Cho Sung-kyu (born March 3, 1969), also known as Sung-kyu Cho, is a South Korean film producer,

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

. Apart from producing and investing in numerous films as

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of Sponge Entertainment, Cho wrote and directed ''Second Half'' (2010), ''The Heaven Is Only Open to the Single!'' (2012), ''The Winter of the Year Was Warm'' (2012), '' Santa Barbara'' (2014), and ''Planck Constant'' (2015).

Career

Born in 1969, David Cho first studied History at

Yonsei University Yonsei University () is a Private university, private Christian university, Christian research university located in Seoul, South Korea. Yonsei is one of the three most prestigious universities in the country, part of a group referred to as SK ...

, then changed his major and graduated with a degree in Mass Communication. He published the film magazine ''Nega'' in 1997, then founded the production/distribution company Sponge Entertainment in 2000. As owner and president of Sponge Entertainment, he produced and invested in numerous Korean

arthouse film An art film, arthouse film, or specialty film is an independent film aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made prima ...

s, such as Jang Hoon's ''

Rough Cut In filmmaking, the rough cut (also known as the first cut or editor's cut) is the second of three stages of offline editing. The term originates from the early days of filmmaking when film stock was physically cut and reassembled, but is still ...

'',

Lee Yoon-ki Lee Yoon-ki (; born 1965), is a South Korean film director and screenwriter. Career Lee Yoon-ki earned his MA in business administration/economics at the University of Southern California. After returning to Korea, he worked as a producer and d ...

's '' My Dear Enemy'',

Kim Ki-duk Kim Ki-duk ( ; 20 December 196011 December 2020) was a South Korean film director and screenwriter, noted for his Idiosyncrasy, idiosyncratic Art film, art-house cinematic works. His films have received many distinctions in the festival circuit ...

's ''

Dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...

'', and

E J-yong E J-yong (; born September 5, 1966) is a South Korean film director and screenwriter. His feature films include ''An Affair'' (1998), ''Untold Scandal'' (2003), ''Dasepo Naughty Girls'' (2006), and ''Actresses (film), Actresses'' (2009). Early ...

's '' Actresses''. In 2010, Cho made his directorial debut with ''Second Half'' starring

Ryu Seung-soo Ryu Seung-soo (born August 12, 1971) is a South Korean actor. Ryu made his acting debut in 1997 with a minor role in Park Chan-wook's film ''Trio'', and has been active as a supporting actor on film and television since. Among his notable films ...

and Esom, about a beleaguered film producer who meets a waitress in a seaside town and suspects she may be his daughter from a long-ago

one-night stand A one-night stand is a single sexual encounter in which there is no expectation that there shall be any further relations between the sexual participants. It draws its name from the common practice of a one-night stand, a single night performanc ...

. Cho's second film ''The Heaven Is Only Open to the Single!'' (2012) is about a famous actress (played by Choi Yoon-so) who's just been publicly dumped by a comedian and banned by her agency from dating, and an unknown indie musician rejected by a matchmaking service who falls for her onscreen while composing the

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

for her film. With a cast of real-life Hongdae musicians led by Lee Neung-ryong of the band ''Sister's Barbershop'', Cho interspersed live musical performances into the film. Also released in 2012, Cho's third film ''The Winter of the Year Was Warm'' focuses on a

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

-based film producer/director who's fond of the laidback atmosphere in the coastal city of

Gangneung Gangneung (; ) is a list of cities in South Korea, municipal city in Gangwon, South Korea, Gangwon province, on the east coast of South Korea. It has a population of 213,658 (as of 2017).Gangneung City (2003)Population & Households. Retrieved Ja ...

, and a nurse who lives in Gangneung but yearns for the cultural life of Seoul; after meeting through a common friend, they each agree to set aside one room in their respective apartments for the other to stay at on weekends, but in sharing their homes with each other, they eventually start to develop a strange sort of in absentia intimacy. The film drew critical acclaim when it premiered at the 17th Busan International Film Festival and as it traveled the international film festival circuit, with particular praise for Cho's nuanced script and use of lighting, as well as Kim Tae-woo and

Ye Ji-won Ye Ji-won (; born February 1, 1973) is a South Korean actress. Career She is best known for her leading role in the hit sitcom ''Old Miss Diary'', and her more serious turns in Hong Sang-soo Hong Sang-soo (Korean language, Korean: 홍상� ...

's naturalistic acting. In 2014, Cho cast

Lee Sang-yoon Lee Sang-yoon (; born August 15, 1981) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his starring roles in '' Seoyoung, My Daughter'' (2012), '' Angel Eyes'' (2014), '' Liar Game'' (2014), '' On the Way to the Airport'' (2016), '' Whisper'' (20 ...

and

Yoon Jin-seo Yoon Jin-seo (; born August 5, 1983), birth name Yoon Soo-kyung, is a South Korean actress. She rose to prominence for her performance as Lee Soo-ah in the 2003 thriller film ''Oldboy (2003 film), Oldboy'' which earned her the Baeksang Arts Awa ...

in his fourth film '' Santa Barbara'' (2014). They played, respectively, a

music director A music director, musical director or director of music is a person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert ...

and a

creative director A creative director is a person who makes high-level creative decisions; oversees the creation of creative assets such as advertisements, products, events, or logos; and directs and translates the creative people who produce the end results. Creat ...

at an advertising agency who fall in love while collaborating on a commercial; after their break-up, they are forced to work together again on a project in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

, the location of their dream

winery A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the cultivation and production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feat ...

tour when they were still a couple. In a departure from his previous films which blended finely-observed realism and light romance, Cho's ''Planck Constant'' (2015) contained more surrealistic and fantasy elements, with Kim Jae-wook playing a man who gets his hair cut 1 millimeter a day, while writing a screenplay in his head.

