Jeong Jae-eun attended and was one of the first graduates of the School of Film, TV and Multimedia of the Korea National University of Arts (K-Arts). Early in her career she wrote and directed several short films, notably Yu-jin's Secret Codes which won the Grand Prix at the KNUA Graduation Film Festival and the Women's Film Festival in Seoul in 1999. Her first feature film was Take Care of My Cat (2001) swept numerous awards at international film festivals, winning the Netpac Award at the Busan International Film Festival; earned a special mention in the competition section of the Rotterdam International Film Festival, and was invited to the Young Forum section at the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale).