Lee Hae-jun (born August 18, 1973) is a South Korean
film director
A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...
and
screenwriter
A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based.
...
. He wrote and directed ''
Like a Virgin'' (2006), ''
Castaway on the Moon
''Castaway on the Moon'' (; lit. "Kim's drifting experience": 표류: drifting; hanja: 金氏漂流記) is a 2009 South Korean romantic comedy film written and directed by Lee Hae-jun. It is a love story between a suicidal man turned castaway on B ...
'' (2009), and ''
My Dictator
''My Dictator'' () is a 2014 South Korean film directed and co-written by Lee Hae-jun, starring Sol Kyung-gu and Park Hae-il.
Plot
After the North-South Korea Joint Statement on July 4, 1972, reunification fervor briefly sweeps over the Korean Pe ...
'' (2014).
Career
As screenwriter
Lee Hae-jun studied advertising at
Seoul Institute of the Arts
Seoul Institute of the Arts is a prominent educational institution specializing in the Arts located in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. The school has nurtured many graduates who are actively working in art related fields within Korea as w ...
, but he soon made a name for himself in the Korean film industry for writing
screenplay
''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993.
Background
After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, fe ...
s in various genres, such as
Kim Jee-woon
Kim Jee-woon (; born July 6, 1964) is a South Korean film director and screenwriter.
Career
Kim started out directing theater but has worked with increasing levels of success in cinema, showing accomplished acting and a detailed stylization in ...
's vampire
short film
A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
''
Coming Out
Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity.
Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...
'', Jo Keun-shik's 1980s-set high school comedy ''
Conduct Zero
''Conduct Zero'' (also known as ''No Manners'') is a 2002 South Korean film directed by Joh Keun-shik.
Plot
Joong-pil is the undisputed "king" of his high school due to his fighting skills. His life as a delinquent is comfortable until he fall ...
'' (2002), Kim Jin-min's small-town romance ''
Au Revoir, UFO
''Au Revoir, UFO'' () is a 2004 South Korean film.
Plot
Sang-hyeon is a bus driver who lives out his daydreams by recording his own "radio shows" for the people who ride his bus. He falls in love with Kyeong-woo, a blind woman who has moved in ...
'' (2004), and
Yim Pil-sung
Yim Pil-sung (born May 13, 1972) is a South Korean film director and screenwriter. He wrote and directed ''Antarctic Journal'' (2005), ''Hansel and Gretel'' (2007), and '' Scarlet Innocence'' (2014).
Career Short films
Yim Pil-sung began directi ...
's psychological
thriller ''
Antarctic Journal
''Antarctic Journal'' is a 2005 South Korean film. It is the feature film debut by director Yim Pil-sung. The film mixes elements of psychological thriller and classical horror films while showing the hardships met by a modern Korean antarctic e ...
'' (2005).
''Like a Virgin''
In 2006, he and
Lee Hae-young
Lee Hae-young (born 1973) is a South Korean film director and screenwriter. Lee wrote and directed his debut feature '' Like a Virgin'' (2006) (with director Lee Hae-jun), which won several awards for Best New Director and Best Screenplay. His f ...
co-wrote and co-directed the
coming-of-age film
Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can b ...
''
Like a Virgin'', in which
Ryu Deok-hwan
Ryu Deok-hwan (; born June 12, 1987) is a South Korean actor.
Career
Ryu Deok-hwan began his career as a child actor on stage at age 6. Among his early Korean drama, TV drama appearances was a role on the popular ''Lifetime in the Country'' whi ...
played an overweight
trans woman
A trans woman or a transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity, may experience gender dysphoria, and may transition; this process commonly includes hormone replacement therapy and so ...
teenager who idolizes
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
and joins the high school
ssireum
''Ssireum'' (Hangul: ) or Korean wrestling is a folk wrestling style and traditional national sport of Korea that began in the fourth century.
In the modern form each contestant wears only a belt (satba) that wraps around the waist and the th ...
team, hoping to use the prize money, if they win the national tournament, for
sex change surgery. The filmmakers gained praise for their directorial debut and its sensitive portrayal of a potentially controversial subject, which resulted in several nominations and awards, including Best New Director(s) at the 7th
Busan Film Critics Awards
Established in 2000, the Busan Film Critics Awards is run by the Busan Film Critics Association (BCFA), a small but independent-minded group of critics based in Busan, South Korea. Each year they announce their choices shortly before the opening o ...
