Lee Yoon-ki (; born 1965), 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. ...

Career

Lee Yoon-ki earned his MA in business administration/economics at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

. After returning to Korea, he worked as a producer and director of several

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 ...

s. His first feature, ''

This Charming Girl ''This Charming Girl'' (; lit. "Woman, Jeong-hae" or "Girl, Jeong-hae") is a South Korean drama film written and directed by Lee Yoon-ki. Plot Jeong-hae's life is as monotonous as her job at the post office. Her apartment, which is not far from ...

'', attracted much attention from major film festivals, including

Sundance A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada *Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood *Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States * Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated place ...

and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. His second feature, ''

Love Talk ''Love Talk'' (러브토크) is the second film by South Korean director Lee Yoon-ki. It tells the story of a group of expatriated South Koreans trying to adapt to living in the Los Angeles area. The film was shot entirely on location in California ...

'', was invited to compete at the

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary) is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has become ...

, and his third and fourth features, ''

Ad-lib Night ''Ad-lib Night'' (; lit. "A Very Special Guest") is the third film by South Korean director Lee Yoon-ki. A group of boys from the country who have come to Seoul to find the runaway daughter of a dying man to be with him on his death bed. The film ...

'' and ''

My Dear Enemy ''My Dear Enemy'' (; lit. "One Fine Day") is a road movie starring Jeon Do-yeon and Ha Jung-woo as two ex-lovers who reacquaint themselves while driving around Seoul. The film takes place over one rather uneventful day, and subtle emotions and chem ...

'' were both critically acclaimed. Since his debut, Lee has emerged as one of Korea's leading sources of small-budgeted, intimate dramas about ordinary people. He is particularly skilled at inhabiting the worlds of female characters, and he has worked with a range of impressive up and coming actresses including Kim Ji-soo,

Han Hyo-joo Han Hyo-joo (Korean: 한효주; born February 22, 1987) is a South Korean film and television actress, model and singer. She is best known for her leading roles in television series such as ''Heaven & Earth'' (2007), '' Iljimae'' (2008), ''Brill ...

and

Im Soo-jung Im Soo-jung (born July 11, 1979) is a South Korean actress. After modeling for teen magazines, Im made her acting breakthrough in Kim Jee-woon's horror film ''A Tale of Two Sisters'' (2003), followed by the popular television drama ''I'm Sorry, ...

, and most importantly Korea's top actress

Jeon Do-yeon Jeon Do-yeon (; born February 11, 1973) is a South Korean actress. She won Best Actress at the 60th Cannes Film Festival, making her the second Korean actress to win an acting award at a prestigious film festival, and Best Performance by an Ac ...

. Though Lee empathizes with women marginalized by a

patriarchal Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of Dominance hierarchy, dominance and Social privilege, privilege are primarily held by men. It is used, both as a technical Anthropology, anthropological term for families or clans controll ...

society, he refuses to exploit easy cultural signifiers to arouse audience sympathy. The characters also remain rather elusive amidst Lee's always-atmospheric images. But if his films are refreshingly unsentimental, their imagery is also refreshingly evocative, more romantic than realist. He considers

Hou Hsiao-hsien Hou Hsiao-hsien (; born 8 April 1947) is a Mainland Chinese-born Taiwanese film director, screenwriter, producer and actor. He is a leading figure in world cinema and in Taiwan's New Wave cinema movement. He won the Golden Lion at the Venice ...

as his film mentor. Other influences are

Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was a five-time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director and is considered an enduring figure from the New H ...

’s earlier works,

Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

, and other American independent films from the 70s and 80s, including the

Coen brothers Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...

’ ''

Blood Simple ''Blood Simple'' is a 1984 American independent neo-noir crime film written, edited, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, and starring John Getz, Frances McDormand, Dan Hedaya, and M. Emmet Walsh. Its plot follows a Texas bartender who ...

''. His favorite artist is

Edward Hopper Edward Hopper (July 22, 1882 – May 15, 1967) was an American realist painter and printmaker. While he is widely known for his oil paintings, he was equally proficient as a watercolorist and printmaker in etching. Hopper created subdued drama ...

Filmography

*''

'' (여자, 정혜), 2004 *''

'' (러브토크), 2005 *''

'' (아주 특별한 손님), 2006 *''

'' (멋진 하루), 2008 *''

Come Rain, Come Shine ''Come Rain, Come Shine'' (; literally "I Love You, I Love You Not") is a 2011 South Korean film by Lee Yoon-ki. A young woman (Im Soo-jung) informs her husband of five years (Hyun Bin) that she is leaving him for another man (Ha Jung-woo), but th ...

'' (사랑한다, 사랑하지 않는다), 2011"Director Lee defends pace of Berlin’s sole Asian entry"
''

The Korea Herald ''The Korea Herald'' is a leading English-language daily newspaper founded in 1953 and published in Seoul, South Korea. The editorial staff is composed of Korean and international writers and editors, with additional news coverage drawn from int ...

''. 18 February 2011. Retrieved 2012-11-19. *''

A Man and a Woman ''A Man and a Woman'' (french: Un homme et une femme) is a 1966 French film written and directed by Claude Lelouch and starring Anouk Aimée and Jean-Louis Trintignant. Written by Lelouch and Pierre Uytterhoeven, the film concerns a young widow a ...

'' (남과 여), 2016 *'' One Day'' (어느날), 2017

Awards and nominations

'' *

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 ...

- 2005,

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...

*New Currents Award - 2005,

Pusan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festi ...

*Grand Jury Prize, World Cinema (Dramatic) - 2005,

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

'' *Crystal Globe - 2005,

(Nominated)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Yoon-ki 1965 births Living people South Korean film directors Best Director Paeksang Arts Award (film) winners