| Queen of the Morning Calm | |
|---|---|
 Official release poster | |
| Directed by | Gloria Ui Young Kim |
| Written by | Gloria Ui Young Kim |
| Produced by | Gloria Ui Young Kim Josh Barsky |
| Starring | Tina Jung Eponine Lee Jesse LaVercombe |
| Cinematography | Dmitry Lopatin |
| Edited by | Orlee Buium Michelle Szemberg |
| Music by | Stephen Krecklo |
Production companies | Gloryous Productions Hawkeye Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 86 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Queen of the Morning Calm is a 2019 Canadian drama film written and directed by Gloria Ui Young Kim in her feature directorial debut.[1] The film stars Tina Jung as Deborah, a single mother in Toronto who is struggling to raise her daughter Mona (Eponine Lee) while the girl's father Sarge (Jesse LaVercombe) moves in and out of their lives unpredictably and unreliably.[1]
The film was in development for several years.[2] Kim won the Telefilm Canada New Voices Award at the Toronto Screenwriting Conference in 2013 for its screenplay, but struggled to secure sufficient funding to make the film until she won the $200,000 Feature Film Award from Women in the Director's Chair in 2016.[3] The film finally went into production in November 2018.[4]
Queen of the Morning Calm premiered at the Whistler Film Festival on December 7, 2019,[2] and was subsequently screened at the Canadian Film Festival on May 29, 2020,[1] where Kim won the awards for William F. White Reel Canadian Indie and Best Director, while Lee won for Best Breakout Performance.[5]
- ^ a b c Angela Morrison, "CFF Review: 'Queen of the Morning Calm' Is a Must-See Debut from a Rising Canadian Director". Exclaim!, May 29, 2020.
- ^ a b Lauren Malyk, "Gloria Ui Young Kim’s push for Queen of the Morning Calm". Playback, December 6, 2019.
- ^ Regan Reid, "In Brief: WIDC winner; Canadians up for Independent Spirit Awards". Playback, November 25, 2016.
- ^ Lauren Malyk, "Gloria Ui Young Kim rolls on her debut feature". Playback, November 22, 2018.
- ^ Debra Yeo, "Documentary ‘Shoot to Marry’ and feature ‘Queen of the Morning Calm’ win Canadian Film Fest awards". Toronto Star, June 8, 2020.