Birdy Kang

When Birdy was young, he was like a fledgling still learning how to fly. He needed care and nurturing from his family to grow strong, yet he didn’t want to grow into the person his family expected him to be. SECOND ROUND is a coming-of-age documentary that intertwines Birdy’s gender transition with his inner emotional transformation—pulling back, pushing back, confusion, courage, fear, anxiety, and taking one last all-in gamble. We walk alongside Birdy through countless thoughts and struggles, witnessing a life crack open, grow, and ultimately find its way back to itself.

I grew up in a broken family, which was fragmented due to my father's emotional violence. Communication conflicts between my parents affected me and my brother under the same roof. During my upbringing, the four of us in the family became more distant and were unable to communicate properly with each other. As I grew older, I explored my gender identity, but found it difficult to balance my identification with my original family, so I decided to face why my family became like this. With the help of a camera, I opened up my own heart and the hearts of my family members, and found a way for each of us to express ourselves.