Dongwon was born in Korea, raised in India and eventually came to Upstate NY for college, studying creative writing and international relations. In the middle of college, he was drafted to serve in the South Korean mandatory military draft, relearning Korean in boot camp and eventually serving as a pilot & cook in the 369th Field Artillery Brigade, where he piloted the K55 Self-Propelled Harbinger and headed up a kitchen for 300 men. After college, he pivoted to film, coming to LA where he attended Loyola Marymount University for a screenwriting MFA.

As a writer with a multicultural and global perspective, Dongwon has worked as a cultural consultant on Love and Noraebang starring Randall Park & Justin Min, which was nominated for Best Overall Podcast and Best Fiction Podcast at the iHeartRadio Podcast Awards. During his time at LMU, he was brought in to write two short films for student directors, Mom is Visiting and Cocoon. Both short films were accepted to major film festivals, with Cocoon receiving the 6th Focus Features & JetBlue Student Short Film Showcase at the Gotham Awards and premiering at Tribecal Festival in 2025. 

After getting married in March 2025 (once in California and a second time in Seoul), Dongwon is slowly realizing that he is no longer just Korean, nor American, or quite Korean-American (yet). As a third-culture kid in a perpetual identity crisis, his work explores the stories of characters and their complex relationships, often in absurd situations. 

When not grappling with a story, Dongwon is probably cooking, at a pottery studio, traveling or doing his best to schedule a family call with his parents still in India, sister in Korea and whatever time zone he is in that day. 

You can reach him here.