Na Hong-jin

Na Hong-jin (, born 20 July 1974) is a South Korean film director, producer and screenwriter. His filmography is characterized by the incorporation of violent thriller and horror elements.^[1] Na's emergence in the film industry began with his feature film debut, The Chaser (2008), which achieved both critical and commercial success, ranking as the third-highest-grossing film in South Korea for its release year. His subsequent film, The Yellow Sea (2010), was presented in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. The Wailing (2016) further contributed to Na's critical and commercial standing, earning accolades that included the Best Director award at the 37th Blue Dragon Film Awards and recognition at the Bucheon International Film Festival.

Early life

Na Hong-jin graduated from Hanyang University ERICA Campus Department of Crafts studying industrial arts and, at first, started in the advertisement industry, until he decided to pursue his dream as a film maker. He then enrolled in Korea National University of Arts.^[2]

Career

Early work

Na began making short films before he would go on to make his large feature films. Na's debut short film was titled 5 Minutes (2003). It was until his second short film, A Perfect Red Snapper Dish (2005), that Na started to gain recognition. Na won best film in The Extreme Nightmare section at the Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival. He would then go on to make his third short film, Sweat (2007) that would win the best short film director prize at the Grand Bell Awards and jury prize at the Bucheon International Film Festival awards.

Feature films

Na's debut feature film was titled The Chaser (2008), which was met with critical acclaim as well as commercial success. The Chaser became one of the most watched films in Korea, peaking at the third highest grossing film of 2008.^[3] The film was also screened at the Cannes Film Festival where reviewers hailed it as an "instant classic" in Korean thrillers. The film took home many awards such as the 16th Chunsa Film Art Awards for Best Director and Best Screenplay.^[2]

The Yellow Sea (2010) was released and entailed a more ambitious vision from Na. The Yellow Sea became the first Korean film to ever have a Hollywood studio collaboration, with the 20th Century Fox studio. Na's second film achieved positive reviews but "lacking" compared to The Chaser.^[4] The film was screened under the Un Certain Regard section at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival and received positive critical reviews on Metacritic.^[5][6]

Na's critically acclaimed third feature film, The Wailing (2016). The film encompasses a deep weave of many themes such as religion, perception, comedy, and horror.^[7] The Wailing succeeded commercially and critically, again winning Na many film wards such as Best Director at the 37th Blue Dragon Film Awards, Best of Bucheon award at the Bucheon international fantastic film festival, the top film of the year of the 36th Korean Association of Film Critics Awards, and many more. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and was shortly released onto streaming services.^[8][9]

His fourth feature film, Hope (2026), started production in 2023, and spend nearly three years into post-production. It had its world premiere at the main competition of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, and it's his first English-language feature.^[10]

Other projects

Na teamed up with Thai director Banjong Pisanthanakun, most known for the films Shutter (2004) and Alone (2007). Na acted as the producer and screenwriter for Pisanthanakun's The Medium, a supernatural horror mockumentary. The film premiered at the 25th Bucheon international fantastic film festival on 11 July 2021.^[7] When writing the story, Na explained in an interview that The Medium was initially a sequel to The Wailing with Hwang Jung-min's shaman character. However, this rendition did not come to light. As quoted by Na himself, "The Medium has no relation to The Wailing." ^[11]

In 2025, Na served as the president of the Competition jury at the 30th Busan International Film Festival.^[12]

Future projects

Na claimed to have written many scripts during the COVID-19 pandemic. In an interview, Na summed up his working flow as, "Whenever I finish a film, I don't want to go anywhere near another one." These words have proved true by his slow release of films. Despite being in the film industry for over fifteen years, he only has three feature films to his name.^[11] In March 2023, it was announced that his next project, Hope, will be released in 2024.^[13][14]

