the industry create a special atmosphere on set?

YHK: Actor Yoon Joo-sang and I both started in theater, but had never acted opposite each other until now. We have long shared a deep camaraderie, always supporting each other. Meeting on set was joyful, and our chemistry created a synergistic effect.

VOA: You have portrayed a wide range of characters throughout your illustrious career in film, television, and theatre. How did this role compare to others you’ve taken on, and did it offer something new or different for you as an actress at this stage in your career?

YHK: I have mostly done TV dramas, where characters tend to be similar. To feel alive, I often returned to the theater, escaping repetitive roles. Pan-rye in this film is quite different. She is forward-thinking, has left her husband, given her surname to her son, and even put the insurance in her daughter-in-law’s name instead of her son’s. Pan-rye’s depth, boldness, and thoughtfulness appealed to me.

VOA: As someone who has been a part of Korea’s performing arts world for many years, how do you feel the industry – and the kinds of stories being told – have evolved? And how have those changes shaped you personally and professionally as an artist?

YHK: When I returned to the theater in the early 1980s, traditional dramas dominated, enjoying great popularity. By the 1990s, foreign musicals began to dominate the scene. Today, there is a rich mix of classic and modern plays and musicals. Korean culture, including K-pop, dramas, food, films, and theater, is expanding globally. It’s hard to predict how these changes will impact my life. Perhaps if I were in my 50s or 60s, the impact would be clearer, but at over 70, it’s unpredictable.

VOA: This film has a quiet, restrained emotional power that reflects a clear and sensitive directorial vision. What was your experience like working with director Park Ri-woong? How did he guide or collaborate with you in shaping Pan-rye’s character and emotional arc?

YHK: Director Park Ri-woong’s scripts clearly detail each character’s emotions through stage directions and dialogue. I tried to follow his script precisely, and we communicated effectively throughout filming.

VOA: You shared several poignant scenes with Khazsak Kramer, who portrayed your character’s Vietnamese daughter-in-law. What was it like working with Ms. Kramer, and how did you build that emotional dynamic together, especially across cultural and linguistic differences?

YHK: Khazsak started filming without knowing any Korean. Every night, she would discuss the next day’s scenes with the director and work hard to express her emotions. I admired her effort and sincerity. We formed a mother-daughter bond, and gradually she understood Korean and the context of her scenes accurately. She is a good actor.

Written and interviewed by Maggie Gogler

Featured image courtesy of the Far East Film Festival

This interview was conducted as part of the Far East Film Festival, where The Land of Morning Calm was proudly featured among the festival’s celebrated selections.

_{We’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks to director Park Ri-woong for making this interview possible, and to Yoon Joo-sang for generously taking the time to share his thoughtful and powerful insights with us.}

_{View of the Arts is an online publication dedicated to films, music, and arts, with a strong focus on the Asian entertainment industry. With rich content already available to our readers, we aim to expand our reach and grow alongside our audience by delving deeper into emerging platforms such as K-pop and Asian music more broadly. At the same time, we remain committed to exploring the vibrant and ever-evolving global landscape of film, music, and the arts, celebrating the immense talent and creativity that define these industries worldwide.}