Some films grab you by the throat and refuse to let go, and that applies to their trailers as well. Other films, however, communicate in a much more subdued manner, choosing a gentle manner of storytelling that suggests a greater depth.
The latter approach is exemplified in the trailer for Where We Begin. The film "tells the story of Jimmy, a Korean American finding his sense of being in Los Angeles through historic architecture and locations, eluding the real search from within," per the official synopsis. "We explore this journey as he comes to understand how his mother's lax parenting style may have influenced his identity and sculpted his sense of belonging.
"In a city with a thriving Korean population, Jimmy finds it hard to connect as he grapples with an evolving sense of identity as he navigates race, interracial relationships and a past that is not his. Like many Asian Americans, Jimmy confronts his identity later in life as he grasps the concepts of race and being a person of color in a society that sees race as binary. Jimmy's apparently seamless slide between white and black interweaves with his love for historic architecture, and he ultimately realizes he is truly American after all."
Joshua Kwak wrote the original screenplay and stars as Jimmy. He co-directed the film with Fidencio Casas; the ensemble cast includes A. Leslie Kies, Rawle D. Lewis and Janice Sonia Lee.
Freestyle Digital Media, the digital film distribution division of Byron Allen's Entertainment Studios, has acquired North American rights to the film. Where We Begin will be available to rent and own on DVD and North American digital HD internet, cable, and satellite platforms through Freestyle Digital Media on May 5, 2020.
Enjoy the calm, gentle, yet intriguing trailer below.