Today we’d like to introduce you to Kim Nguyen.
Kim, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born in Vietnam and my family immigrated over on a boat to America when I was pretty young. We landed in an area that was the exact opposite of where we came from – Chicago, Illinois. I grew up in a dual cultured household. From an early age I was very into comedy, like I used to tell people Yoko Ono was my aunt. Hee hee. I’ve also always loved writing. I was a writer at The Onion and then a writer at MTV where I also became a director. I discovered I really love directing and that’s what I do now.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Life kinda gave my folks a rough start. When your family has nothing in a new country, there are a lot of firsts. Snow, English, school, pizza – we were discovering all of these firsts at the exact same time. My family is super important to me. Our journey has been nuts and I credit my mom and my brother for sacrificing a lot so we could (in the immortal words of Prince), “get through this thing called life.” Professionally speaking, the road has been pretty smooth. I love working on creative projects with creative people and that’s what directing has afforded me. When there were forks in the road in my career, I always chose the more creative fork, and I’m glad I did.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m a director and my focus is on comedy. I direct a lot of different formats including tv, short films, commercials, sketches, and documentaries. Most recently, I have focused on directing episodic and developing feature work. I am always drawn to projects that are comedic and have deeper themes. I’ve been so fortunate to work with talented people who also happen to be good humans too. I’ve also made a lot of friends along the way, it’s been pretty great.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
So many have helped, and I love them all. Special shout outs to: Gail Mancuso, Scott Marder, Demetri Martin, T.K Knowles, John O’Grady, Andy Carrigan, Seyi Peter-Thomas, Julie Kraut, MTV On-Air promos, Karen Horne, Grace Moss and the gang from NBC/Universal, Brett King and the gang from Sony, Liz Kelly, Frank Gonzales, Stacey Lubliner, Evan Pioch, Will Znidaric, Jenny Grace, little Kim Nguyen, Eric stevens and all my friends and family.
Contact Info:
- Website: Kimnguyen.net
Image Credit:
Chuck Ozeas, Joe Arcidianco, Eric Stevens
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