Kim Jongwon began his career as a film critic in December 1959 through the bimonthly publication Scenario Literature. He served as the president of the Korean Association of Film Critics in 1981 and was awarded the 1st Jeong Yeong-il Film Critic Award at the Blue Dragon Film Awards. From 1998 to 2014, Kim served as an adjunct professor at the Department of Performing Arts at Cheongju University and at the Graduate School of Film at Korea National University of Arts, Dongguk University. He currently serves as a senior advisor to the Korean Association of Film Critics. His works include Allegories in the Visual Age, Screen Life Theory, and 100 Years of Korean Cinema.