Park Ji-eun
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Park Ji-eun (born 1976) is a South Korean television
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 ...
. She wrote the hit
Korean drama Korean drama (), also known as K-drama or Koreanovela, refers to Korean language, Korean-language television shows made in South Korea. These shows began to be produced around the early 1960s, but were mostly consumed domestically until the rise ...
s '' Queen of Housewives'' (2009), '' My Husband Got a Family'' (2012), ''
My Love from the Star ''My Love from the Star'' () is a South Korean fantasy romantic comedy television series written by Park Ji-eun and directed by Jang Tae-yoo. Produced by Choi Moon-suk and Moon Bo-mi, it stars Jun Ji-hyun, Kim Soo-hyun, Park Hae-jin, Yoo ...
'' (2013–2014), '' The Producers'' (2015), '' The Legend of the Blue Sea'' (2016), '' Crash Landing on You'' (2019-2020), and '' Queen of Tears'' (2024).


Career


Early works

Park Ji-eun began her entertainment career in 1997, and spent the next decade writing for
talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, Interview (jo ...
shows, variety shows and
sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...
s. In 2007, she wrote ''Love Isn't Stop'', a TV movie with an omnibus format, which aired on cable channel KBS N. This led to her first drama miniseries '' Get Karl! Oh Soo-jung'', which she co-wrote with Park Hye-ryun. Starring Uhm Jung-hwa and Oh Ji-ho, it was based on the real-life love story of Lee Ju-young, the CEO of a TV production company who reunited with her husband, pro-golfer Go Man-soo, ten years after breaking up with him.


''Queen of Housewives''

For Park's first solo writing credit, she wrote '' Queen of Housewives'' (also known as ''My Wife Is a Superwoman'') which aired in 2009. The
comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
series depicted ''naejo'' in a modern setting, traditional Korean housewives who devote their entire lives to their husbands' success. It revolved around three couples entangled in love and rivalry as they work for the Queens Food corporation, played by Kim Nam-joo, Oh Ji-ho, Lee Hye-young, Choi Cheol-ho, Yoon Sang-hyun and Sunwoo Sun. The drama was notable for being Kim Nam-joo's comeback after an eight-year hiatus from acting, in the role of a former prom queen-turned-dowdy housewife struggling to help her socially inept husband rise up the corporate ranks, while contending with a clique of wives led by a frenemy who is now the wife of her husband's boss. ''Queen of Housewives'' topped the ratings chart during its run (with a peak of 31.7%), started new fashion and makeup trends among married women (or '' ajummas''), and also served as Yoon Sang-hyun's breakout vehicle. Park won Writer of the Year at the MBC Drama Awards.


''Queen of Reversals''

A year later, Park wrote '' Queen of Reversals'', again casting Kim Nam-joo as the protagonist. Kim pointed to Park's ability to write realistic lines as one of the biggest reasons why she decided to sign on, while Park said that couples who straddle married life and the workplace would be able to easily relate to her drama. Despite similar themes, ''Reversals'' is not a
sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music, or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...
or spin-off of ''Housewives'', with a completely new cast (except for Kim) and characters. While her previous drama depicted the lives of Korean housewives and their under-appreciated efforts, Park's next series explored the hardships of working women who must also juggle being wives and mothers as soon as they get home. Kim played a strong-willed, ruthless career woman who quits work after getting married, but a happy domestic life eludes her as her husband (
Jung Joon-ho Jung Joon-ho (; born November 9, 1969) is a South Korean actor. He first gained fame in the television series ''Women Like You'' (2000). He is best known for the films ''My Boss, My Hero'' (2001) and its My Boss, My Teacher, 2006 sequel, ''Marry ...
) struggles professionally. When he gets fired, she re-enters the workplace and takes problems into her own hands as the family's breadwinner, eventually catching the eye of her boss ( Park Si-hoo). ''Queen of Reversals'' was not as successful in the ratings as its predecessor, staying within the mid-10% range.


