Born in 1974. Kim Jinyeol majored in creative writing before making her first steps as a journalist in the society columns of the magazine <World Korea>. She then joined the biweekly magazine <Sisa News>, contributing to the society and culture sections. In 1995, a documentary on people living by the Yalu River that she saw by chance on television gave her the impetus to quit her job, where she always felt frustrated by the limited time she could dedicate to each ...More

Born in 1974. Kim Jinyeol majored in creative writing before making her first steps as a journalist in the society columns of the magazine <World Korea>. She then joined the biweekly magazine <Sisa News>, contributing to the society and culture sections. In 1995, a documentary on people living by the Yalu River that she saw by chance on television gave her the impetus to quit her job, where she always felt frustrated by the limited time she could dedicate to each topic, and decided to make documentaries as captivating as that one she just saw. She returned to school, this time majoring in media in communication at Daejin University, and joined the school’s documentary club. The year of her graduation, she made her official directing debut with <Kim Jin-ok’s Wedding Story> (1999), which documented the struggle of a disabled woman to get married. As a member of PRUN Production, one of the earliest examples of collectives working in Korean independent documentary, she made <Land., to Make Rice> (2000) and <Marking The Spy, Then> (2004). In <Forgotten Warriors> (2005), she met with the women who were enlisted and fought in the Korean War. After <Jin-ok Sister Goes to School> (2007), Kim didn’t film any other title until the 2014 Sewol Ferry Sinking compelled her to pick up her camera again to meet with some of the bereaved families in <Cruel State> (2015). Her latest, <King Kong-boon of Wangshimni> (2021), screened at the Busan International Film Festival, followed the mother of Kim Kwijeong (a college student who was killed as a result to the violent police repression of demonstrations in 1991) who makes a meagre living selling vegetables near a subway exit.Less