Noh Hee-kyung

Noh Hee-kyung (born March 21, 1966) is a South Korean television screenwriter and essayist.

In 1995, she debuted as a drama writer after winning a drama script contest.

Since elementary school, she had a dream of becoming writer and had received awards for her work.

However, it was only after her mother's passing that she decided to study drama for a year, with the intention to give up if it didn't work out.

Reflecting on her lack of success compared to fellow classmates in the university, she realized that she hadn't followed her teachers' instructions in writing.

Determined to change, she diligently followed her drama teacher's guidance and miraculously became a drama writer within a year.

To this day, she values having a respected mentor and recognizes the importance of humility and listening in effective communication.

Noh said she wrote The Most Beautiful Goodbye in the World (1996) two years after the death of her own mother, as a tribute to her.

The drama is about a devoted mother in her sixties whose family has always taken her for granted.

But when they learn she has been diagnosed with a terminal illness and doesn't have much time left to live, they all come together for the first time to give her the support they've always denied her.

With heart-wrenching dialogue and meaty performances from Na Moon-hee and Joo Hyun, the TV series instantly brought fame to Noh.

The story of a dying mother resonated with viewers and critics alike, winning the Grand Prize for TV ("Daesang") and Best TV Drama at the 1997 Baeksang Arts Awards.

After a 1997 novelization, Noh adapted the drama into a stage play in 2010, which starred Jung Ae-ri and Song Ok-sook in the lead role.

Lie (1998), which started the "mania drama" trend (Korean slang for low ratings but big cult following online), is about a couple played by Lee Sung-jae and Yoo Ho-jeong who are unable to have children, and Bae Jong-ok as the woman who comes between them.

In Did We Really Love? (1999), Bae Yong-joon struggles between the choice of love or materialism, represented by Kim Hye-soo and Yoon Son-ha.

Sad Temptation (1999) was the first to feature a gay couple on Korean TV, played by Kim Kap-soo and Joo Jin-mo.

Foolish Love (2000), starring Lee Jae-ryong and Bae Jong-ok, competed in the same timeslot as massive hit Hur Jun, and thus became one of the lowest-rated Korean dramas in history, at around 1%.

Solitude (2002) dealt with a single mother (Lee Mi-sook) who is pursued by a younger man (Ryoo Seung-bum) 15 years her junior.

In More Beautiful Than a Flower (2004), Noh explored the many facets of family love when a mother (the "flower" of the title, played by Go Doo-shim) is diagnosed with dementia.

The drama received several awards at the 2004 KBS Drama Awards, including Best Writer for Noh, and the Grand Prize ("Daesang") for Go.

It also won Best TV Drama at the 2004 Baeksang Arts Awards.

Goodbye Solo (2006) is an urban melodrama with an ensemble of seven main characters of different generations and backgrounds: a bartender (Chun Jung-myung), an artist (Yoon So-yi), a gangster (Lee Jae-ryong), a restaurant owner (Kim Min-hee), a secretary (Kim Nam-gil), a divorcee (Bae Jong-ok), and a mute old lady (Na Moon-hee).

All feeling alienated because of pain in their past, they gradually interact and form a "family" borne out of emotional connection and mutual understanding.

Noh said that the story unfolds to one common theme: that everyone is beautiful just the way they are.

Known for her distinctive and striking dialogue, Noh poured many of her personal stories into the show, including her own experience with her mother.

The drama is also notable for reinventing the career of actress Kim Min-hee.

Previously known as a bad actress, Kim was a big fan of Noh's, and she campaigned for a role, despite getting rejected by Noh five times.

But on the sixth time, Noh saw the actress's determination and hidden potential that made her right for the character Mi-ri.

Despite cries of miscasting from drama fans, Kim went through strict acting training and character analysis, showing vast improvement in her performance and making the first steps towards her eventual transformation into a real actress.

Noh then wrote several short dramas.

In the four-episode Miracle (2006), Jang Yong played a man who reassesses his life after learning that he's in the final stages of lung cancer.

While in Several Questions That Make Us Happy (2007), three stories unfold in omnibus format over two episodes.

She reunited with director Pyo Min-soo (they had previously worked together on Lie, Sad Temptation, Foolish Love and Solitude) in The World That They Live In (also known as Worlds Within, 2008), about the hectic lives of a drama production team.

Hyun Bin and Song Hye-kyo played TV directors who rekindle their romantic relationship.

In 2011, director Min Kyu-dong made a film adaptation titled The Last Blossom.

Noh continued writing television dramas.

She is best known for her television dramas such as, That Winter, the Wind Blows (2013), It's Okay, That's Love (2014), Dear My Friends (2016), Live (2018), and Our Blues (2022).

In 2013, Noh founded drama production house GTist with famous directors Kim Kyu-tae and Hong Jong-chan and also former manager Lee Dong-gyu who currently serves as CEO.

In 2019, Studio Dragon became shareholders of the company.

Noh Hee-kyung has become renowned in South Korea for her realistic, cerebral and in-depth portrayals of the lives and relationships of ordinary people.