''My Husband Got a Family''

In Park's third collaboration with Kim Nam-joo, they had an even bigger hit with '' My Husband Got a Family'' (also known as ''You Who Rolled in Unexpectedly'' and ''Unexpected You''). During its more than five-month run, it topped the weekly ratings chart for 25 consecutive weeks and received average ratings of 33.1% and a peak of 52.3%. The series ranked number one overall on the 2012 yearly TV ratings chart. The plot centered on a successful TV director (Kim) who marries an orphaned doctor ( Yoo Jun-sang), but her husband finds his biological parents and they happen to be her next-door neighbors with whom she bickers on a daily basis; she now faces the unexpected burden of having to build a relationship with her new-found in-laws and their sprawling extended family. Producer Kim Sung-geun attributed its success to the increasing popularity of TV dramas that portray the lives of working women in their 30s and 40s, a genre in which Park is one of the most high-profile Korean screenwriters. Kim Nam-joo described Park as being "able to take a double-edged approach to her subject matter. The tone is both comical and serious, without getting too skewed to one side." Though this was her first weekend family drama, Park was praised for being well-versed in dialogue that resonated with modern-day women, and developing multiple characters in the 19-member ensemble cast. She won recognition for her writing from several organizations, including the
Korea Drama Awards The Korea Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony for excellence in television in South Korea. It was established in 2007, and is held annually in October in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province as the official main event of the annual Korea Drama F ...
, the K-Drama Star Awards, and the
KBS Drama Awards The KBS Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony presented by the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually on 31 December. The highest honor of the ceremony is the "Gr ...
.


''My Love from the Star''

In 2013, Park explored the
fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...
/
romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...
genre with ''
My Love from the Star ''My Love from the Star'' () is a South Korean fantasy romantic comedy television series written by Park Ji-eun and directed by Jang Tae-yoo. Produced by Choi Moon-suk and Moon Bo-mi, it stars Jun Ji-hyun, Kim Soo-hyun, Park Hae-jin, Yoo ...
'' (also known as ''You Who Came from the Stars''). She cast Jun Ji-hyun (in her first TV drama in 14 years) and
Kim Soo-hyun Kim Soo-hyun (; born February 16, 1988) is a South Korean actor. He is the recipient of five Baeksang Arts Awards, two Grand Bell Awards and one Blue Dragon Film Award. Kim made his television debut in 2007 with the family sitcom ''Kimchi Che ...
in a tale about an alien who landed on Earth in the
Joseon Dynasty Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...
, disguising his identity for over four centuries and becoming cynical about human beings, until he falls in love with a top actress in the modern era. Not only was the series a hit with a peak viewership rating of 28.1%, it also influenced Korean fashion, with clothes, accessories and make-up products worn by Jun seeing an "unprecedented" surge in sales. It also became massively popular in
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, where it became the most expensive Korean drama sold as of February 2014, was viewed more than 14.5 billion times on the
online video platform An online video platform (OVP) enables users to upload, convert, store, and play back video content on the Internet, often via a private server structured, large-scale system that may generate revenue. Users will generally upload video content vi ...
iQIYI iQIYI (, pronounced in English as ), formerly Qiyi (), is a Chinese subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Baidu. Headquartered in Beijing, iQIYI primarily produces and distributes films and television series. i ...
as of February 2014, and sparked a craze for the snack '' chimaek'' ( Korean fried chicken and
beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...
). In an
op-ed An op-ed, short for "opposite the editorial page," is a type of written prose commonly found in newspapers, magazines, and online publications. They usually represent a writer's strong and focused opinion on an issue of relevance to a targeted a ...
piece published by the ''
China Daily ''China Daily'' ( zh, s=中国日报, p=Zhōngguó Rìbào) is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Overview ''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any ...
'', writer Xiao Lixin attributed its success to "great innovations in South Korean TV productions in terms of themes and narrative patterns," praising the plot as "logical and fast-paced" interspersed with "whimsy and romantic punch lines." ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' reported in March 2014 that ''My Love from the Star'' was discussed at China's
National People's Congress The National People's Congress (NPC) is the highest organ of state power of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The NPC is the only branch of government in China, and per the principle of unified power, all state organs from the Sta ...
, particularly in a committee of political advisory body
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s United front (China), united front system. Its members adv ...
, where it reportedly topped the agenda among delegates from the culture and entertainment industry. But Park also became embroiled in a
plagiarism Plagiarism is the representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 ''Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close ...
suit when author Kang Kyung-ok alleged that the series' concept and characters shared too many similarities with her 2008
comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
''Seol-hee''. Park has denied the claims, posting on the website of production company HB Entertainment a detailed account of how she came up with the idea many years ago, and swore that she "had never heard of or read ''Seol-hee''."


