A new South Korean film is winning accolades for its innovative exploration of two of the country’s most marginalized groups — North Korean defectors and the LGTBQ+ community.

The debut feature by director Park Joon-ho, “3670” tells an emotionally complex story about alienation, desire and belonging, following a gay defector named Cheol-jun navigating life as an outsider in the South.

The film recently premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival, and it draws on the director’s  teaching young defectors and observing Seoul’s queer communities.

In an interview with NK News, Park discusses the inspirations behind the film,