Perseverance pays off for CBC comedy writer
Kim’s Convenience creator travelled long road to successful CBC show
When Ins Choi first took the script for his new play to theatre companies around Toronto, it was rejected everywhere that he went.
After taking the reins of putting the show on himself during the Toronto Fringe Festival to nearly universal acclaim, those same companies came back to try to get the play that would eventually evolve into the CBC comedy TV show Kim’s Convenience that Choi works on today.
“The toughest part is coming up with stories,” Choi said. “Hundreds of ideas fall to the wayside, but that is the hardest part ... and having the patience to develop it.”
Kim’s Convenience is a series that revolves around a Korean-Canadian family running a convenience store in Toronto, and their interactions amongst themselves and in the community.
Choi was born in South Korea and came to Canada with his family when he was only a year old. Choi said his uncle owned a convenience store in Toronto called Kim’s Grocer, which served as the inspiration for his play.
“My first memory of Canada is the smell of chocolate bars, the smell of a convenience store,” Choi said.
When Choi’s play was picked up by CBC, he was brought on to work on the show as an official co-creator, producer, and main screenwriter. Choi said it was an interesting transition, as his writing experience came from songwriting, poetry, and eventually playwriting. He had never written for television before.
Although he said he doesn’t get a lot of time off, Choi said he loves to go camping and travelling across Canada with his wife and children, just like he did with his family when he was younger. With such a busy schedule, he said being cooped up in a city takes its toll.
“My soul craves greenery,” Choi said with a laugh.
Choi joked he would write and produce a commercial for Parks Canada if someone would let him simply because of how much he’s enjoyed them throughout his life.
Only a couple years ago Choi took a cross-country road trip with his family for two months while he had a show in the Winnipeg and Edmonton Fringe festivals.
Visiting the Manitou Springs mineral spa near Watrous during that trip is the closest he’s ever been to Saskatoon, he said.
But when he was invited to be in Saskatoon’s Word on the Street literary festival and had a chance to put on his one-man show Songs, Stories and Spoken Words at the Refinery, Choi took the opportunity to return to his roots and visit a city he’s never seen at the same time.
“It was really simple to set up ... I just have to do it. Which is hard,” he said. “It’s actually a treat for me to be able to do this, and meet people in Saskatoon for the first time.”
Choi said he was excited to take part in the Word on the Street event, adding that he is most looking forward to meeting some of the Indigenous writers and poets in attendance.
The show at the Refinery takes place Sunday evening after the Word on the Street event, and he’s also scheduled to make an appearance in a creative writing class at the University of Saskatchewan while he’s in the city.
For Choi, the long and winding road he’s taken from his show being rejected to a CBC television writer has let him keep the tone that he wants — and from his perspective, it all worked out in the end.
“It was meant to be. Looking back, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way,” he said.
My first memory of Canada is the smell of chocolate bars, the smell of a convenience store.