Lee Isaac Chung Biography

Lee Isaac Chung’s 2020 film Minari was nominated for six Oscars, including best picture. Chung himself earned nominations for best director and best original screenplay.

Chung’s Minari is the story of Korean immigrants building a life in rural Arkansas and is based on his own life.

Although Chung’s degree from Yale University is in biology, he studied film in graduate school at the University of Utah and became a filmmaker and teacher instead.

A stint in Rwanda led to his first feature film, 2007’s Munyurangabo.

That film did well on the festival circuit, and Chung’s other features have mostly played in art houses or at festivals. They are Lucky Life (2010) and Abigail Harm (2012).

Chung was nearly through with making movies when he wrote Minari in 2018.

The film was a 2020 critical hit that also earned Oscar nominations for lead actor Steve Yeun and supporting actor Youn Yuh-jung.