Jeong Haneul

In this Korean name, the family name is Jeong.
Jeong Haneul
A portrait photograph of Jeong Haneul. He is wearing a pair of aviator sunglasses and has short, black hair.
Jeong in 2021
Personal information
Born1994 (age 30–31)
Hamhung, North Korea
NationalitySouth Korea
Occupations
  • YouTuber
  • film director
  • actor
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2015–present
Subscribers97.1 thousand[1]
Views15 million[1]
Contents are inKorean
Korean name
Hangul
정하늘
RRJeong Haneul
MRChŏng Hanŭl
Last updated: 14 July 2025

Jeong Haneul (Korean: 정하늘, born 1994)[2] is a South Korean YouTuber and film director. A former North Korean soldier serving in the Korean People's Army, he defected to the South in August 2012. After moving to South Korea, he started a YouTube channel called Bukshital TV (북시탈tv) and began working in the film industry. He made his directorial debut with the 2024 short film Two Soldiers (Korean: 두 병사; RR: Du byeongsa), which was based on his personal experiences in North Korea.

Life and career

North Korea

Jeong Haneul was born in 1994 in Hamhung, North Korea.[2] As a boy, his father worked at a chemical factory and his mother sold bread, rice cakes, and shoes at jangmadang markets. He dreamed of becoming a football player and joining the North Korea national football team, but due to financial struggles he instead joined the Korean People's Army after middle school and was stationed at the Korean Demilitarized Zone. He served in the Civil Police Force of the Army's 2nd Corps.[3]

Jeong was severely malnourished during his time in the military. He weighed only 43 kilograms (95 lb) when he first arrived in the South. According to Jeong, his squadron leader pressured him to steal from locals to eat, and threatened him with violence if he refused. Jeong became disillusioned with North Korean life, questioning why leaders like Kim Jong Il and Kim Jong Un appeared well-fed while ordinary soldiers went hungry.[4] He recalled losing 10 kilograms (22 lb) in his first month of service due to malnutrition.[5] He decided to defect after reading a pamphlet sent over the border by the South Korean military that said, "The Republic of Korea is an economic powerhouse with abundant electricity and lush forests".[2]

In August 2012, while his squadron leader slept, Jeong defected to the South armed with an AK-47 and two grenades. He planned to use the grenades to commit suicide if he was caught.[2] The electrified fences of the Demilitarized Zone had been damaged by a typhoon, allowing him to cross safely. Because Korea had been divided for 70 years, he feared that the languages of the countries would have diverged enough to make communication impossible, so he was relieved when a South Korean border guard spoke to him in Korean.[4]

South Korea

After defecting to South Korea, Jeong lived in Hanawon until 2013. He began working at various jobs such as construction sites and chicken slaughterhouses. He tried to live in a seminary, but struggled with the prayer routine. He lived in various boarding houses until 2015, when he became eligible for a rental home after turning 20. He continued to work various jobs that he found unsatisfactory. He began university in 2017 and studied political science and diplomacy at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. During this time, he visited over 20 other countries.[3]

In South Korea, Jeong Haneul met Kim Kang-yu, another former North Korean soldier who defected.[2] The two started a YouTube channel called Bukshital TV (북시탈tv). Jeong is known for wearing sunglasses in all of his videos.[6] On the channel, the two make videos about life in North Korea and their experiences in the military. They also invite other defectors to speak on the channel and share their stories. His channel gained widespread popularity in the 2020s, which he attributed to South Koreans spending more time online due to the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea.[4]

In 2021, Jeong consulted and acted in a film called Escape (Korean: 탈주; RR: talju).[2][3] This experience inspired him to begin working in the film industry.[3] In 2024, Jeong wrote and directed the short film Two Soldiers (Korean: 두 병사; RR: Du Byeongsa), loosely based on his own experiences in the Korean People's Army.[7] The film was published by the Unification Media Group, a South Korean company in support of Korean reunification.[8] The purpose of the film was to showcase the hardships of North Korean soldiers as well as to illustrate the inequalities of the North Korean caste system, called songbun. The film features an abusive officer named Jin Chul, who was inspired by a schoolmate of Jeong's from a higher caste. Parts of the film's story were intentionally exaggerated to illustrate a point about the discrimination inherent in songbun policy.[9] Jeong has stated that his dream is to become president of the Pyongyang Film and Drama University after Korean reunification.[3]

On 14 July 2025, Jeong hosted the celebrations for North Korean Defectors' Day at the Starfield COEX Mall in Seoul.[10]

Filmography

Filmography of Jeong Haneul
Year Title Role Notes Refs.
2021 Escape (Korean: 탈주; RR: talju) Production advisor and minor acting role Jeong's acting debut [3]
2024 Two Soldiers (Korean: 두 병사; RR: Du byeongsa) Writer and director Jeong's directorial debut [9]

References

  1. ^ a b "About 북시탈tv". YouTube.
  2. ^ a b c d e f 김, 민서 (30 August 2024). 영화 '탈주' 실제 주인공 "나처럼 DMZ 넘는 북한 병사 계속 나온다" [The person the protagonist of 'Escape' is based on "like me, North Korean soldiers keep escaping over the DMZ"]. The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e f 주, 성하 (21 July 2024). 축구 국가대표를 꿈꾸던 북한군 민경병사, 한국에서 영화배우가 되다[주성하의 북에서 온 이웃] [A North Korean soldier and police officer that dreamed of being on the national soccer team, now a movie star in South Korea [Ju Seong-ha's Neighbors that Came From the North]]. The Dong-A Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  4. ^ a b c Bremer, Ifang; Chung, Yeji (2 December 2022). "From frontline to online: An ex-North Korean soldier's path to YouTube stardom". NK News. Archived from the original on 20 May 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  5. ^ Mackenzie, Jean (20 December 2024). 북한: '러시아 파병된 북한군을 과소평가해서는 안 된다' 탈북군인들이 말하는 북한군의 실체 ['We should not underestimate North Korean troops sent to Russia'... The truth about North Korean soldiers told by North Korean defectors]. BBC News (in Korean). Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  6. ^ Former North Korean DMZ soldier becomes filmmaker. Radio Free Asia. 16 February 2024. Archived from the original on 7 June 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2025 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ Park, Lina (19 January 2024). "Interview: Depicting the inequalities of North Korean army life in film". NK News. Archived from the original on 13 May 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  8. ^ Jang, Seulkee (31 January 2024). "An interview with Jeong Haneul, the director of "Two Soldiers"". Daily NK. Archived from the original on 19 May 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  9. ^ a b "Short film about army life depicts North Korea's caste system". Radio Free Asia. 17 February 2024. Archived from the original on 19 February 2024. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  10. ^ Kim, Jooheon (14 July 2025). "Lee Jae-myung vows to boost support for North Korean escapees on Defectors' Day". NK News. Retrieved 14 July 2025. Jung Haneul, a defector-turned-actor and former North Korean soldier, served as the host of the event.
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