Filmography

As director

*''Second Half'' (2010) (also credited as

voice The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound produ ...

cameo) *''The Heaven Is Only Open to the Single!'' (2012) (also credited in

bit part In acting, a bit part is a role in which there is direct interaction with the principal actors and no more than five lines of dialogue, often referred to as a five-or-less or under-five in the United States, or under sixes in British televisio ...

) *''The Winter of the Year Was Warm'' (2012) *'' Santa Barbara'' (2014) *''Planck Constant'' (2015) (also credited as

) *''Life Is but an Empty Dream'' (2015) *''Two Rooms, Two Nights'' (2015) * ''Croissant'' (2021)

As screenwriter

*''Second Half'' (2010) *''The Heaven Is Only Open to the Single!'' (2012) *''The Winter of the Year Was Warm'' (2012) *'' Santa Barbara'' (2014) *''Planck Constant'' (2015)

As producer

*''Geochilmaru: The Showdown'' (2005) *''

Tokyo! ''Tokyo!'' is a 2008 anthology film containing three segments written by three non-Japanese directors and filmed in Tokyo, Japan. Michel Gondry directed "Interior Design", Leos Carax directed "Merde", and Bong Joon-ho directed "Shaking Tokyo" Pl ...

'' (2008) *''Planck Constant'' (2015)

As executive producer

*''

Public Toilet A public toilet, restroom, bathroom or washroom is a room or small building with toilets (or urinals) and sinks for use by the general public. The facilities are available to customers, travelers, employees of a business, school pupils or pris ...

'' (2002) *''Last Scene'' (2005) *''On the Road, Two'' (

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

, 2006) *''The Wonder Years'' (2007) *'' For Eternal Hearts'' (2007) *''

Beautiful Beautiful, an adjective used to describe things as possessing beauty, may refer to: Film and theater * ''Beautiful'' (2000 film), an American film directed by Sally Field * ''Beautiful'' (2008 film), a South Korean film directed by Juhn Jai-h ...

'' (2008) *''

'' (2008) *'' My Dear Enemy'' (2008) *''

'' (2008) *''Iri'' (2008) *''Oishii Man'' (2009) *'' A Million'' (2009) (also credited with original idea) *''The Executioner'' (2009) *''Looking for My Wife'' (2010) *''Second Half'' (2010) *''The Winter of the Year Was Warm'' (2012)

As investor

*'' April Snow'' (2005) *''

Ad-lib Night ''Ad-lib Night'' (; "A Very Special Guest") is the third film by South Korean director Lee Yoon-ki. A group of boys from the country who have come to Seoul to find the runaway daughter of a dying man to be with him on his death bed. The film, ba ...

'' (2006) *''Chongqing'' (2008) *''

Antique An antique () is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely to describe any object that i ...

'' (2008) *''

Portrait of a Beauty ''Portrait of a Beauty'' () is a 2008 South Korean historical romantic drama film directed by Jeon Yun-su. Adapted from the bestselling novel ''Painter of the Wind'' () by Lee Jung-myung, the film portrays Joseon-era painter Sin Yun-bok (better ...

'' (2008) *'' Hello, Schoolgirl'' (2008) *'' Romantic Island'' (2008) *''

A Frozen Flower ''A Frozen Flower'' () is a 2008 South Korean historical erotic thriller film. It is directed by Yoo Ha and stars Zo In-sung, Joo Jin-mo and Song Ji-hyo. The historical film is set during Goryeo Dynasty and is loosely based on the reign of G ...

'' (2008) *'' The Naked Kitchen'' (2009) *'' The Scam'' (2009) *'' My Girlfriend Is an Agent'' (2009) *'' Running Turtle'' (2009) *''

The Case of Itaewon Homicide ''The Case of Itaewon Homicide'' () is a 2009 South Korean crime thriller film, based on the true story of the Itaewon murder case, which shocked Korea when Hongik college student Cho Jung-Pil was found dead at an Itaewon Burger King in 1997. The ...

'' (2009) *''

City of Fathers ''City of Fathers'' () is a 2009 South Korean film written and directed by Park Ji-won. Plot Kang-soo is a third-rate street thug in Busan; he's an alcoholic and gambling addict who's always on the run from loan sharks. But when his rebellious te ...

'' (2009) *''The Executioner'' (2009) *'' Actresses'' (2009) *''Vegetarian'' (2010) *''Looking for My Wife'' (2010) *''No Doubt'' (2010) *''Super Monkey Returns'' (2011) *''Head'' (2011) *''Venus in Furs'' (2012) *''Tumbleweed'' (2013)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cho, David 1969 births Living people South Korean film producers South Korean film directors South Korean screenwriters Yonsei University alumni