, Best Screenplay and Best New Director(s) at the
27th Blue Dragon Film Awards
The 27th Blue Dragon Film Awards ceremony was held on December 15, 2006 at the KBS Hall in Yeouido, Seoul, South Korea. Hosted by actors Jung Joon-ho and Kim Hye-soo
Kim Hye-soo (; born September 5, 1970) is a South Korean actress. Kim was one ...
, Best New Director(s) at the 5th
Korean Film Awards
The Korean Film Awards was a South Korean film awards ceremony hosted by the broadcasting network MBC from 2002 to 2010.
History
Originally named the MBC Film Awards, the ceremony was first established in 2002. It was renamed the Korean Film Aw ...
, and Best Screenplay at the
43rd Baeksang Arts Awards. ''Like a Virgin'' was also invited to international film festivals, including the Generation section of the
57th Berlin International Film Festival
The 57th Berlin International Film Festival was held from 8 to 18 February 2007. The opening film of this year's festival was Olivier Dahan’s '' La Vie En Rose''. ''Angel'' by François Ozon served as the closing night film. American director ...
, and the 20th
Singapore International Film Festival
The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) (Chinese: 新加坡国际电影节) is the longest-running film festival in Singapore. Founded in 1987, the festival has a focus on showcasing international films and providing a global platform for ...
where it
won the
NETPAC Award The Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) is a worldwide organization of 29 member countries. It was created as the result of a conference on Asian cinema organized by Cinemaya, the Asian Film Quarterly, in New Delhi in 1990 at the inst ...
.
''Castaway on the Moon''
Three years later, Lee made his first solo directorial effort ''
Castaway on the Moon
''Castaway on the Moon'' (; lit. "Kim's drifting experience": 표류: drifting; hanja: 金氏漂流記) is a 2009 South Korean romantic comedy film written and directed by Lee Hae-jun. It is a love story between a suicidal man turned castaway on B ...
'' (2009), in which he continued whimsically exploring themes of alienation in modern life. Titled in
Korean
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
"The Adventures of Kim" or "Kim's Island,"
Jung Jae-young
Jeong Jae-yeong (born Jeong Ji-hyeon; November 21, 1970) is a South Korean actor. He's best known for his roles in the critically acclaimed films '' Silmido'' (2003), ''Right Now, Wrong Then'' (2015), and '' On the Beach at Night Alone'' (2017). ...
played Mr. Kim, a businessman who after a suicide attempt gets marooned on a tiny, uninhabited
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
on the
Han River in the middle of metropolitan
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
, while he's observed by
hikikomori
, also known as acute social withdrawal, is total withdrawal from society and seeking extreme degrees of social isolation and confinement. ''Hikikomori'' refers to both the phenomenon in general and the recluses themselves. ''Hikikomori'' ha ...
Miss Kim (
Jung Ryeo-won
Jung Ryeo-won (born January 21, 1981) is a South Korean-born Korean Australian actress. She began her entertainment career as a singer in the now-defunct girl group Chakra, and first rose to fame in the hit television series '' My Name Is Kim S ...
) through a telescope in her bedroom, which compels her to step outside again.
Lee said that in making the quirky
romantic/
black comedy
Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...
, he wanted to give viewers a message of hope. Like his previous film, Lee's ''Castaway on the Moon'' traveled the international film festival circuit, winning the NETPAC Award at the 29th
Hawaii International Film Festival
The Hawai'i International Film Festival (HIFF) is an annual film festival held in the United States state of Hawaii.
HIFF has a focus on Asian-Pacific cinema, education, and the work of new and emerging filmmakers. HIFF’s primary festival is h ...
, the Black Dragon Audience Award at the 12th Udine Far East Film Festival, the Audience Award at the 9th
New York Asian Film Festival
The New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) is a critically acclaimed film festival held in New York City, dedicated to the display of Asian Film Culture. The New York Asian Film Festival generally features contemporary premieres and classic titles ...
, and the Special Jury Prize at the 14th
Fantasia International Film Festival
Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...
. In 2011,
CJ Entertainment
CJ Entertainment (Hangul: CJ 엔터테인먼트) is a South Korean film production and distribution company under CJ ENM. The company operates as a film production company, film publishing house, investment and exhibition.
