The National Film School of Denmark Animation Graduates: Lin Jo Skytte and Korean Bloom

A Danish-Korean woman runs a spa on the Danish westcoast. We experience everyday life there, but at the same time a reality merges with memories and dreams. A graphically simple universe that supports the emotional story

- Gunnar Wille

Lin Jo Skytte's "Korean Bloom" is a 2D animated film about alienation and belonging. The sketchy, textural quality of the line work, careful frame composition, and lean color palette enhance our focus on the main character, who experiences a range of emotions and transformations during the film. Skytte's synopsis describes the film as taking place in a luxurious spa near the seaside, where the Danish-Korean owner, Mina, tends her guests, along with a staff of mystical creatures. As she experiences questionable and discriminatory behavior, her hair grows uncontrollably, expressing emotions she struggles to hide, until an unusual guest arrives.

Skytte goes on to say:

This is not a film about feeling different. It's a story about being different. Throughout my life, people have always had an opinion on my hair: "Don't cut it" or "Black hair can't be coloured." I am adopted from Korea and grew up in Denmark. My world has always been white. In the summer of 2024 I travelled to Seoul. On my first subway ride, I felt something new. Every person around me had dark, straight hair and eyes like mine. For the first time, I could mirror my face in every person around me. "Korean Bloom" is about the longing to be surrounded by people who look like yourself. It is my intention to show the racism towards a minoritized ethnic group, which exists in Denmark. I want to remind us of the strength of recognisability and cohesion, which is what creates meaning and value in life. In this film's universe, hair can riot and people step out of paintings. The peculiar brings me joy. And by using magical realism, it makes space to explore heavier themes. I hope to create an understanding of how it feels to be a minority, when you are unable to mirror yourself due to appearances. This is me cutting my hair - because I am my own.

Written and directed by Skytte, and co-produced by Maja Foss Hagerup and Rosa Flindt Riis-Hansen, "Korean Bloom" appeared at Odense International Film Festival, and won the 2026 Robert Award for Best Short Fiction/Animation. With so much recognition early in her career, we are sure to hear more from Skytte, Hagerup, and Riis-Hansen in the coming years.

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