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LEE Jong-pil  
LEE Jong-pil
Director, Actor, Executive Producer, , Electrician, Editor, Screenwriter, Script Editor

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Gender : Male

Nationality : South Korea

Born in 1980, LEE Jong-pil first majored in photography but eventually dropped out as he was more interested in filmmaking and later was accepted into the film school of the Korean National University of Arts. There, he first made the short <Light My Fire> (2007), which was selected for the Generation slate of the Berlinale. After graduation, he made the short <A Trip to the Moon> (2009) before embarking on his feature-length debut, the documentary <Ensemble> (2012), which premiered at the Jecheon International Music and Film Festival in 2012. A producer who noticed him for <Light My Fire> offered him a chance to make his first fiction film and so <Born to Sing>, a film based on Korea’s long-running TV competition show National Singing Contest, released the following year. LEE then took a big leap with his next film, helming the period pansori drama <THE SOUND OF A FLOWER> for CJ Entertainment in 2015. Featuring BAE Suzy and RYU Seung-ryong, LEE’s film tells the story of a pansori singer who attracts the attention of the most powerful people in the Joseon Kingdom. He then achieved his biggest success to date with <Samjin Company English Class> (2020), which managed to sell more than 1.5 million tickets despite the theaters being all but deserted during the Covid-19 pandemic. Not only that, but the movie also was ranked among the best Korean movies that year and eventually received the Baeksang Art Award for Best Picture. Lee was particularly busy in 2022 with two big projects, an action thriller tentatively named <Escape> about the escape attempt by a North Korean soldier that is set for release later in 2023, and the Waave original 8-part slice-of-life series <One Day Off>, released in 2023, about the weekend escapades of a depressed schoolteacher.
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Related Photo

Filmography

Filmography  
Escape (2024)
Director, Staff
Filmography  
One day off (2023)
Director
Filmography  
SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS (2020)
Director
Filmography  
THE SOUND OF A FLOWER (2015)
Director, Staff
Filmography  
Ensemble (2014)
Director
Filmography  
Born to Sing (2013)
Director, Staff
Filmography  
Nice Shorts! 2011 (2011)
Actor
Filmography  
Hindsight (2011)
Actor
Filmography  
The Quiz Show Scandal (2010)
Actor
Filmography  
The Man From Nowhere (2010)
Actor
Filmography  
The Pit And The Pendulum (2009)
Actor
see all

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Awards and Invitation

  1. · <Escape> sliff (2025)
  2. · <Escape> Florence Korea Film Fest (2025) - Opening Film
  3. · <Escape> Korea Gold Awards Festival (2024)
  4. · <Escape> SITGES – International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia (2024) - Orbita
  5. · <Escape> New York Asian Film Festival (2024) - Korean Frontlines/Korean Frontlines
  6. · <Escape> London East Asia Film Festival (2024)
  7. · <Escape> Paris Korean Film Festival (2024) - ÉVÈNEMENTS
  8. · <Escape> Frankfurt Korean Film Festival (2024)
  9. · <One day off> Namdo Film Festival (2023)
  10. · <One day off> Jeonju International Film Festival : JIFF (2023) - Special Screening
  11. · <A Trip to the Moon> Seoul International Women’s Film Festival : SIWFF (2022)
  12. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> Korean Film Festival in Singapore (2021)
  13. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> Korean Film Festival in Hungary (2021) - Fresh
  14. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> Korean Film Festival in Australia (2021)
  15. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> New York Asian Film Festival (2021) - Standouts
  16. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> Paeksang Arts Awards (2021)
  17. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> The Blue Dragon Awards (2021)
  18. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> The Blue Dragon Awards (2021)
  19. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> The Blue Dragon Awards (2021) - Best Supporting Actress
  20. · <SAMJIN COMPANY ENGLISH CLASS> Frankfurt Korean Film Festival (2021) - Must See
  21. · <THE SOUND OF A FLOWER> Geumgang History Film Festival (2018)
  22. · <THE SOUND OF A FLOWER> New York Asian Film Festival (2016)
  23. · <THE SOUND OF A FLOWER> Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival : BIFAN (2016) - World Fantastic Blue
  24. · <THE SOUND OF A FLOWER> Osaka Asian Film Festival (2016) - Special Screenings
  25. · <THE SOUND OF A FLOWER> Korean Film Festival in Hungary (2016)
  26. · <Ensemble> Marie Claire Film Festival (2013)
  27. · <Born to Sing> FILM LIVE: KT&G Sangsangmadang Music Film Festa (2013)
  28. · <Born to Sing> Jecheon International Music & Film Festival : JIMFF (2013) - Korean Music Film Now
  29. · <Ensemble> Jecheon International Music & Film Festival : JIMFF (2012)
  30. · <A Trip to the Moon> Great Short Film Festival (2010)
  31. · <Light My Fire> Fest'asia Asian Film Festival (2006) - Short’ASIA
  32. · <Light My Fire> Jeongdongjin Independent Film Festival : JIFF (2008) - Section 4
  33. · <Light My Fire> Fresh Film Fest- International Festival of First Features and Student Films (2008) - Non Competitive Selection of Student Films
  34. · <Light My Fire> Berlin International Film Festival (2008) - Generation
  35. · <Light My Fire> Great Short Film Festival (2008)
  36. · <Light My Fire> San Diego Asian Film Festival (2008)
  37. · <Light My Fire> Rio De Janeiro International Short Film Festival (2008) - International Competition
  38. · <Light My Fire> International Short Film Festival Short Cuts Cologne (2008) - International Competition 4
  39. · <Light My Fire> Seoul Independent Film Festival : SIFF (2007)
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