Song Jae-jeong

Early life

Song Jae-jeong was born in Daejeon on November 28, 1973. Raised in a bustling restaurant environment, she found solace in solitude and cultivated a love for comic books, mystery novels, and gaming. With aspirations of becoming a journalist, she enrolled in the Department of Journalism and Broadcasting at Ewha Womans University in 1992.

She majored in journalism, but she had hardly ever written anything until that point, so she never dreamed of becoming a writer. Her true aspiration was to become a journalist. However, she did not study enough, and her grades were poor that she could not even take the employment exams.

Thinking she had to work at a broadcasting station due to her major, she realized that becoming a writer was a way to get in without considering school grades or exams. So, she enrolled in the Broadcasting Academy. For an assignment, she submitted a sketch comedy. The comedy instructor praised her talent, to which she responded in disbelief, "Me? I've never made anyone laugh before!" Even her family doubted it, "How could a kid who always sits alone and never talks have a knack for comedy?" But since she was told she had a talent, she joined a production company as a broadcast writer.

Career

Early career

Song began her career as a cultural programs writer in 1996, choosing not to pursue a career as a drama writer because of the high intellectual demands. She also believed she did not have the talent to be an entertainment writer. However, a comedy writer at a broadcasting station noticed her potential. Song was then recruited by Yoo Seong-chan, a key figure in SBS TV's entertainment department. She started her career as an entertainment writer on SBS TV comedy show Laughter High School, and went on to work on other shows such as I Love Comedy, Game of Life, Lee Moon-se's Live, and Game Show High Five. While working on the sitcom Dad is the Boss, Song found that sitcom writing was a perfect fit for her.

In 1997, Kim Byung-wook who was at the same production company, asked her to join a new SBS TV sitcom called Miss and Mister due to a shortage of staff. She attended a meeting and found it enjoyable, but the program ended abruptly before she could learn much. In 1998, there was talk within the broadcasting station about planning the sitcom Soonpoong Clinic. Song dropped everything she was doing and joined the team. She learned writing techniques of comedy, romance, and more through sitcoms. Initially, Soonpoong Clinic had difficulty attracting attention, only securing one advertisement. However, as the show's characters and episodes evolved, its popularity surged and exploded within a year.

"The response to Soonpoong was truly explosive. Not only did Oh Ji-myeong, who was already considered the 'Midas hand of sitcoms' with General Oh, become a star, but Sunwoo Yong-yeo, Park Young-gyu, Song Hye-kyo, and even the child actress who played Mi-dal also became stars. Thanks to that, I also became famous."

Soonpoong Clinic was a pivotal moment in Song's life, as it established her reputation as the top sitcom writer. She believes that Soonpoong set the standard for Korean sitcoms, with its natural humor, unexpected twists, and heartfelt family stories. Song also cherishes her time working on Soonpoong because it brought her together with directors Kim Byung-wook, Kim Young-ki, and other writers, creating a strong sitcom team that lasted for a decade. She reflects on the challenges of creating instant laughter in a sitcom, emphasizing the importance of quick wit and comedic timing.

The success of Soonpoong Clinic led to further collaborations with director Kim Byung-wook. The two were evaluated as having established the prototype of Korean sitcoms by successively releasing hit sitcoms like Why Can't We Stop Them (2001–2002), Honest Living (2002–2003), and Cute or Crazy (2005). Together, they were recognized as a duo of sitcom geniuses in the broadcasting industry. Their next sitcom, High Kick! was highly anticipated as a standout work from the start.

Time-traveling trilogy and fusion-historical drama

In 2012, Song Jae-jeong began exploring time-traveling themes with mini-series Queen and I, directed by Kim Byung-soo, kicking off her trilogy of time-traveling dramas. The plot revolves around Choi Hee-jin, an unknown actress (portrayed by Yoo In-na in her debut leading role), who falls in love with Kim Bung-do (played by Ji Hyun-woo), a time-traveling scholar from the Joseon period (1392–1910) who travels 300 years into the future to the 21st century. The show aired on cable channel tvN from April 18 to June 7, 2012, airing on Wednesdays and Thursdays for a total of 16 episodes.

