The Department of Design is thrilled to congratulate Yeoleum Choi on winning the grand prize for best young director at the Wild Oceans Film Festival for her short film “The Isle of Trashes”. 

Originally released in 2021, “The Isle of Trashes” presents a surreal and, at times, darkly comedic look at a future in which the ocean is nearly unnavigable due to the sheer volume of trash inhabiting the water. The film follows multiple people (and fish) who are each affected by Trash Island in different ways. Clocking in at just 18 minutes, the stop-motion film utilizes real trash as set pieces and props and asks us to consider our role in environmental protection as well as critiques corporations that perpetuate oceanic pollution. 

Yeoleum Choi is a first year MFA student in the Department of Design at The Ohio State University studying Digital Animation and Interactive Media. She received her bachelor’s in art from Chung-Ang University and is the director of three short films, “Conscious ‘I’” (2023), “Isle of Trashes” (2021) and “Moon Rabbit” (2021). Her research is focused on animal protection, and she is also the recipient of Grand Prize at the Asia University Film Festival and Special Prize at the CRAFT International Animation Festival. 

In addition to a paid trip to Spain for the screening of the film, Yeoleum will also receive a cash prize of €1,500 for her achievement.   

Her professional website can be found at yeoleum.my.canva.site.