As Goo Hye Sun's fans know, she is not just an actress. The star of "Boys Over Flowers" and "The Musical," first debuted as a singer. She was meant to be the third member in a three-girl group with 2NE1's Sandara Park and Park Bom but decided to focus on acting instead. Since her acting debut in 2004, she has also developed her talents as a novelist, an illustrator and a filmmaker.
Altogether she has directed one short film and two full-length feature films. The most recent film she directed, "The Peach Tree" received the honor of being screened at the 2013 New York Asian Film Festival.
Goo Hye Sun not only directed the film but she also published a novel based on the story. And she composed the theme music. She established her own production company, Goo Hye Sun Film, to produce the film.
"The Peach Tree" is about Siamese twins who are joined at the back of their heads so they cannot see each other directly. They lead a lonely existence until they fall in love with the same girl. Actress Nam Dang Mi plays the girl and actors Jo Sung Woo and Ryu Duk Hwan play the brothers.
According to the film's website, the story explores the price children pay for disappointing their parents and the debt siblings owe each other.
When asked how she likes directing, she said it was hard work but worth it in the end.
"It's tiring and grueling," said Goo Hye Sun. "At times you ask yourself, 'Why am I doing this?' But movies have the ability to make you feel alive."
The actress began her filmmaking career with a short film, "The Madonna." The film about a Catholic priest and a nun performing euthanasia won awards at the Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia, the Busan Asian Short Film Festival and the Tokyo International Film Festival. Her first full-length feature film was "Magic." That film was shown at the Jeonju International Film Festival and the Tokyo International Film Festival.
"The Peach Tree" was also shown at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival.
The New York Asian Film Festival runs through July 15. The festival features films from Korea, China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines. Korean films featured at the festival include "Confession of Murder" with Park Shi Hoo, "Bloody Tie," "The Concubine," "One Perfect Day" and "Very Ordinary Couple." The record-breaking film "Secretly, Greatly," starring Kim Soo Hyun, Park Ki Woong and Lee Chae Young, will also be shown.
