Celine Song

Celine Song (born Song Ha-Young; ; born 19 September 1988) is a Canadian director, playwright, and screenwriter based in New York City. Among her plays are Endlings and The Seagull on The Sims 4 (both 2020). Her directorial film debut, Past Lives, received critical acclaim and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay. Her second film, Materialists, was released in theaters on 13 June 2025.

Early life and education Song was born in South Korea. Her parents, both artists, moved the family to Markham, Ontario, Canada when she was 12. Upon moving to Ontario, Song was given permission by her parents to select a new forename and decided it would be Celine (formerly Ha-Young). Some of her immediate family members believe that she selected the name from the 1974 film Céline and Julie Go Boating, whereas Song is convinced that she decided upon the name after seeing a Céline Dion album. Her father, Song Neung-han, is a filmmaker. Her mother is an illustrator and graphic designer.

Song wrote her first play, an adaptation of Prometheus, at a classics conference she attended (the Ontario Student Classics Conference) with the Markham District Classics Club. During her undergraduate studies in 2009, Song wrote and directed a play titled Sound Utterly Serious, which was referred to as an "innovative gem" by The Queen's Journal. She was the founder of an atheist club there, and was its first president.

2019–2020: Off-Broadway works Song's play Endlings premiered in 2019 at the American Repertory Theater. The show's off-Broadway run opened in March 2020 at New York Theatre Workshop, but was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The play was chosen for the 2018 O'Neill Playwrights Conference and was a finalist for the 2020 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Endlings was also incorporated on the 2017 Kilroy's List.

Song's other plays include Tom and Eliza, which was named a semifinalist for the American Playwriting Foundation's 2016 Relentless Award, Family, and The Feast. The opportunity for the screenwriting job arose after Rafe Judkins, the showrunner for a TV series in development, had read a script that Song wrote. The film is partly inspired by Song's life, specifically a dinner she had with her English-speaking husband and a Korean-speaking friend visiting New York.

Past Lives received critical acclaim and has been compared to the work of Richard Linklater, Woody Allen, and Noah Baumbach. The Guardian 's Benjamin Lee wrote that "as writer, Song manages to keep her dialogue believably light-footed and spare while as director, she confidently and evocatively captures both cities with a breadth that belies her inexperience". Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair called the film "understated and yet vast in its consideration of the slow changes of life, of the past ever whispering to the present. The film is as auspicious a debut as one can hope to see at Sundance, the announcement of a filmmaker confident in her craft and generous with her heart." Song was the first Asian woman to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. For Past Lives, Song was also awarded outstanding directorial achievement in a first-time feature film by the Directors Guild of America. was released in theaters on 13 June 2025. Materialists was inspired by Song's experience and knowledge gained from her time being a matchmaker in New York City. The film follows Lucy's (played by Dakota Johnson) story when it comes to love in both matchmaking and her own romantic pursuits. It highlights Lucy's talent and skill as a matchmaker, as well as her struggle within her love triangle to pick between new-boy Harry (played by Pedro Pascal) and her ex-partner John (played by Chris Evans).

Within a few months post-release, the film Materialists earned more than $100 million worldwide.

In April 2024, the music video for pop artist Laufey's song "Goddess" was released, directed by Song. And in July 2025, it was announced that Song was to write an upcoming sequel to My Best Friend's Wedding (1997) by Sony Pictures. Song's other upcoming project is a new A24 drama series Damage at HBO, where she is working with David Hinojosa, Jacqueline Lesko, Craig Mazin, and Cecil O'Connor. She was an executive producer and writer for this project. Song previously worked with David Hinojosa on both of her films Past Lives and Materialists. The development of this series began in September 2025.

In 2026, Song became the recipient of the 2026 Whiting Award in Drama.

Other activities In 2025, Song served on the jury of the Marrakech International Film Festival, chaired by Bong Joon Ho.

Filmmaking style and themes Directing actors Song is very precise when it comes to directing actors. She does not allow improvisation, and instead meticulously tests her dialogue with other screenwriters to hone it down. When directing Past Lives, she did not allow Greta Lee and Teo Yoo to physically touch each other until their characters reunite onscreen as adults. Similarly, Yoo and John Magaro were not allowed to meet at all until their characters do for the first time. The first take of this scene is what was used in the final cut of the film. When asked about this, Song said,I wanted the whole film to feel like a knife, and it’s got to build to the point where it’s sharp and you’re going to stab. By the time we enter the third act and they meet each other, it’s like an explosion.

Works Film Year Title Director Writer Producer Ref. 2023 Past Lives 2025 Materialists

Television Year Title Note Ref. 2021 The Wheel of Time Staff writer, Wrote episode "Blood Calls Blood"

Theatre

YearTitleNotesRef.2020 Endlings NYTW, February–March, 2020 The Seagull on The Sims 4 NYTW, 27–28 October 2020

Accolades Association Year Category Work Result Alliance of Women Film Journalists 2023 Best Director Past Lives Best Original Screenplay Best Woman Director Best Woman Screenwriter Asia Pacific Screen Awards 2023 Best Director Berlin International Film Festival 2023 Golden Bear Boston Society of Film Critics 2023 Best New Filmmaker British Independent Film Awards 2023 Best International Independent Film Chicago Film Critics Association 2023 Best Original Screenplay Milos Stehlik Award for Breakthrough Filmmaker Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association 2023 Best Director Dublin Film Critics' Circle 2023 Best Director Florida Film Critics Circle 2023 Best Director Best First Film Best Original Screenplay Pauline Kael Breakout Award Gotham Awards 2023 Best Feature Breakthrough Director Los Angeles Film Critics Association 2023 New Generation Award National Board of Review 2023 Best Directorial Debut New York Film Critics Online 2023 Best Debut Director San Diego Film Critics Society 2023 Best First Feature Best Original Screenplay St. Louis Film Critics Association 2023 Best Director Best Original Screenplay Sydney Film Festival 2023 Best Film Toronto Film Critics Association 2023 Best Original Screenplay Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association 2023 Best Director Best Original Screenplay Academy Awards 2024 Best Original Screenplay Astra Film Awards 2024 Best Director Best First Feature Best Original Screenplay Austin Film Critics Association 2024 Best Director Best First Film Best Original Screenplay The Robert R. "Bobby" McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award British Academy Film Awards 2024 Best Original Screenplay Best Film Not in the English Language Critics' Choice Movie Awards 2024 Best Original Screenplay Directors Guild of America Awards2024 Outstanding Directing – First-Time Feature Film Independent Spirit Awards 2024 Best Director Best Screenplay Georgia Film Critics Association 2024 Best Director Best Original Screenplay Breakthrough Award Golden Globe Awards 2024 Best Motion Picture - Drama Best Director Best Screenplay International Cinephile Society 2024 Best Debut Film London Film Critics' Circle 2024 Screenwriter of the Year National Society of Film Critics 2024 Best Picture Online Film Critics Society 2024 Best Director Best Original Screenplay Best Feature Debut San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle 2024 Best Director Best Original Screenplay Satellite Awards 2024 Best Original Screenplay Seattle Film Critics Society 2024 Best Director Best Screenplay Sundance Film Festival 2024 Vanguard Award Writers Guild of America Awards 2024Best Original Screenplay Past Lives Blue Dragon Film Awards 2024 Best New Director Best Screenplay Cinema for Peace 2024Most Valuable Film of the Year