Hwang Dong-hyuk is a South Korean film director, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for directing and creating the hit Netflix Korean survival drama Squidward. In 2022, he was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine.
Wiki/Biography
Hwang Dong Hyuk was born on Wednesday, May 26, 1971, in Seoul, South Korea (age 52 years; as of 2023). His zodiac sign is Gemini. When he was studying in school and college, he would often read comics and comic books for hours in comic cafes. He earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Seoul National University. After graduation, he created and directed several short films. He later earned an MFA in filmmaking from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. While studying filmmaking, his graduation thesis film was the short film “Miracle Mile” (2004), which screened at more than 40 international film festivals and won many awards including the DGA Student Film Award and the Student Emmy Award. .
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′ 9″
Weight (approximately): 70kg
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family
Parents and siblings
He lost his father when he was young. He grew up with his mother and grandmother.
wife
There is not much information about his marital status.
Relationships/Affairs
In an interview, he revealed that he had been in a relationship.
Signature/Autograph
Hwang Dong Hyuk’s autograph on the poster of “Squid Game”
Profession
director
short film
In 2000, he directed the Korean short film “Our Sad Life” while studying at Seoul National University, making his directorial debut. In 2000, he directed several short films, including “A Wisp of Smoke,” “Despair” and “Heaven and Hell.”
Poster for the short film “Despair” released in 2000
Movie
In 2007, he made his film debut with the Korean film “My Father”, which was adapted from a true story.
2007 Korean movie “My Father” poster
In 2011, he attracted attention by directing the popular Korean movie “Silence” starring Gong Yoo, which was adapted from Gong Ji-young’s novel “The Crucible”. The film tells the true story of the Inhwa School for the Deaf in Gwangju, where young students were brutally treated and sexually abused by teachers and administrators. When talking about directing the film in an interview, he revealed that it took him a month to decide whether to direct the film; however, he ultimately decided to do so. He said,
I hesitated because this is based on a true story. But ironically, I decided to go ahead because it involved a real incident. It must be said. I had two things in mind when making this film. First, I want the world to know about this horrific incident. Secondly, I want to expose the social structural problems exposed during the burial process of the case. As a result, scenes of sexual violence and a morbid, unfortunate ending are inevitable. As an undergraduate, I was very interested in social issues, so I often attended demonstrations. I started making films because I was so frustrated with all these unresolved social issues I was seeing. ”
In 2014, he directed the comedy movie “Miss Grandma”. In 2017, he directed the famous Korean historical drama film “Fortress” adapted from Kim Hoon’s novel “Namhansan Fortress”.
television
In 2021, he directed the internationally acclaimed Korean TV series “Squid Game”. The TV series was released on Netflix on September 17, 2021 and became the most watched series in Netflix history.
“Squid Game” directed by Hwang Dong Hyuk
writer
short film
In 2000, he made his debut as a writer with the short film “Our Sad Life”. He has created a number of short films, including “Puff of Smoke” (2000), “Despair” (2000) and “Miracle Mile” (2004).
Stills from the 2004 short film “Miracle Mile”
Movie
He has written scripts for several Korean films, including “My Father” (2007), “Silence” (2011) and “Fortress” (2017).
television
He originally wrote the script for Squid Game in 2009, however, he had difficulty finding a production studio willing to back the project. In 2019, Netflix invested in the series and provided necessary support for its production as part of its overseas programming expansion efforts. He came up with the idea for Squidward, drawing inspiration from his own early economic struggles and the class divide prevalent in South Korea. In an interview, he said about this incident,
I was very financially strapped because my mother retired from the company where she worked. I was making a movie but we couldn’t get financing. So I couldn’t work for about a year. We had to take out loans – my mother, myself and my grandmother. ”
producer
In 2000, he made his debut as a producer with the short film “Despair”. In 2020, he produced the Korean heist thriller film “The Collector”.
Awards, Honors, Achievements
Awards
- 2012: The 2011 Korean film “Silence” won the Audience Award at the Udine Far East Film Festival
- 2012: Won the Black Dragon Audience Award at the Udine Far East Film Festival for the film “Silence”
- 2017: The Korean film “Fortress” won the Blue Dragon Award for Best Screenplay
- 2017: Won the Korean Film Critics Association Award for Best Director for the movie “Fortress”
- 2018: Won the Chunsha Film Art Award for Best Director for the movie “Fortress”
- 2021: Shin Young-kyun Arts and Culture Foundation Beautiful Artist Award Film Artist Award
- 2021: Breakthrough Series – Gotham Award for Longform
Hwang Dong Hyuk wins Gotham Award
- 2021: Receives Visionary Award
- 2022: The Korean TV series “Squid Game” won the Best Director Award at the Baeksang Arts Awards
- 2022: TV series “Squidward” wins the Critics’ Choice Award for Director (Asia Pacific Film and Television)
- 2022: Winner of the Director’s Cut Award for Best Director for a Series for “Squidward”
- 2022: ‘Squidward’ wins Director’s Cut Award for Best Screenplay for a Series
- 2022: Korea Image Awards Stepping Stone Award
- 2022: Xiaoma Zhong Innovation Award in the Xiaoma Zhong Foundation Innovation Award
- 2022: Winner of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for “Red Light, Green Light” from the TV series “Squidward”
Hwang Dong Hyuk wins Primetime Emmy Award
Honors and Qualifications
- 2022: Received South Korea’s Golden Crown Cultural Medal for his contribution to culture and art
Huang Donghyuk won the Golden Crown Cultural Medal
Achievement
- 2021: Named to Bloomberg Businessweek’s “Annual 50” list
- 2022: “Asian Person of the Year” by The Straits Times (Singapore)
- 2022: Named to Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2022 list
Facts/Trivia
- Hwang Dong-hyuk is the first Korean to win the Primetime Emmy Award for “Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series”.
- He was an avid manga reader and found relief in Seoul’s manga cafes. In an interview, he talked about his hobby and how it was affected by “Squid Game”, he said:
I read Battle Royale and Liar Game and other survival game comics. I relate to people in them who are hungry for money and success. That was the low point of my life. I thought, if there was such a survival game in reality, would I join it and make money for my family? I realized that now that I was a filmmaker, I could put my own style into these types of stories, so I started writing screenplays. “
- Huang said his main goal when making “Squidward” was to be No. 1 on Netflix’s U.S. charts for at least one day.
- When he created, wrote and directed the hit TV series Squidward, he was under so much stress that he lost six teeth in the process. In an interview, he said about this incident,
It’s physically, mentally and emotionally exhausting. During the filming process I was constantly coming up with new ideas and revising the episodes, so the workload increased exponentially. ”
- Squidward was a huge hit, bringing in £650m for Netflix; however, Hwang is said to have benefited from the show’s success. In an interview, he discussed his contract with Netflix, saying:
I’m not that rich. But enough is enough for me. I have enough food to put on the table. Netflix didn’t give me a bonus either. Netflix paid me per the original contract. ”
- After the success of “Squidward,” Netflix released Hwang’s previous films, including “Silence,” “Grandma,” and “Fortress,” on its platform to viewers in the United States and other countries.
- In 2021, MrBeast, one of the world’s most popular YouTubers, created a real-life version of the “Squid Game.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyfRrENaBMM
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education