South Korean film director and screenwriter
Lee Hae-jun
(born August 18, 1973) is a South Korean
film director
and
screenwriter
. He wrote and directed
Like a Virgin
(2006),
Castaway on the Moon
(2009), and
My Dictator
(2014).
Career
[
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]
As screenwriter
[
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]
Lee Hae-jun studied advertising at
Seoul Institute of the Arts
, but he soon made a name for himself in the Korean film industry for writing
screenplays
in various genres, such as
Kim Jee-woon
's vampire
short film
Coming Out
, Jo Keun-shik's 1980s-set high school comedy
Conduct Zero
(2002), Kim Jin-min's small-town romance
Au Revoir, UFO
(2004), and
Yim Pil-sung
's psychological
thriller
Antarctic Journal
(2005).
[1]
Like a Virgin
[
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]
In 2006, he and
Lee Hae-young
co-wrote and co-directed the
coming-of-age film
Like a Virgin
, in which
Ryu Deok-hwan
played an overweight
trans woman
teenager who idolizes
Madonna
and joins the high school
ssireum
team, hoping to use the prize money, if they win the national tournament, for
sex change surgery
.
[2]
The filmmakers gained praise for their directorial debut and its sensitive portrayal of a potentially controversial subject,
[3]
which resulted in several nominations and awards, including Best New Director(s) at the 7th
Busan Film Critics Awards
, Best Screenplay and Best New Director(s) at the
27th Blue Dragon Film Awards
,
[4]
Best New Director(s) at the 5th
Korean Film Awards
, 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
,
[5]
[6]
and the 20th
Singapore International Film Festival
where it
won
the
NETPAC Award
.
[7]
Castaway on the Moon
[
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]
Three years later, Lee made his first solo directorial effort
Castaway on the Moon
(2009), in which he continued whimsically exploring themes of alienation in modern life. Titled in
Korean
"The Adventures of Kim" or "Kim's Island,"
Jung Jae-young
played Mr. Kim, a businessman who after a suicide attempt gets marooned on a tiny, uninhabited
island
on the
Han River
in the middle of metropolitan
Seoul
, while he's observed by
hikikomori
Miss Kim (
Jung Ryeo-won
) through a telescope in her bedroom, which compels her to step outside again.
[8]
[9]
Lee said that in making the quirky
romantic
/
black comedy
, he wanted to give viewers a message of hope.
[10]
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
,
[11]
the Black Dragon Audience Award at the 12th Udine Far East Film Festival,
[12]
the Audience Award at the 9th
New York Asian Film Festival
,
[13]
and the Special Jury Prize at the 14th
Fantasia International Film Festival
.
[14]
In 2011,
CJ Entertainment
announced an American
remake
with
Mark Waters
attached as director.
[15]
Despite critical acclaim for both
Like a Virgin
and
Castaway on the Moon
, both films did not do well at the domestic box office.
[9]
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."
[16]
My Dictator
[
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]
In 2014, Lee cast
Sol Kyung-gu
and
Park Hae-il
in his third film,
My Dictator
.
[17]
Set in the 1970s, the film is about a
bit part
theater actor (played by Sol) whom the
Korean Central Intelligence Agency
hires as the
body double
for
Kim Il Sung
in the rehearsals for a historic
North
-
South
summit between Kim and
Park Chung Hee
.
[18]
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."
[19]
[20]
Filmography
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]
Awards
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]
References
[
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]
- ^
Gray, Richard (9 March 2011).
"Lee Hae-jun: Master of quirk"
.
The KOFFIA Blog
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Lee, Min-a; Kim, Sylvia (26 August 2006).
"Tender wrestler fights for a sex change in film"
.
Korea JoongAng Daily
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Edwards, Russell (16 October 2006).
"Review:
Like a Virgin
"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
D'sa, Nigel (21 December 2006).
"BONG's
Host
Takes Top Prize at Blue Dragon"
.
Korean Film Biz Zone
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
"Strong Korean Showing at Berlin Film Fest"
.
The Chosun Ilbo
. Retrieved
8 February
2007
.
- ^
"
Like a Virgin
Amuses Viewers at Berlin Film Festival"
.
KBS Global
. 14 February 2007
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Yi, Chang-ho (9 May 2007).
"HAN Hyo-ju and Like a Virgin Win at Singapore Fest"
.
Korean Film Biz Zone
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Yi, Chang-ho (11 September 2008).
"LEE Hae-jun films JUNG Jae-young's adventures"
.
Korean Film Biz Zone
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
a
b
"K-FILM REVIEWS: 金氏 漂流記 (Castaway on the Moon)"
.
Twitch Film
. 21 August 2009. Archived from
the original
on 19 October 2014
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Yang, Sung-jin (9 April 2009).
"A castaway on the Han River"
.
The Korea Herald
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Noh, Jean (22 October 2009).
"Empire Of Silver, Petition take top awards at Hawaii fest"
.
Screen Daily
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
"Castaway wins Udine vote"
.
Film Business Asia
. 3 May 2010
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Frater, Patrick (11 July 2010).
"Gallants and Castaway take popular vote at NYAFF"
.
Film Business Asia
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Vlessing, Etan (2 August 2010).
"Fantasia fest fetes Japan's
Sawako Decides
"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Fleming, Mike Jr. (18 February 2011).
"CJ Entertainment Remakes
Castaway On The Moon
For Mark Waters To Direct"
.
Deadline Hollywood
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Park, Sun-young (22 October 2009).
"Six filmmakers confront the struggle of the second time"
.
Korea JoongAng Daily
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Conran, Pierce (4 April 2014).
"MY DICTATOR Begins Shooting with SEOL Kyung-gu and PARK Hae-il"
.
Korean Film Biz Zone
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Baek, Byung-yeul (30 October 2014).
"Films based on true story continue to become dominating"
.
The Korea Times
. Retrieved
2014-11-21
.
- ^
Kang, Byeong-jin (8 March 2012).
"HAF feature interview with LEE Hae-jun,
My Dictator
"
.
Korean Cinema Today
. Retrieved
2014-10-12
.
- ^
Na, Won-jung (10 November 2014).
"Director LEE Hae-jun of MY DICTATOR: "A story about father and son, my dictator"
"
.
Korean Cinema Today
. Retrieved
2014-11-27
.
External links
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Films directed
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Films written
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1960s
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1970s
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1990s
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2000s
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2010s
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2020s
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International
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National
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Other
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