JOE, born in Seoul in 1967, was studying history when he received one day a phone call from a high school friend asking him his approval to make a short film based on a short novel he had written back then. JOE ended up taking a larger part in the adaptation process and observing the filming, which inspired him to become a film director. By the time he graduated, he had already made several short movies. In 1991, he entered the Korean Academy of Film Arts. After completion, h...More

JOE, born in Seoul in 1967, was studying history when he received one day a phone call from a high school friend asking him his approval to make a short film based on a short novel he had written back then. JOE ended up taking a larger part in the adaptation process and observing the filming, which inspired him to become a film director. By the time he graduated, he had already made several short movies. In 1991, he entered the Korean Academy of Film Arts. After completion, he worked on <No Emergency Exit> (directed by KIM Young-bin) in 1993 as part of the production team and went on to co-script and work as an assistant director for <A Hot Roof> (1995, directed by LEE Min-yong). JOE was also an assistant director for <Inch’Alla> (1996, directed by LEE Min-yong). As he “didn’t want to fight with directors anymore”, he resolved in 1998 to make his directing debut, which eventually took the form of the comedy <Jungle Juice> (2002). This was followed by <Twentidentity> (2003), <Les Formidables> (2005) and <Goodbye Children> (2006). After <A Million>, his most ambitious project to date which played upon the trend in survival reality shows, didn’t meet expectations, he had to wait a decade to come back with another film. <A Resistance> (2018) revolves around the real-life story of YU Gwan-sun, a woman activist who spent a year in the infamous Seodaemun Prison during the Japanese Occupation following her involvement in the March 1 independence movement. The film was a surprise hit as it benefited from the for 100th anniversary commemorations of that defining moment in Korean history.Less