COLOUR SPECIAL
DOP Kim Ji-yong and colourist Park Jin-young reveal the creative choices behind the look of Squid Game Season 2 S quid Game , the South Korean dystopian thriller from creator Hwang Dong-hyuk, took the world by storm with its high-stakes premise and striking visuals. At the end of last year, the much-anticipated second season dropped on Netflix, delivering seven new eps of life-or-death drama. For Season 2, cinematographer Kim Ji- yong teamed up with Baselight colourist Park Jin-young (of Dexter The Eye) to craft the show’s bold look – and after the huge success of the first series, Jin-young felt the weight of expectation. “Among the many creative elements involved, it was one of the rare works where we gave deep thought to the role that colour can play,” Jin-young begins. “With Korean content gaining increased exposure in the global market, I felt a great sense of responsibility being part of Season 2 – and at the same time, it was an exciting opportunity.” He continues: “The challenge was to carry over the iconic symbolism and colour identity from Season 1 while creating a deeper, heavier visual tone. This became the most fascinating part of the project for me.” Kim Ji-yong and Park Jin-young have been creative partners for over 15 years, working together on a variety of projects – including The Age of Shadows (2016), The Fortress (2017) and Decision
to Leave (2022). “We collaborated closely, grounded in mutual trust and understanding,” remarks Jin-young. “In our initial conversations, we agreed on respecting the vivid colours from Season 1 while shaping a moodier and more high-contrast tone to reflect the main character Gi-hun’s emotional evolution, as his inner transformation is central to this season.” Throughout the shoot, the duo would review the footage in the grading suite and make decisions about the direction of colour grading based on each scene’s atmosphere and emotional context. The colour and visual identity of the show were vital to the success of the first season, and Jin-young and Ji-yong wanted to honour this while visually reflecting the evolution of Gi-hun, the story and other characters. “Since the show is already known for its vivid colours – which many people appreciate – I didn’t feel the need to create a new look,” explains Ji-yong. “Instead, I believed it was important
to establish a moodier aesthetic with stronger contrast overall. “It was important that Squid Game was still recognisably Squid Game and that we retained the powerful visual identity already established, while also bringing this new element to Season 2,” he continues. “During testing, we discussed ways to create a more organic texture on screen,” Ji-yong elaborates. “We decided against creating any special on-set LUTs, opting instead to accurately capture the original colours of the set.” “Gi-hun looks the same on the surface, but compared to Season 1 his facial expressions are more serious and sombre,” explains Jin-young. “The sets and spaces are similar, but the narrative is heavier. I thought that this shift should be expressed through enhanced contrast and controlled brightness. “To do that, we deepened the overall mood and focused on harmonising the colours of the set, costumes and lighting in a refined way. This helped guide
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