Only In Dreams follows Jun Ko, Brooklyn-based tattoo artist using art and resilience to survive life as an undocumented immigrant and DACA recipient in a country that refuses to fully claim her.
Clips
Jun is a Korean-born tattoo artist and small business owner living in Brooklyn, NY. Jun's also been part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) immigration program for nearly 20 years, after arriving in the U.S. as a small child.
As she builds a life and business in the only country she’s ever known, Jun reflects on her undocumented status, the grief of losing her brother, and the looming reality of family separation — all in the age of rampant ICE raids and rising anti-immigrant sentiment.
This deeply personal portrait explores identity, resilience, and what it means to belong in America when the country won’t claim you. What does chasing the American Dream look like when it feels just out of reach?
Team
Cassius Kim
Director & Producer
Team
Cassius Kim
Director & Producer
Cassius Michael Kim is the founder and principal lead of the independent media company, The Smoking Section. His feature documentary, Man On The Run, was released theatrically in the United Kingdom, USA, Singapore and Malaysia before premiering...
Cassius Michael Kim is the founder and principal lead of the independent media company, The Smoking Section. His feature documentary, Man On The Run, was released theatrically in the United Kingdom, USA, Singapore and Malaysia before premiering worldwide on Netflix in early 2024. It scored a 93% Rotten Tomatoes rating with 3.5 million viewers worldwide since release.
Previous work includes HBO’s Stockton On My Mind, nominated for Outstanding Current Affairs Documentary at the 2021 News & Documentary Emmy Awards. Kim also helped create and launch the CNN Original Series, The Wonder List with Bill Weir, directing and producing episodes from locations as diverse as Vanuatu, Madagascar and Egypt, over three primetime seasons. He began his career at the New York-based independent film production company This is that.
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Rachel Stewart
Editor
Producer
Sound Mix & Sound Design
Team
Rachel Stewart
Editor
Producer
Sound Mix & Sound Design
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Tommy Duncan 3rd
Colorist
Producer
Team
Tommy Duncan 3rd
Colorist
Producer
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Budget
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Our Ask
Only In Dreams began as a single, intimate portrait, but it was always conceived as the starting point for a larger body of work. As immigration is increasingly defined through fear, distortion, and abstraction, there is an urgent need for human-scale stories that restore complexity, dignity, and empathy. Support would allow this project to expand beyond one subject, documenting additional undocumented individuals across regions and lived experiences, while maintaining the same ethical access and cinematic restraint. The ask is for development and production funding, as well as editorial and distribution partners who believe these stories deserve time, care, and visibility now.
