韓孝周
Since his debut, Lee has emerged as one of Korea's leading sources of small-budgeted, intimate dramas about ordinary people. He is particularly skilled at inhabiting the worlds of female characters, and he has worked with a range of impressive up and coming actresses including Kim Ji-soo, Han Hyo-joo and Im Soo-jung, and most importantly Korea's top actress Jeon Do-yeon. Though Lee empathizes with women marginalized by a patriarchal society, he refuses to exploit easy cultural signifiers to arouse audience sympathy. The characters also remain rather elusive amidst Lee's always-atmospheric images. But if his films are refreshingly unsentimental, their imagery is also refreshingly evocative, more romantic than realist.