
Directing
Park Kwang-su
Born
1955-01-22 (71)
Place of birth
Sokcho, Gangwon Province, South Korea
Known for
Directing
Credits
24 titles
Born in 1955 in Sokcho. He studied film directing at the École supérieure d′études cinématographiques (ESEC) in Paris, then worked as an assistant director to Lee Jang-ho before making his feature directorial debut with Chil-su and Man-su. He went on to become a leading figure in the Korean New Wave, addressing the realities of Korean society in films such as Black Republic (1990) and A Single Spark (1995). A Single Spark won Best Film and Best Director at the Blue Dragon Film Awards.
Known for
6.0Anthology film of six shorts by leading Korean directors. Park Chan-Wook, tackles racial prejudice and the economic exploitation of immigrant workers through the real-life story of a Nepalese woman in Korea. Jeong Jae-Eun, tackles the plight of a paedophile released into the community. Yeo Gyun-Dong, invites disabled actor Kim Moon-Joo to re-enact his most famous protest. Im Soon-Rye, goes for the engrained sexism of Korean men with superb wit and, Park Jin-Pyo, confronts the horror of children forced into oral surgery to improve their English-speaking ability.
If You Were Me
2003
7.1Activist and law school graduate Kim is being persecuted by the mid-’70s Park regime for trying to write a book about Jeon Tae-il, a union activist who immolated himself at age 22 to protest government hypocrisy.
A Single Spark
1995
7.0An aimless young man and his sign-painter friend draw a crowd when they climb to the top of a high-rise billboard.
Chilsu and Mansu
1988
5.0In the late 19th century Catholicism was gaining a foothold on Jeju island, much to the horror of the Confucian community, who were seeing their influence diminishing as well as getting increased taxes from Catholic-friendly government officers. The conflict became a religious war that resulted in a rebel Confucian army massacring hundreds of Christians in little more than a matter of days. The Uprising details the events leading up to the assault, focusing on the story of Yi Jae-su, the young man destined to become the leader of the rebel army.
The Uprising
1999
6.5A social drama about a young student activist who hides from the authorities by working in a small mining town.
Black Republic
1990
7.2Two men have returned to their hometown (the titular island) from Seoul to bury the father of one of them, but the islanders vehemently refuse their request, triggering memories of their childhood before and during the Korean War.
To the Starry Island
1993
Film credits
Behind the camera
6.0Anthology film of six shorts by leading Korean directors. Park Chan-Wook, tackles racial prejudice and the economic exploitation of immigrant workers through the real-life story of a Nepalese woman in Korea. Jeong Jae-Eun, tackles the plight of a paedophile released into the community. Yeo Gyun-Dong, invites disabled actor Kim Moon-Joo to re-enact his most famous protest. Im Soon-Rye, goes for the engrained sexism of Korean men with superb wit and, Park Jin-Pyo, confronts the horror of children forced into oral surgery to improve their English-speaking ability.
If You Were Me
2003
6.0Anthology film of six shorts by leading Korean directors. Park Chan-Wook, tackles racial prejudice and the economic exploitation of immigrant workers through the real-life story of a Nepalese woman in Korea. Jeong Jae-Eun, tackles the plight of a paedophile released into the community. Yeo Gyun-Dong, invites disabled actor Kim Moon-Joo to re-enact his most famous protest. Im Soon-Rye, goes for the engrained sexism of Korean men with superb wit and, Park Jin-Pyo, confronts the horror of children forced into oral surgery to improve their English-speaking ability.
If You Were Me
2003
7.1Activist and law school graduate Kim is being persecuted by the mid-’70s Park regime for trying to write a book about Jeon Tae-il, a union activist who immolated himself at age 22 to protest government hypocrisy.
A Single Spark
1995
7.1Activist and law school graduate Kim is being persecuted by the mid-’70s Park regime for trying to write a book about Jeon Tae-il, a union activist who immolated himself at age 22 to protest government hypocrisy.
A Single Spark
1995
7.0An aimless young man and his sign-painter friend draw a crowd when they climb to the top of a high-rise billboard.
Chilsu and Mansu
1988
5.0In the late 19th century Catholicism was gaining a foothold on Jeju island, much to the horror of the Confucian community, who were seeing their influence diminishing as well as getting increased taxes from Catholic-friendly government officers. The conflict became a religious war that resulted in a rebel Confucian army massacring hundreds of Christians in little more than a matter of days. The Uprising details the events leading up to the assault, focusing on the story of Yi Jae-su, the young man destined to become the leader of the rebel army.
