Park Kwang-su

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

If You Were Me poster
6.0

Anthology 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

A Single Spark poster
7.1

Activist 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

Chilsu and Mansu poster
7.0

An 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

The Uprising poster
5.0

In 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

Black Republic poster
6.5

A social drama about a young student activist who hides from the authorities by working in a small mining town.

Black Republic

1990

To the Starry Island poster
7.2

Two 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

If You Were Me poster
6.0

Anthology 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

If You Were Me poster
6.0

Anthology 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

A Single Spark poster
7.1

Activist 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

A Single Spark poster
7.1

Activist 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

Chilsu and Mansu poster
7.0

An 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

The Uprising poster
5.0

In 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

The Uprising poster
5.0

In 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

Black Republic poster
6.5

A social drama about a young student activist who hides from the authorities by working in a small mining town.

Black Republic

1990

Black Republic poster
6.5

A social drama about a young student activist who hides from the authorities by working in a small mining town.

Black Republic

1990

To the Starry Island poster
7.2

Two 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

To the Starry Island poster
7.2

Two 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

No artwork available
5.0

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

No artwork available
5.0

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

Meet Mr. Daddy poster
4.6

A 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

Meet Mr. Daddy poster
4.6

A 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

Berlin Report poster
4.0

A 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

Berlin Report poster
4.0

A 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

No artwork available
NR

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

Black Republic poster
NR

Three 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

Face Value poster
NR

Depicts work settings where job applicants are evaluated by their physical appearance in looks-obsessed Korean society.

Face Value

2003

Street of the Blind poster
NR

A short film made by Park Kwang-su during his time at the Seoul Film Collective.

Street of the Blind

1982

The Island poster
NR

The 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