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| Chef Im Ji-ho speaks at a press conference for the film "The Wandering Chef" at Megabox Dongdaemun in Seoul, Tuesday. Director Park Hye-ryeong listens to his speech. / Courtesy of Hayanso Entertainment |
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Chef Im Ji-ho, better known as the "Wandering Chef," has devoted much of his life to traveling Korea in search of unique culinary and medicinal ingredients.
Based on the belief, "If it's from nature, nothing is useless," Im uses ingredients that people do not use or discard and then transforms them into rich food creations.
Director Park Hye-ryeong, who is well known for her human-interest documentaries, has wandered the country with him for more than a decade.
"We first met around 2006 when Im was featured in the documentary series I worked on, 'The Human Theater,'" Park said at a press conference for her film "The Wandering Chef" in Seoul, Tuesday. "Since then, I've tagged along with him in his culinary journey and documented his life."
She was fascinated by Im's food philosophy and vast knowledge of ingredients.
"I never imagined making it into a documentary film until Im disclosed emotional stories about his past," Park said.
Im said he began traveling in search of ingredients when he discovered the woman who raised him was not his biological mother.
His birth mother died in a car accident shortly after leaving him with his father. A few years later, his adoptive mother also died. This longing to find lost maternal love made him wander and discover the nourishing power of food.
"We were passing by his hometown when he told me that his birth mother had died in a car accident," Park said.
"The only fact that he knew about her was that her last name was Kim, and so he searched all over this area to look for a trace of his mother. That was when I thought this could be the start of a film. By understanding his life, we can understand his food better."
In the film, the star chef meets an old couple and decides to cook dinner for them. The woman becomes another mother figure to him and they develop a mother-son relationship for seven years.
After her death, Im mourns and pays tribute to her, as well as his biological and adoptive mothers, by cooking 108 plates ― significant of 108 agonies of life in Buddhism.
"More people take up the 'honbap,' or eating alone, habit nowadays," Park said. "I wanted to focus on people who connect and bond together through food."
Scenes that contemplate the growth of wild plants withstanding winter feature beautiful natural sights. Scenes that capture the silent sorrow of an empty house highlight the importance of human connection.
At the press conference, Im shared his desire to cook for people in developing countries.
"I don't really care about fame or anything," he said. "I'm a cook and it's my commitment to share my knowledge of health and nourish people. I'd like to cook for people in the Third World countries."
"The Wandering Chef" has been shown at various film festivals, including the Hot Docs Film Festival, the Margaret Mead Documentary Film Festival and the San Sebastian Film Festival.
It will hit local theaters on March 5.
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