Chih-Yuan Ko, 1985, Taipei, graduated from National Chengchi University with a degree in Radio and Television and has a Master's degree in Communication Studies from the University of Leeds, UK. He is currently an agricultural researcher and documentary filmmaker.

Chih-Yuan has written music since he was a child. In his high school years, he was a self-taught guitarist. After graduating from university, he started working in the music industry behind the scenes. In Taiwan, a society where democracy is in full bloom, he became involved in civic movements from time to time and began exposed to various social issues.

In 2015, Chih-Yuan participated a startup with a group of friends, and since then, he has been taking up the camera to film his workmates.

Chih-Yuan has always loved movies and would research music, screenplay, and narrative on his own, but the option of becoming a director was never on his bucket list because he thought that directors were only for those with the best brains.

In 2021, Chih-Yuan Ko was selected as one of the top twelve directors in the New Taipei City Documentary Film Awards for his film Passage, which began a journey he never expected.

柯智元，1985年，臺北人，國立政治大學廣播電視學系畢業，英國里茲大學傳播研究碩士。現為酪農業研究員與紀錄片工作者。自國小時期開始音樂創作，高中自學吉他。大學畢業後，從事音樂幕後相關工作。在百花齊放、眾聲喧嘩的民主臺灣，他被滋養成長，習慣參與各種公民運動，開始接觸多元的社會議題。

2015年，柯智元跟著朋友一起創業，也從那個時候開始拿起攝影機，拍工作夥伴的大小事。

他一直很喜歡電影，會自己研究配樂、編劇、敘事，但人生清單從來沒有「成為導演」這個選項，因為覺得導演都是頭腦最厲害的人，才可以擔任的角色。

2021年，柯智元以《通道》入選新北市紀錄片獎年度十二強導演，也從此展開了這一段他始料未及的旅程。