In 2013, Song's second work of the trilogy was the tvN drama Nine: Nine Time Travels. She began working on the synopsis in 2010, but it took a while to put it all together. Nine is a unique story about time travel and scent. Unlike traditional time slip stories that focus on changing the past or protecting first love, Nine shifts the narrative to protecting the present instead. The main character, anchorman Park Seon-woo (played by Lee Jin-wook), discovers a time machine that can take him back 20 years. In the 18th episode, he uses 9 incense sticks to try to save his older brother Jeong-woo (played by Jeon No-min), who died in the Himalayas, and himself, as he has been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor.

In 2014, Song released her first fusion-historical drama, The Three Musketeers, loosely based on Alexandre Dumas's 1844 novel The Three Musketeers. The series follows three Joseon-era adventurers serving Crown Prince Sohyeon as warrior guards. It features Jung Yong-hwa, Lee Jin-wook, Yang Dong-geun, Jung Hae-in, and Seo Hyun-jin. Aired on tvN from August to November 2014, the show had 12 episodes. Originally planned for three seasons with a budget of US$10 million, low viewership ratings led to indefinite postponement of succeeding seasons.

In 2016, Song released W: Two Worlds Apart. It aired 16 episodes on MBC from July 20 to September 14, 2016, on Wednesdays and Thursdays. W centers on the clash between the real world and a webtoon's alternate universe, revolving around the romance between webtoon character Kang Cheol (Lee Jong-suk) and real-world surgeon Oh Yeon-joo (Han Hyo-joo). The drama W was influenced by Francisco Goya's painting Saturn Eating His Son, which Song saw at an art museum in Spain in 2015. According to Song, the letter W has two meanings. First, it represents "who" and "why," referring to the mystery surrounding the murder of Cheol's family. Second, it stands for "Wonder World," depicting the fantastical and sometimes dark world seen through Yeon-joo's eyes in webtoon.

Projects with Merrycow Creative

In 2018, Song released Memories of the Alhambra, Korea's first augmented reality-gaming drama. Primarily set in Spain (and in South Korea in later episodes), the series centers on a company CEO Yoo Jin-woo (Hyun Bin), and a hostel owner Jung Hee-joo (Park Shin-hye), who get entangled in a series of mysterious incidents surrounding a new and intricate augmented reality game inspired by the stories of the Alhambra Palace.

The series was revealed to be inspired by tech mogul Elon Musk and game Pokémon Go. It was praised for its creative plot and its unexpected twists, achieving a peak viewership of 10 percent, as reported by Nielsen Korea. The drama is one of the highest-rated Korean dramas in cable television history. Its title also alludes to Francisco Tárrega's classical guitar piece Recuerdos de la Alhambra, which is also a part of the series' soundtrack. It aired on cable network tvN from December 1, 2018, to January 20, 2019, every Saturday and Sunday. It is also available for online streaming on Netflix.

On December 18, 2019, Studio Dragon, the drama production subsidiary of CJ ENM, announced the acquisition of a 19% stake in Merrycow Creative, making it an affiliate partner company of Studio Dragon along with Movie Rock and Next Scene.

Song initially proposed the idea for Yumi's Cells to Studio Dragon. After completing Memories of the Alhambra, she took a break and went on a trip. While searching for something to watch on the plane, Song expressed her desire for a heartwarming story, contrasting with the desolate tone of Alhambra. Her friends recommended a few webtoons, including Yumi's Cells, which immediately captured her interest. Recognizing the abundance of talented junior writers skilled in romance storytelling, Song opted to entrust the script to them while actively participating as a creator.

On December 31, 2020, it was announced that the popular webtoon Yumi's Cells by Lee Dong-gun, with 3.2 billion views on Naver, would be adapted into a TV series. Kim Go-eun was confirmed as the female lead. It is a cell-based psychological romance that unravels the daily life of an ordinary office worker Yumi through the eyes of the cells in her head. Filming of the series started in April 2021, the main cast was revealed to include Kim Go-eun, Ahn Bo-hyun, Lee Yu-bi, and Park Ji-hyun. The show is using a unique format that blends live-action and 3D animation, a first for Korean dramas, while using the Unreal Engine as its source. The 3D animation was created by Locus Corporation (also known as Sidus Animation Studios), the producer of Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs, and they are also working on an animated film based on the same property with Studio N.

Filmography

Accolades