History
During early 1 ...
announced an American
remake
A remake is a film, television series, video game, song or similar form of entertainment that is based upon and retells the story of an earlier production in the same medium—e.g., a "new version of an existing film". A remake tells the same ...
with
Mark Waters
Mark Stephen Waters (born June 30, 1964) is an American filmmaker who directed the comedy films ''Freaky Friday'', ''Mean Girls'', ''Ghosts of Girlfriends Past'', '' Mr. Popper's Penguins'', and ''Vampire Academy''.
Filmography
Film
Producer ...
attached as director.
Despite critical acclaim for both ''Like a Virgin'' and ''Castaway on the Moon'', both films did not do well at the domestic box office.
Lee said, "I realized that as a commercial film director I can't just make the film that I want to make... instead, I have to consider the audience. I had to understand the fact that my interests don't always match the audience's, and there was also the pressure of making a return on the investments in my film."
''My Dictator''
In 2014, Lee cast
Sol Kyung-gu
Sol Kyung-gu (born May 14, 1967) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his roles in ''Public Enemy (2002 film), Public Enemy'' film series, ''Peppermint Candy'', ''Oasis (2002 film), Oasis'', ''Silmido (film), Silmido'', ''Hope (2013 film ...
and
Park Hae-il
Park Hae-il (born 26 January 1977) is a South Korean actor. He began his acting career in theater, but soon gained the film industry's attention in 2003 with ''Jealousy Is My Middle Name'' and ''Memories of Murder''. Park's film career took off, ...
in his third film, ''
My Dictator
''My Dictator'' () is a 2014 South Korean film directed and co-written by Lee Hae-jun, starring Sol Kyung-gu and Park Hae-il.
Plot
After the North-South Korea Joint Statement on July 4, 1972, reunification fervor briefly sweeps over the Korean Pe ...
''. Set in the 1970s, the film is about a
bit part
In acting, a bit part is a role in which there is direct interaction with the principal actors and no more than five lines of dialogue, often referred to as a five-or-less or under-five in the United States, or under sixes in British television, ...
theater actor (played by Sol) whom the
Korean Central Intelligence Agency
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
hires as the
body double
In filmmaking, a double is a person who substitutes FOR another actor such that the person's face is not shown. There are various terms associated with a double based on the specific body part or ability they serve as a double for, such as stunt ...
for
Kim Il-sung
Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...
in the rehearsals for a historic
North
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography.
Etymology
T ...
-
South
South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...
summit between Kim and
Park Chung-hee
Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...
. Lee spoke candidly, "I thought I could tell a story about an actor, and at the same time, about one individual who lived in tumultuous times. Moreover I felt like I could tell a story about the lives of fathers who went through those times. I once saw a photograph of my father a long time ago. He was so young. But I was curious what made my father, who had been so young, into the dictator-like father that he was now. Thinking about it, it seemed that having passed through an era rife with dictators in both the North and the South, he couldn't just stay young.
.. Like all the fathers of our time, he is awkward at communicating affectionately with his offspring. I think that hurt me a little bit, too.
..In that way, my father was someone who made me follow his own stride. Now that father of mine has fallen into a condition where he is ill and cannot even speak properly, I want to broach and speak of the things that made me most uncomfortable with him. The greatest way I can do that is through a film. So in a sense, ''My Dictator'' is a film in which I have put my heart's desire to reconcile with my father."
Filmography
*''
Coming Out
Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity.
Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...
'' (2000) - screenwriter
*''
Kick the Moon
''Kick the Moon'' () is a 2001 South Korean film directed by Kim Sang-jin.
Plot
Ten years ago, a legendary fighter named Choi Gi-dong and a timid straight-A student named Park Young-joon leave for a high school field trip to Gyeongju city. But d ...
'' (2001) - original idea
*''
Conduct Zero
''Conduct Zero'' (also known as ''No Manners'') is a 2002 South Korean film directed by Joh Keun-shik.
Plot
Joong-pil is the undisputed "king" of his high school due to his fighting skills. His life as a delinquent is comfortable until he fall ...
'' (2002) - screenwriter
*''
Au Revoir, UFO
''Au Revoir, UFO'' () is a 2004 South Korean film.
Plot
Sang-hyeon is a bus driver who lives out his daydreams by recording his own "radio shows" for the people who ride his bus. He falls in love with Kyeong-woo, a blind woman who has moved in ...
'' (2004) - screenwriter
*''
Arahan
''Arahan'' () is a 2004 South Korean action film directed by Ryoo Seung-wan and starring his brother Ryoo Seung-bum along with Yoon So-yi, Ahn Sung-ki and Jung Doo-hong. The film was a relative commercial success, selling over 2 million tickets d ...
