
Person
Hong Sang-soo
Directing · Born 1960-10-25 · Seoul, South Korea
Biography
Hong Sang-soo (born October 25, 1960) is a South Korean writer-director. He has directed 35 films as of 2026. Certain elements are commonly found in Hong's films. A typical Hong film highlights a theme of domestic realism with many of the scenes set on residential streets, cafes, hotels, schools, and in the stairwells of apartment buildings. Characters are seen walking around the city, drinking soju, and having sex. The main characters are often movie directors or actors, and scenes typically consist of a single shot, often beginning and ending with a camera zoom. The budgets for his movies average about $100,000. Hong is often spontaneous when shooting, delivering the day's scene on the morning of the shoot and frequently changing stories while on set. He rarely prepares scripts in advance. Hong's style has been compared to Eric Rohmer's, and it has even been argued that allusions to Rohmer's films appear in some films directed by Hong.
Known for

The Day She Returns
Director

Nobody's Daughter Haewon
Director

Venice 70: Future Reloaded
Writer

On the Beach at Night Alone
Writer

Tony Rayns, the Not-So-Distant Observer
Self

Right Now, Wrong Then
Writer

Woman Is the Future of Man
Director

The Woman Who Ran
Writer

Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors
Writer

Tale of Cinema
Director
Filmography
- 2026Nowhere to Lay My EyesDirector
- 2026The Day She ReturnsDirector
- 2025Tree Above VolvoDirector
- 2025What Does That Nature Say to YouDirector
- 2024It Snows on You
- 2024By the StreamProducer
- 2024A Traveler's NeedsProducer
- 2023Greetings for the New York Film FestivalWriter
- 2023In Our DayDirector of Photography
- 2023In WaterMusic
- 2022Walk UpDirector
- 2022Small FlowerWriter
- 2022The Novelist's FilmWriter
- 2021In Front of Your FaceDirector
- 2021Letter to the New York Film FestivalDirector of Photography
- 2021IntroductionProducer
- 2021Hong Sangsoo – Winner of the Silver Bear for Best ScreenplayNarrator (Voice)
- 2020The Woman Who RanWriter
- 2019Hotel by the RiverWriter
- 2018GrassDirector
- 2018Claire's CameraWriter
- 2017The Day AfterMusic
- 2017On the Beach at Night AloneWriter
- 2016Yourself and YoursWriter
- 2015Right Now, Wrong ThenWriter
- 2014Hill of FreedomWriter
- 2013Our SunhiWriter
- 2013Venice 70: Future ReloadedWriter
- 2013Nobody's Daughter HaewonDirector
- 2012Tony Rayns, the Not-So-Distant ObserverSelf
- 2012In Another CountryDirector
- 2011ListWriter
- 2011The Day He ArrivesDirector
- 2010Oki's MovieScreenplay
- 2010Ha Ha HaDirector
- 2009Lost in the MountainsDirector
- 2009Like You Know It AllDirector
- 2008Night and DayDirector
- 2006Woman on the BeachDirector
- 2005The Nine Lives of Korean CinemaSelf
- 2005Tale of CinemaDirector
- 2004Woman Is the Future of ManDirector
- 2002On the Occasion of Remembering the Turning GateWriter
- 2000Virgin Stripped Bare by Her BachelorsWriter
- 1998The Power of Kangwon ProvinceDirector
- 1996The Day a Pig Fell Into the WellDirector
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