Trigger warnings: abortion, blood, drugs, self-harm, and smoking.
Update: The release date is April 15.((March 31 Naver article about the movie release: https://n.news.naver.com/entertain/article/109/0004378015))
Young Adult Matters is an award-winning((BIFF 2020 winner’s acceptance speech: https://youtu.be/YfBEYj6jmQY)) 127-minute-long drama about pregnant teenage runaway Sejin. The movie is directed by Lee Hwan and stars actresses Lee Yumi and Ahn Heeyeon.((Young Adult Matters page on BIFF: https://www.biff.kr/kor/html/program/prog_view.asp?idx=49203&c_idx=345&sp_idx=501))
April 2021 is the scheduled release date to theaters. However, the content rating restricts viewers to eighteen or older. In MPAA terms, the movie would be rated R.((Young Adult Matters page on Naver Movie: https://movie.naver.com/movie/bi/mi/photoView.nhn?code=195691))
Plot
Sejin (played by Lee Yumi) is abandoned by her family and school after she accidentally becomes pregnant. She wanders the streets where she meets Jooyoung (played by Ahn Heeyeon), another teenage runaway who helps her on her journey.((Star Today article about the movie: https://www.mk.co.kr/star/movies/view/2021/03/245345/)) They are met with bad luck, sadistic characters, and violent situations.((Young Adult Matters page on BIFF: https://www.biff.kr/kor/html/program/prog_view.asp?idx=49203&c_idx=345&sp_idx=501))
Director Lee Hwan doesn’t like that men take the lead in women roles by being the ones to help the women. Therefore, while there are male characters in the movie, it is mainly female characters who connect with Sejin. While Jaephil (played by the director) does try to help Sejin, he fails. It is ultimately Jooyoung who helps Sejin until the end.((Exidistic’s translation of Lee Hwan’s interview with REVERSE: https://twitter.com/exidistic/status/1320320697609011200))
History
After her contract with Banana ended, Hani went abroad. Meanwhile, director Lee Hwan was deciding who to cast for Young Adult Matters. He really wanted to cast Hani, but it was impossible to get in touch with her at that time. He almost gave up, but one night while drinking with the PD, he sent Hani a drunk DM… and he actually got a response!((Exidistic’s translation of Lee Hwan’s interview with REVERSE: https://twitter.com/exidistic/status/1320320697609011200))
A preview of the movie was released in September 2020 along with the announcement that it would be part of the 2020 Busan International Film Festival (BIFF).((Preview video #1: https://youtu.be/KnIY29nX4mQ)) After fans saw the preview, Hani trended worldwide on Twitter.((Rula’s tweet about Hani trending worldwide: https://twitter.com/mywayhyelin/status/1308634936795172864)) A month later at BIFF, the movie won the DGK MEGABOX Award.((BIFF 2020 winner’s acceptance speech: https://youtu.be/YfBEYj6jmQY))
A second preview was released on March 15, 2021.((Preview video #2: https://youtu.be/WCBcuxYC8ak)) This is ahead of the April 2021 movie release date.((Young Adult Matters page on Naver Movie: https://movie.naver.com/movie/bi/mi/photoView.nhn?code=195691))
The movie won an award at the 2020 BIFF.((BIFF 2020 winner’s acceptance speech: https://youtu.be/YfBEYj6jmQY)) Hani was trending worldwide after the first preview video was released.((Rula’s tweet about Hani trending worldwide: https://twitter.com/mywayhyelin/status/1308634936795172864)) When a fan saw the movie and was asked to describe it, her response was, “thank you Director Lee!!”((Hyelinikid sharing what one of his staff said after watching the movie at BIFF: https://discord.com/channels/170189590592880641/170189590592880641/769884190039605278))
There is no doubt that this movie is amazing. Look forward to its release in April.