'' (2004) - script editor
*''
Antarctic Journal
''Antarctic Journal'' is a 2005 South Korean film. It is the feature film debut by director Yim Pil-sung. The film mixes elements of psychological thriller and classical horror films while showing the hardships met by a modern Korean antarctic e ...
'' (2005) - screenwriter
*''
Like a Virgin'' (2006) - director, screenwriter
*''
Castaway on the Moon
''Castaway on the Moon'' (; lit. "Kim's drifting experience": 표류: drifting; hanja: 金氏漂流記) is a 2009 South Korean romantic comedy film written and directed by Lee Hae-jun. It is a love story between a suicidal man turned castaway on B ...
'' (2009) - director, screenwriter
*''
A Hard Day
''A Hard Day'' (; lit. "Take It to the End") is a 2014 South Korean action thriller film written and directed by Kim Seong-hun, and starring Lee Sun-kyun and Cho Jin-woong. It was selected to compete in the Directors' Fortnight section of the ...
'' (2014) - script editor
*''
My Dictator
''My Dictator'' () is a 2014 South Korean film directed and co-written by Lee Hae-jun, starring Sol Kyung-gu and Park Hae-il.
Plot
After the North-South Korea Joint Statement on July 4, 1972, reunification fervor briefly sweeps over the Korean Pe ...
'' (2014) - director, screenwriter
*''
Golden Slumber
''Golden Slumber'' is a 2018 South Korean action thriller film directed by Noh Dong-seok, starring Gang Dong-won, Kim Eui-sung, Kim Sung-kyun, Kim Dae-myung, Han Hyo-joo and Yoon Kye-sang. It is based on the 2007 Japanese novel of the same name wr ...
'' (2017) - screenwriter
*''
Ashfall
The Ashfall Fossil Beds of Antelope County in northeastern Nebraska are rare fossil sites of the type called lagerstätten that, due to extraordinary local conditions, capture an ecological "snapshot" in time of a range of well-preserved fossil ...
'' (2019) - director
Awards
*2006 7th
Busan Film Critics Awards
Established in 2000, the Busan Film Critics Awards is run by the Busan Film Critics Association (BCFA), a small but independent-minded group of critics based in Busan, South Korea. Each year they announce their choices shortly before the opening o ...
: Best New Director (''
Like a Virgin'')
*2006
27th Blue Dragon Film Awards
The Blue Dragon Film Awards () is an annual awards ceremony that is presented by ''Sports Chosun'' (a sister brand of the ''Chosun Ilbo'') for excellence in film in South Korea.
The Blue Dragon Film Awards considers only blockbusters and popula ...
: Best New Director (''
Like a Virgin'')
*2006
27th Blue Dragon Film Awards
The Blue Dragon Film Awards () is an annual awards ceremony that is presented by ''Sports Chosun'' (a sister brand of the ''Chosun Ilbo'') for excellence in film in South Korea.
The Blue Dragon Film Awards considers only blockbusters and popula ...
: Best Screenplay (''
Like a Virgin'')
*2006 5th
Korean Film Awards
The Korean Film Awards was a South Korean film awards ceremony hosted by the broadcasting network MBC from 2002 to 2010.
History
Originally named the MBC Film Awards, the ceremony was first established in 2002. It was renamed the Korean Film Aw ...
: Best New Director (''
Like a Virgin'')
*2007
43rd Baeksang Arts Awards
The Baeksang Arts Awards (), also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards, are awards for excellence in film, television and theatre in South Korea. The awards were first introduced in 1965 by Chang Key-young, the founder of the Hankook Ilbo newspap ...
: Best Screenplay (''
Like a Virgin'')
*2009 17th
Chunsa Film Art Awards
The Chunsa Film Art Awards (also known as the Icheon Chunsa Film Festival) have been presented in South Korea since the founding of the prize by the Korea Film Directors' Society in 1990. The awards take their name from the pen name of the early ...
: Best Screenplay (''
Castaway on the Moon
''Castaway on the Moon'' (; lit. "Kim's drifting experience": 표류: drifting; hanja: 金氏漂流記) is a 2009 South Korean romantic comedy film written and directed by Lee Hae-jun. It is a love story between a suicidal man turned castaway on B ...
'')
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Hae-jun
South Korean film directors
South Korean screenwriters
Seoul Institute of the Arts alumni
Living people
1973 births