Hong Sang-soo (b. 1960)
Alias:
HSS
Hong Sang-su
Hong Sangsoo
Hong Sangsu
Sang-Su Hong
Sang-soo Hong
Сан-су Хон
Хон Сан-су
洪尚秀
洪常秀
홍상수
Birthplace:
Seoul, South Korea
Born:
October 25, 1960
Hong Sang-soo (born October 25, 1960) is a South Korean writer-director. He has directed 30 films as of 2023. 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.