Riding Han (한)

In the summer of 2021, Pak (박) Eugene journeyed on bicycle with his 17-year-old brother and childhood best friend along the Great Divide Bike Route, a 2400+ mile route from the border of Mexico to Canada. Neither have biked for more than 5 miles or spent much time in the outdoors prior to this trip.

Riding Han is an adventure cycling film, with its foundational essence based on the Korean word, “Han” (한). Han is an inherent part of being Korean. It is internalized intergenerational trauma from war, colonialism, and imperialism. Han manifests itself in creation.

Riding Han captures their journey as three Korean-Americans, while exploring their identities through Han as Asian Americans, in a divisive time during the COVID-19 pandemic with anti-Asian hate on the rise. Han brought clarity that this is his time to create.

Pak (박) Eugene is a first-time filmmaker.