BIO


Joseph Kahn was born in Pusan, South Korea. His family lived in Livorno, Italy until he immigrated to the United States at age 7. He began his directing career in his teens, shooting music videos for local musicians then studied at NYU film school.

His career has produced hundreds of award-winning commercials and billions of music video views. He has won multiple Grammys, MTV VMAs, Clios, Emmys, and honored with a lifetime achievement award by the UK Music Video Awards (The Icon Award).

MUSIC VIDEOS

Artists Kahn has directed videos for include Taylor Swift, Imagine Dragons, Eminem, One Republic,  U2, Katy Perry, The Chemical Brothers, Lady Gaga, Gwen Stefani, Blink 182, Wu-Tang Clan, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Mariah Carey, Aerosmith, Faith Hill, Moby, Jamiroquai, Justin Timberlake, George Michael, Kelly Clarkson, Janet Jackson, Black Eyed Peas, Beyonce, and many more. He won his first Grammy for Eminem’s “Without Me” video  and his second for Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood." His video for Muse “Knights of Cydonia” won the Los Angeles Film Festival Audience Award. Katy Perry’s “Waking Up in Vegas” won the MVPA Video of the Year. He won the American Country Music Award's Video of the Year for "Forever Country."

 

 

 

COMMERCIALS

He has directed commercials for Samsung, Rolls Royce, Pepsi, Coca Cola, Google, Maybelline, Johnny Walker, Acura, BMW, Cadillac, Lexus, Mercedes, Ford, Vodafone, Budweiser, British Telecom, Miller, Bacardi, Adidas, Asics, HP, Saab, T-Mobile, Target, Coors Light, Nascar, Burger King, McDonald's, and PlayStation.

FILMS

2004: He made his feature film debut with the Warner Brothers cult film TORQUE. Los Angles Times: “The irony is that for pure cinematic artistry it arguably outdistances some of the more prestigious current offerings. It is a very knowing venture, marking the feature debut of music video veteran Joseph Kahn.”

2011: His self-financed independent film DETENTION premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival, where it was bought by Sony Pictures and released in 2012. Detention won the Youth Jury Prize at the 2011 Seattle International Film Festival. The film also won L’Écran Fantastique Prize 2011 at Montreal’s Fantasia Film Festival as well as the Midnight Extreme Award at Spain’s Sitges. London’s Frightfest gave it the Biggest Surprise Award.

2015: Released POWER/RANGERS, a satirical self-financed "fan film" starring James Van Der Beek and Katee Sackhoff that became a phenomenon that exploded across the internet, gathering tens of millions of views in a single day and sparking global news coverage.

2017: BODIED, a social satire set in the world of competitive battle rap. Audience Awards at Toronto International Film Festival, American Film Institute, Fantastic Fest. New York Times: "With visuals as kinetic as its language, Joseph Kahn's BODIED is an outrageously smart, shockingly funny satire of P.C. culture whose words gush so quickly you'll want to see it twice."

2024: In post production on ICK, starring Brandon Routh, Malina Weissman, Mena Suvari, and Jeff Fahey.