Filmography

Feature film

Only writer

Short film

Awards and nominations

Notes

1. ^ Team: Na Hong-jin and Shinho Lee

References

1. ^ "Director Spotlight: Na Hong-Jin | The Film Magazine". 2018-12-18. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
2. ^ "NA Hong-jin". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
3. ^ "Korean Movie Reviews for 2008". www.koreanfilm.org. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
4. ^ Paquet, Darcy (2011-01-10). "The Yellow Sea". Screen. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
5. ^ "Festival de Cannes: Official Selection". Cannes. Retrieved 2011-04-14.
6. ^ Dargis, Manohla (5 September 2013). "20 Directors to Watch". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-09-07.
7. ^ "Interview: 'The Wailing' Director Na Hong-jin On Death, Genre, Religion & Comedy". theplaylist.net. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
8. ^ Abrams, Simon. "The Wailing movie review & film summary (2016) | Roger Ebert". rogerebert.com. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
9. ^ "The Wailing (2016)", retrieved 2022-03-06
10. ^ Woo, Jae-yeon (April 9, 2026). "Na Hong-jin's sci-fi film 'Hope' heads to Cannes main competition". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved April 9, 2026.
11. ^ Noh, Jean (2021-07-05). "'The Wailing' director Na Hong-Jin on producing Thai horror 'The Medium'". Screen. Retrieved 2022-03-06.
12. ^ Shackleton, Liz (September 2, 2025). "Na Hongjin To Head Busan’s Competition Jury; Tony Leung Ka-fai & Nandita Das Among Jury Members". Deadline. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
13. ^ "'Squid Game' Star Hoyeon Joins Michael Fassbender & Alicia Vikander In Korean Thriller 'Hope'". Deadline.
14. ^ "Cannes 2025 - Plus M Entertainment Line-up". Megabox Plus M. April 22, 2025. Retrieved September 13, 2025.
15. ^ Lee, Hyo-won (31 January 2008). "Chaser Offers Heart-Thumping Thrills". The Korea Times. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
16. ^ "The Yellow Sea". British Board of Film Classification
17. ^ Lee, Maggie (May 19, 2016). "Cannes Film Review: 'The Wailing'". Variety. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
18. ^ Jeong Jin-wook (July 11, 2021). "'랑종' 부천국제판타스틱영화제서 세계최초 개봉" ['Rangjong' opens for the first time in the world at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival] (in Korean). News 1. Naver. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
19. ^ "Na Hong-jin". IMDb. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
20. ^ Yi, Chang-ho (24 October 2008). "The Chaser extends awards lead". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
21. ^ "The Chaser - Awards". Cinemasie. Retrieved 25 September 2008.
22. ^ "Actors Gong Hyo-jin, Cho Jung-seok, Cho Jin-woong win top star award". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2016-12-29.
23. ^ "Inside Men Tops Korean Film Producers Association Awards". Korean Film Biz Zone
24. ^ "'The Wailing' named best film by Korean film reporters". Yonhap News Agency
25. ^ "공유·박보검·남궁민·한석규…백상예술대상 男TV연기상 4파전". Star.mk.co. 7 April 2017.
26. ^ "'Guardian,' 'The Handmaiden' win big at Baeksang Awards". Korea Herald. 4 May 2017.
27. ^ "'2017 춘사영화상' 나홍진, 최우수감독상…하정우·손예진 남녀주연상". SE Daily. 25 May 2017.
28. ^ Kim Ji-eun (July 15, 2021). "4단계 속 부천영화제 폐막…장편 작품상에 '랑종'" [Closing of the Bucheon Film Festival in 4 stages... 'Rangjong' at the Best Feature Film Award] (in Korean). Newsis. Naver. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
29. ^ Noh, Jean (2021-07-16). "Na Hong-Jin produced horror 'The Medium' wins top Bifan 2021 award". Screen. Retrieved 2023-05-24.
30. ^ thestandard (November 3, 2021). "แรงต่อเนื่อง! ร่างทรง คว้ารางวัล Best Feature Film จากเวที Maniatic 2021 Fantastic Film Festival มาครองได้สำเร็จ" (in Thai). Newsis. Naver. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
31. ^ thestandard (November 6, 2021). "เก็บอีกหนึ่งรางวัล! ร่างทรง คว้า The Best Film จาก San Sebastián Horror and Fantasy Film Week ครั้งที่ 32 มาได้สำเร็จ" (in Thai). Newsis. Naver. Retrieved November 6, 2021.

External links

• Na Hong-jin at IMDb