Does This Feel Familiar?
Short Film by Dutch and Korean Visual Artist, Naomi He-Ji
Naomi 혜지 is a visual artist who contacted me a few years ago when she was visiting Korea.
We met in Gangnam, at the big Holly’s outside of exit 11. Naomi’s colorful outfit, free-flowing hair and bright smile stood out vividly in contrast to the groups of suited Korean businessmen sitting nearby.
Recently, I stumbled upon her film “Does This Feel Familiar” and asked if we could share it on The Halfie Project. She graciously gave permission.
I’ll stop writing here - Naomi 혜지 says it all much better.
Does This Feel Familiar?
A short film by Naomi He-Ji 나오미 혜지
“My parent’s ‘love’ story started in 1989 with a business meeting in the Netherlands.
At the time, my mom was living in Osaka, Japan and my dad in Vlaardingen, The Netherlands. After a work meeting in Rotterdam they went out for some drinks in Nighttown where they ended up falling in love while dancing. They found a way to stay connected despite their distance apart, through phone calls and letters. Finally, they decided to give their love a try, my dad moved countries, he saw a possibility to leave his life behind and start something new in Japan. After two years, he asked my mom to follow him to The Netherlands, back to where he lived, in Vlaardingen.
On October 31st 1994, my parents welcomed me - Naomi, their first daughter, into the world. Having a South-Korean mother and a Dutch father has always raised questions while growing up. There was hardly any representation of people who looked like me in positions of power or in mainstream media. I felt a sense of confusion when it came to my identity, I never managed to truly feel at home in one place at a time, it was always a mix of different places. Acting as a bridge between two cultures has trained me to learn about different perspectives from an early age onward.
This bridge grew wider when my parents divorced. My dad started a new family, my mom got a new husband and moved to Belgium and I was left to choose where I wanted to live. Having to make that choice felt similar to choosing which part of my cultural identity I prioritized more, I couldn’t fully commit to choosing just one. This video is part of a project of a visual representation, of the chaos happening in my mind, where I’m literally, physically and metaphorically connecting a typical Dutch family with a typical South-Korean family.
By making these connections I try to find peace and turn my bridge of an identity into a new place, an island of sorts, one I feel comfortable calling home.”
See more of Naomi He-Ji’s work here