Q&A with Kwak Eun-mi

Han-young, a North Korean defector, gets a license to guide Chinese tourists thanks to the language skills she acquired as a refugee in China. She works diligently but faces many challenges, from coworker rivalry to assimilation, all while desperately searching for her missing brother. The irony of Han-Young’s position is emblematic of marginalized peoples’ struggles everywhere. As a stranger in a strange land, Han-young is entrusted to show people around ancient landmarks yet she herself often gets less than respect. Seeing her always a bit detached from her surroundings is a sobering symptom of her trauma, both from having fled her homeland as well as adjusting to a new one where the welcome isn’t entirely warm.