The Uprising
1999
5.0In the late 19th century Catholicism was gaining a foothold on Jeju island, much to the horror of the Confucian community, who were seeing their influence diminishing as well as getting increased taxes from Catholic-friendly government officers. The conflict became a religious war that resulted in a rebel Confucian army massacring hundreds of Christians in little more than a matter of days. The Uprising details the events leading up to the assault, focusing on the story of Yi Jae-su, the young man destined to become the leader of the rebel army.
The Uprising
1999
6.5A social drama about a young student activist who hides from the authorities by working in a small mining town.
Black Republic
1990
6.5A social drama about a young student activist who hides from the authorities by working in a small mining town.
Black Republic
1990
7.2Two men have returned to their hometown (the titular island) from Seoul to bury the father of one of them, but the islanders vehemently refuse their request, triggering memories of their childhood before and during the Korean War.
To the Starry Island
1993
7.2Two men have returned to their hometown (the titular island) from Seoul to bury the father of one of them, but the islanders vehemently refuse their request, triggering memories of their childhood before and during the Korean War.
To the Starry Island
1993
A porn actress decides to stop working in that industry to devote herself to conventional cinema. In her first non-pornographic shooting she faces a situation she did not expect... a sexual scene. Part of the '2000 Jeonju Digital Project'.
www.whitelover.com
2000
A porn actress decides to stop working in that industry to devote herself to conventional cinema. In her first non-pornographic shooting she faces a situation she did not expect... a sexual scene. Part of the '2000 Jeonju Digital Project'.
www.whitelover.com
2000
4.6A little girl is reunited with her reluctant small-time criminal father. Jong Dae is a lowlife conman and gangster who lives in a old trailer in a junkyard by the sea. Not exactly ideal father material. He is (understandably) shocked when, while in jail yet again, a social worker visits to inform him that he has a seven year old daughter called Joon (Seo Shin Ae) who has been living in an orphanage and is on her way to America to be adopted. Little Joon desperately wants to meet her daddy before she leaves.
Meet Mr. Daddy
2007
4.6A little girl is reunited with her reluctant small-time criminal father. Jong Dae is a lowlife conman and gangster who lives in a old trailer in a junkyard by the sea. Not exactly ideal father material. He is (understandably) shocked when, while in jail yet again, a social worker visits to inform him that he has a seven year old daughter called Joon (Seo Shin Ae) who has been living in an orphanage and is on her way to America to be adopted. Little Joon desperately wants to meet her daddy before she leaves.
Meet Mr. Daddy
2007
4.0A reporter investigates a case in which a Korean woman, who has been living in Europe since she was 3 years old, is accused of murdering her adopted father. This is complicated by the fact that she is suffering from traumatic memory loss.
Berlin Report
1991
4.0A reporter investigates a case in which a Korean woman, who has been living in Europe since she was 3 years old, is accused of murdering her adopted father. This is complicated by the fact that she is suffering from traumatic memory loss.
Berlin Report
1991
Performance Arirang is the first independent documentary produced outside the institutional system. Using Yeonwoo Stage theater group's production Pannori Arirang Gogae as its subject matter, the film takes a unique approach by separating visual and audio elements - showing rehearsal scenes, preparation footage, dressing room moments, and performance scenes while overlaying them with live performance audio, audience reactions, interviews, and recordings from Yeonwoo Stage's evaluation sessions. The intentional dissonance between visual and audio elements is interpreted as a means to actively engage viewers with the film. The inclusion of edited interviews from various individuals as off-screen sound suggests an intention to reflect on reality and reconsider the meaning of both Pannori Arirang Gogae and the film Performance Arirang within that reality.
Performance Arirang
1982
NRThree pickpockets, led by So-hoon, make a living from petty theft and loafing around the streets. One day, So-hoon runs into Neung-han, an old college friend who, upon learning of the group's precarious situation, decides to help them. However, the three young men come up with a plan to play a prank on him.
Black Republic
2026
NRDepicts work settings where job applicants are evaluated by their physical appearance in looks-obsessed Korean society.
Face Value
2003
NRA short film made by Park Kwang-su during his time at the Seoul Film Collective.
Street of the Blind
1982
NRThe movie starts as a "film inside a film", that shows the clash between a father and his two sons. While the older one, Hong-jun, tries to understand and get closer to his dad, because of a past mistake, the younger one, Man-ho, wanders aimlessly, incapable of accepting or comprehending his actions. As time passes, Hong-jun notices that the story he is filming mirrors his brother's reality.
The Island
1981


