After a whirlwind journey of an awards season, South Korean director Bong Joon-ho finished it with a bang at the Oscars, where he took home a record-equalling four statuettes for his masterpiece, Parasite. But while he deservedly got the lion’s share of the spotlight, the real MVP of this awards season is his translator, Sharon Choi.
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Since the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, where Parasite premiered to much aplomb, Sharon Choi has more or less been present by Bong Joon-ho’s side at every major awards ceremony.
In what quickly became this awards season’s most wholesome and enjoyable double act, Bong would accept an award for Parasite, say whatever charming things he can in English before swapping to Korean, and Sophia would be the deadpan foil to the director’s playfulness in translating his every word, all without missing a beat or showing any signs of nervousness.
It’s been an absolute joy to watch the pair play off one another at every film festival and late night TV appearance, so much so that Sharon has developed quite a following from people who have been charmed by her exceptional translating efforts and ability to remain unflappable even when facing all of Hollywood royalty and the world’s media.
Hell, you know something special is happening when the ever-humble Bong Joon-ho is publicly stanning you in front of millions constantly.
So who is Sharon Choi, who admits herself that she finds the spotlight “embarrassing“? By day she’s known for translating Bong Joon-ho’s funny quips and heartfelt tributes to his favourite directors, she’s an aspiring filmmaker who studied film and is working on her first movie.
In fact, Bong spilled the tea while backstage at the Oscars and revealed that she is writing her own feature-length script, which will be about *checks notes* awards season.
Well they say write what you know and there’s no doubt Sharon is an expert in that field now after the success of Parasite.
Even though it’s all just talk at the moment, it seems like Sharon’s idea (which Bong says he is very “curious” about) is already getting a heap of attention in Hollywood. When Henry Golding puts his hand up to star in her hypothetical movie, you know people will be keeping an eye on it.
So while Bong Joon-ho won all the awards for Parasite, it seems like Sharon also came out of this awards season a big winner as everyone suddenly wants to know who she is and what she’s working on next.
Maybe in a few year’s time we’ll see Sharon Choi be up on that Oscars stage all by herself and getting a statuette of her own, all while Bong Joon-ho watches on like a proud dad.
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