''The Producers''

Park returned to her variety roots in 2015 with '' The Producers'', using an experimental format that combined scripted and reality television. She collaborated with a crew largely composed of variety regulars led by Seo Soo-min, chief producer of the ''
Happy Sunday ''Happy Sunday'' () is a Korean reality-variety show shown on the KBS2 network, which competes directly against MBC's '' Sunday Night'' and SBS's '' Good Sunday'' line-up. Although it has been broadcast since 2003, its line-up of shows has freq ...
'' programming block. The series reunited Park with ''My Love from the Star'' leading man
Kim Soo-hyun Kim Soo-hyun (; born February 16, 1988) is a South Korean actor. He is the recipient of five Baeksang Arts Awards, two Grand Bell Awards and one Blue Dragon Film Award. Kim made his television debut in 2007 with the family sitcom ''Kimchi Che ...
, who starred alongside
Cha Tae-hyun Cha Tae-hyun (; born March 25, 1976) is a South Korean actor, singer, television personality, radio DJ and Television director, director. He is best known for his lead roles in the box-office hit comedies ''My Sassy Girl'' (2001), ''Scandal Make ...
, Gong Hyo-jin and IU in a story set in real-life network KBS and focuses on fictional employees of its variety department. ''The Producers'' was the first ever Korean network drama to air in the Friday-Saturday time slot, which was usually reserved for late-night comedy shows; network dramas had previously been strictly divided into weekday and weekend programs.


''The Legend of the Blue Sea''

Park's subsequent project reunited her with ''
My Love from the Star ''My Love from the Star'' () is a South Korean fantasy romantic comedy television series written by Park Ji-eun and directed by Jang Tae-yoo. Produced by Choi Moon-suk and Moon Bo-mi, it stars Jun Ji-hyun, Kim Soo-hyun, Park Hae-jin, Yoo ...
'' lead actress Jun Ji-hyun. Lee Min-ho starred as the lead actor. Titled '' The Legend of the Blue Sea'', the drama is based on a Joseon-era legend. The drama aired at the end of 2016 on SBS. The television series centers on the love story of Heo Joon-jae, the son of a rich businessman who becomes a clever con-artist after his parents' divorce, and a mermaid named Shim Cheong. Focusing on rebirth, fate, and unrequited love, their tale is juxtaposed with the parallel story of their Joseon era incarnations, town head Kim Dam-ryeong and the mermaid Se-hwa. The show started with a strong 16.4% viewership rating nationwide, reaching as high as 20.7 percent for certain scenes, according to Nielsen Korea and surpassed the 20% mark in the metropolitan area by its sixth episode. The series maintained the first-place ranking for its timeslot and surpassed 20% viewership ratings. The series also fared well overseas, having been exported to all major regions around the world, including Southeast Asia, the Americas and Europe.


