Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim (born July 14, 1975) is a South Korean film director, screenwriter, and producer. He grew up in Jeju Province and studied English literature before switching to film directing at the Seoul Institute of the Arts, graduating in 1998.
He began his career in 2003 as an assistant director and script editor on Natural City. His breakthrough came with Rules of Dating (2005), a romantic comedy known for its frank talk about gender politics. The film was a hit and earned Han Best Screenplay at the Blue Dragon Awards, plus Best New Director at the Busan Film Critics Awards and the Grand Bell Awards.
In 2007 he directed The Show Must Go On, a stylish noir that won Best Film at the Blue Dragon Awards and at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards.
After some stalled projects, Han started his own company, Wooju Film Co., Ltd, which later became Magnum Nine Co., Ltd in 2019. He returned in 2013 with The Face Reader, a Joseon-era drama about a fortune teller who gets caught up in palace intrigue. The film was a major box office success and won six Grand Bell Awards, including Best Film and Best Director.
In 2017 he directed The King, a historical tale that explored power and ambition. His disaster film Emergency Declaration premiered out of competition at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival and was released in Korea in 2022, shown in formats like 4DX, ScreenX, and IMAX.
Han made his Netflix debut as a director and writer with The 8 Show (2024), a black comedy thriller about a deadly game for eight participants. The series, produced by Studio N, Magnum Nine, and Lotte Cultureworks, features a large ensemble cast and was released on Netflix on May 17, 2024.
Known for working across genres—from political thrillers to period dramas—Han often writes his own screenplays and has become one of Korea’s standout contemporary filmmakers.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 08:37 (CET).