Industry Vets Minkyu Lee And Shiyoon Kim Launch A New Podcast
Books and blogs are one-sided; Twitter leaves no space for debate. So where do you go for a nuanced, open discussion of the animation industry?
This is the line of thinking that led Minkyu Lee and Shiyoon Kim to create a podcast. Both are Disney veterans with sparkling resumes: Lee, who in addition to working on films like Frozen and Moana, also wrote and directed the Oscar-nominated short Adam and Dog; Kim, a character designer and vizdez artist, has played an important role in defining the look of films like Zootopia, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and Big Hero 6.
Keen to impart wisdom and reflect on the industry, they have launched Minkyu & Shiyoon: An Animation Podcast, the first episode of which has landed on Youtube (listen below).
The episode consists of a breezy, informative 38-minute chat, in which the duo’s good nature and friendship shine through. Noting that a lot of animation podcasts focus on the creative process, they state their aim to go wider, talking about the big ideas and trends that are driving the world of animation. On this evidence, though, they also know how to keep things tight — there’s none of the aimless banter that weighs down so many podcasts.
To kick things off, Lee and Kim look back over their formative experiences as artists. They recall their earliest memories of drawing, then go through some of the big lessons they learned while studying at Calarts — not least the value of watching your early attempts at animation on a big screen, surrounded by industry figures. They touch on a range of other topics, from the importance of “authenticity” in your work to their favorite insects.
Their discussion suggests that Lee and Kim are addressing students and up-and-coming artists. But the podcast’s angle is not yet set in stone: the pair are soliciting questions and suggestions for topics from their listeners. They also have guests lined up for future episodes.