
Directing
Born July 2, 1925 · Sariwon, Hwanghae Province, North Korea
Yu Hyun-mok (July 2, 1925 – June 28, 2009) was a South Korean film director. Born in Sariwon, Hwanghae, Korea (North Korea today), he made his film debut in 1956 with Gyocharo (Crossroads). According to the website koreanfilm.org, his 1961 film Obaltan "has repeatedly been voted the best Korean film of all time in local critics' polls." Yu attended the San Francisco International Film Festival in 1963, where Variety called Obaltan a "remarkable film", and praised Yu's "[b]rilliantly detailed camera" and the film's "probing sympathy and rich characterizations." His dedication to the intellectual side of film and interest in using film to deal with social and political issues led him to have difficulties both with box-office-oriented producers, and with Korea's military government during the 1960s and 1970s. Korean critics have said his directing style is "in the tradition of the Italian Neorealists," yet "the terms 'modernist' or 'expressionistic' [are] just as applicable to his works." Besides his directing activities, he has taught film, and made a significant contribution to Korean animation by producing Kim Cheong-gi's 1976 animated film, Robot Taekwon V. A retrospective of Yu's career was held at the 4th Pusan International Film Festival in 1999. Yu died from a stroke on June 28, 2009.

Mom, the Star, and the Sea Anemone
1995

Son of a Man
1980

Rainy Days
1979

Once Upon a Time
1978

The Door
1978

Flame
1975

Bun-rye's Story
1971

I Want to Be Human
1969

School Excursion
1969

Woman
1968

I'll Give You Everything
1968

Descendants of Cain
1968
Grudge
1968

Guests Who Arrived by the Last Train
1967

A Regret
1967

The Three Hen-pecked Generations
1967

Hand
1966

An Empty Dream
1965

The Martyrs
1965

Wife's Confession
1964

The Extra Mortals
1964

The Daughters of Kim's Pharmacy
1963

Only for You
1962

Lim Kkeok-jeong
1961

Aimless Bullet
1961

Even the Clouds Are Drifting
1959

The Seizure of Life
1958

Forever with You
1958

The Lost Youth
1957