Yang Ik-june (born October 19, 1975) is a South Korean actor and film
director. He is best known for the 2009 film Breathless, which he
wrote, directed, edited, and starred in.Born in Seoul in 1975, Yang
graduated from the Department of Entertainment & Acting at the Kongju
Communication Arts College. After discharge from his military service,
Yang studied theatre and trained at the Actor's 21 Academy before
delving into the film industry. In the next six years he starred in 30
short films, and won the Best Actor award at the Mise-en-scène Short
Film Festival for the 2005 short film Ooh, You Make Me Sick. In 2005
he directed his first short film, Always Behind You, which earned him
the Audience Award at the Seoul Independent Short Film Festival. He
also played minor roles in more than ten mainstream films such as Les
Formidables, Maundy Thursday, and Viva! Love.But it was Breathless,
his semi-autobiographical feature directorial debut in which he also
played the lead role, that catapulted Yang into star director status.
Breathless was selected for the Asian Cinema Fund which provided
post-production support, and the low-budget film had its world
premiere at the 2008 Busan International Film Festival. It proceeded
to receive much critical acclaim, winning 23 prizes in the
international film festival circuit including a Tiger Award at
Rotterdam. Upon its theater release in Korea, the film performed
better than expected at the box office with 130,000 admissions, a rare
accomplishment for an independent film.Yang then starred in a
supporting role in the 2010 comedy/road movie Looking for My Wife
(also known as Runaway from Home). In 2011, he was a voice actor for
The King of Pigs, an adult animated film on violence and bullying. He
also directed the short films Departure and Immature that same year.
Immature was funded by the Jeonju International Film Festival and
released as part of the omnibus A Time to Love. Another short film
Shibata & Nagao, a comedy inspired by actor's workshops and
co-produced with Japan, won the Best Korean Short Film Award at the
Asiana International Short Film Festival in 2012. Yang made his
television acting debut in the melodrama The Innocent Man, imbuing his
supporting role as a small-time thug with an air of menace. In 2013 he
was among four celebrities who directed a short film using smartphone
Samsung Galaxy S4 with the theme "Meet a Life Companion"; his short
Dance Together focused on a Japanese woman who encounters someone new
through a cell phone after experiencing the pain of a parting.
director. He is best known for the 2009 film Breathless, which he
wrote, directed, edited, and starred in.Born in Seoul in 1975, Yang
graduated from the Department of Entertainment & Acting at the Kongju
Communication Arts College. After discharge from his military service,
Yang studied theatre and trained at the Actor's 21 Academy before
delving into the film industry. In the next six years he starred in 30
short films, and won the Best Actor award at the Mise-en-scène Short
Film Festival for the 2005 short film Ooh, You Make Me Sick. In 2005
he directed his first short film, Always Behind You, which earned him
the Audience Award at the Seoul Independent Short Film Festival. He
also played minor roles in more than ten mainstream films such as Les
Formidables, Maundy Thursday, and Viva! Love.But it was Breathless,
his semi-autobiographical feature directorial debut in which he also
played the lead role, that catapulted Yang into star director status.
Breathless was selected for the Asian Cinema Fund which provided
post-production support, and the low-budget film had its world
premiere at the 2008 Busan International Film Festival. It proceeded
to receive much critical acclaim, winning 23 prizes in the
international film festival circuit including a Tiger Award at
Rotterdam. Upon its theater release in Korea, the film performed
better than expected at the box office with 130,000 admissions, a rare
accomplishment for an independent film.Yang then starred in a
supporting role in the 2010 comedy/road movie Looking for My Wife
(also known as Runaway from Home). In 2011, he was a voice actor for
The King of Pigs, an adult animated film on violence and bullying. He
also directed the short films Departure and Immature that same year.
Immature was funded by the Jeonju International Film Festival and
released as part of the omnibus A Time to Love. Another short film
Shibata & Nagao, a comedy inspired by actor's workshops and
co-produced with Japan, won the Best Korean Short Film Award at the
Asiana International Short Film Festival in 2012. Yang made his
television acting debut in the melodrama The Innocent Man, imbuing his
supporting role as a small-time thug with an air of menace. In 2013 he
was among four celebrities who directed a short film using smartphone
Samsung Galaxy S4 with the theme "Meet a Life Companion"; his short
Dance Together focused on a Japanese woman who encounters someone new
through a cell phone after experiencing the pain of a parting.
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