''Crash Landing on You''

Park made her return to writing dramas in 2019 with '' Crash Landing on You'', starring popular actors, Hyun Bin and
Son Ye-jin Son Eon-jin (; born January 11, 1982), better known by her stage name, Son Ye-jin (), is a South Korean actress who rose to fame in 2003 in ''The Classic (2003 film), The Classic'' and ''Summer Scent'', which were followed by the commercially ...
as the main leads. It tells the story of two star crossed lovers, a
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
n heiress and a
North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
n elite who also happens to be an army officer. One day, while paragliding, Yoon Se-ri (Son Ye-jin) has an accident caused by strong winds, leading her to crash land in
North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
, where she meets Ri Jeong-hyuk (Hyun Bin), a North Korean army officer, who agrees to help her return to South Korea. Over time, they fall in love, despite the divide and dispute between their respective countries. It is the highest rated tvN drama and the third-highest-rated Korean drama in cable television history. The drama got high praise for its originality and the way the plot was played out. It was also immensely popular among fans all over Asia. It consistently remained in the Top Ten on Netflix in almost all major Asian markets and accumulated 1.75 billion online views globally.


Filmography


Television


Sitcom

* ''Look Back with a Smile'' (KBS2, 2006) (starring Lee Deok-hwa, Park Sang-myun and Nam Bo-ra) * ''Dal-rae's House'' (KBS2, 2004) (starring
Kim Yong-gun Kim Yong-gun (; born May 8, 1946) is a South Korean actor. His sons Ha Jung-woo and Cha Hyun-woo are also actors. Filmography Film Television series Variety shows Music video Awards References External links * * * {{DEFAULTSO ...
, Yeo Woon-kay, Kyeon Mi-ri and Kim Chung)
* ''Great Friends'' (KBS2, 2000) (starring Yoo Jae-suk, Nam Hee-seok and
Lee Hwi-jae Lee Hwi-jae (born Lee Young-jae on December 29, 1972) is a South Korean TV presenter, comedian, actor, and singer. Lee studied theater at the Seoul Institute of the Arts, then made his TV debut in 1992 as a comedian after working as a floor di ...
)


Variety show

* ''I Want to Meet You'' (MBC, 2003–2007) (with Nam Hee-seok and Park Na-rim) * ''Story Land Surprise'' (SBS, 2002) * ''Love Story'' (KBS2, 2002–2003) (with Nam Hee-seok and Eugene) * ''Weird Theater – The Story of Two Men'' (KBS2, 2002) * ''Comedy House'' (MBC, 2000–2005) * ''Touch Preview Comedy File'' (KBS2, 1999–2002) * '' The Clinic for Married Couples: Love and War'' (KBS2)


Radio program

* ''2 o'clock Date with
Yoon Jong-shin Yoon Jong-shin (; born October 15, 1969) is a South Korean singer-songwriter, record producer, and the CEO of Mystic Story. Early life and education Yoon completed high school at Daewon Foreign Language High School and studied Korean Language ...
'' ( MBC Radio) * ''Good Morning FM with Kim Sung-joo'' ( MBC Radio) * ''Golden Disk Music Essay with Kim Ki-duk'' ( MBC Radio)


Music video

* Script for Tim's "I Was Thankful" (2004)


Awards

* 2024
Asian Television Awards The Asian Television Awards, founded in 1996, is an appreciation to recognize and reward programming and production excellence in the Asian television industry. Held every December, it comprises 56 categories across news, documentaries and curre ...
: Best Scriptwriting ('' Queen of Tears'') * 2014 Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards: Prime Minister's Commendation * 2012 KBS Drama Awards: Best Writer ('' My Husband Got a Family'') * 2012 1st K-Drama Star Awards: Best Writer ('' My Husband Got a Family'') * 2012 Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Korea Content Awards: Commendation ('' My Husband Got a Family'') * 2012 5th
Korea Drama Awards The Korea Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony for excellence in television in South Korea. It was established in 2007, and is held annually in October in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province as the official main event of the annual Korea Drama F ...
: Best Writer ('' My Husband Got a Family'') *
2009 MBC Drama Awards The 2009 MBC Drama Awards () is a ceremony honoring the outstanding achievement in television on the Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) network for the year of 2009. It was held on December 30, 2009 and hosted by actor Lee Hwi-jae and actres ...
: Writer of the Year ('' Queen of Housewives'')


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Ji-eun Living people 1976 births South Korean screenwriters Sejong University alumni South Korean television writers Chonnam National University alumni