Kim Ki-duk ( ; 20 December 196011 December 2020) was a South Korean film director and screenwriter, noted for his

idiosyncratic An idiosyncrasy is an unusual feature of a person (though there are also other uses, see below). It can also mean an odd habit. The term is often used to express eccentricity or peculiarity. A synonym may be "quirk". Etymology The term "idiosyncr ...

art-house An art film (or arthouse film) is typically an independent film, aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made primarily f ...

cinematic works. His films have received many distinctions in the festival circuit, rendering him one of the most important contemporary Asian film directors. His major festival awards include the

Golden Lion The Golden Lion ( it, Leone d'oro) is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is now regarded as one of the film industry's most prestigious and distinguis ...

at 69th Venice International Film Festival for ''

Pietà The Pietà (; meaning " pity", "compassion") is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus after his body was removed from the cross. It is most often found in sculpture. The Pietà is a specific for ...

'', a Silver Lion for Best Director at

61st Venice International Film Festival The 61st annual Venice International Film Festival was held between 1 and 11 September 2004. The festival opened with Steven Spielberg's '' The Terminal'', and closed with Katsuhiro Otomo's ''Steamboy''. The Golden Lion was awarded to the fi ...

for ''

3-Iron ''3-Iron'' (; lit. "Empty House") is a 2004 romantic drama film written, produced and directed by Kim Ki-duk. An international co-production between South Korea and Japan, the film stars Jae Hee as a young drifter who develops a relationship ...

'', a Silver bear for Best Director at 54th Berlin International Film Festival for '' Samaritan Girl'', and the

Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...

prize at

2011 Cannes Film Festival The 64th Cannes Film Festival was held from 11 to 22 May 2011. American actor Robert De Niro served as the president of the jury for the main competition and French filmmaker Michel Gondry headed the jury for the short film competition. South ...

for '' Arirang''. His most widely known feature is '' Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring'' (2003), included in film critic

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

Great Movies ''The Great Movies'' is the name of several publications, both online and in print, from the film critic Roger Ebert. The object was, as Ebert put it, to "make a tour of the landmarks of the first century of cinema." ''The Great Movies'' was pu ...

. Two of his films served as official submissions for the

Academy Award for Best International Feature Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

as South Korean entries. He gave scripts to several of his former assistant directors including Juhn Jai-hong ('' Beautiful'' and '' Poongsan'') and

Jang Hoon Jang Hoon (born May 4, 1975) is a South Korean film director. He directed the films '' Rough Cut'' (2008), ''Secret Reunion'' (2010), '' The Front Line'' (2011), and ''A Taxi Driver '' (2017). Career Jang Hoon (along with Jang Cheol-soo a ...

('' Rough Cut'').

Early life and education

Kim was born on 20 December 1960 in Ponghwa, North Kyŏngsang. In 1990, he went to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

to study

fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwor ...

, but instead he spent two years working there on the streets as a portrait painter. He served for five years in the

South Korean Marine Corps The Republic of Korea Marine Corps (ROKMC; ko, 대한민국 해병대, Daehanminguk Haebyeongdae), also known as the ROK Marine Corps or ROK Marines, is the marine corps of South Korea. The ROKMC is a branch of the Republic of Korea Navy respon ...

, becoming a non-commissioned officer.

Career

After returning to South Korea, Kim began his career as a screenwriter and won first prize in a screenplay contest held by the

Korean Film Council The Korean Film Council (KOFIC) () is a state-supported, self-administered organization under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) of the Republic of Korea. History KOFIC was launched in 1973 as the Korean Motion Picture Promotion ...

in 1995. In the following year, Kim made his debut as a director with a low budget movie titled ''

Crocodile Crocodiles (family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term crocodile is sometimes used even more loosely to include all extant me ...

'' (1996). The film received sensational reviews from movie critics in South Korea. Ki-duk said that his international breakthrough occurred with ''

The Isle ''The Isle'' is a 2000 South Korean film written and directed by Kim Ki-duk, his fifth film, and the first to receive wide international acclaim for his now recognizable style. The film has gained notoriety for gruesome scenes that caused some v ...

'' at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

. His 2000 film ''

Real Fiction ''Real Fiction'' (; lit. "State of Reality") is a 2000 crime-drama film from South Korean director Kim Ki-duk. It stars Joo Jin-mo, Kim Jin-ah and Son Min-seok. It was shot entirely in real-time, with no retakes, on a mixture of low quality video ...

'' was entered into the 23rd Moscow International Film Festival. In 2003, Ki-duk released Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... And Spring. The film was praised by numerous critics, including critic Peter Bradshaw, who considered the film to be his masterpiece and one of the great works of modern Korean cinema. "A potent and enigmatic parable which manages to be both serene and gripping at the same time ..It is that rarest of things - a genuinely spiritual film." The film work is included in critic

. In 2004, he received Best Director awards at two different film festivals, for two different films. At the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the fest ...

, he was awarded for '' Samaritan Girl'' (2004), and at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival h ...

he won for ''

'' (also 2004). In 2011, his documentary film '' Arirang'' received an award for best film in the

category from the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...

. In 2012, his film ''

'' received the

award at the

. In 2015, it was announced in Beijing at the Asian Brilliant Stars, a section of the upcoming Berlin International Film Festival that Kim would direct his largest budget to date film ''Who Is God?,'' produced by Hollywood producers Stephen Castor and Jim Rygiel (three-time Academy Award winner) under the banner of their production company Its Just Us Productions, along with Chinese production company Film Carnival (Hangzhou). The film was financed by CITIC Guoan, Huafeng Investment Consultation and Its Just Us Productions, (China Daily News).

Personal life

Assault and rape allegations

In August 2017 an actress referred to as "Actress "A" by prosecutors filed a complaint against Kim Ki-duk through Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office. In the complaint actress accused Kim of slapping her face and forcing her to do an unscripted sex scene on the set of his film '' Moebius''. In December 2017 Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office fined Kim Ki-duk for $4,450 ( KRW 5 million) for physical assault but didn't charge him otherwise citing lack of physical evidence. On March 6, 2018 the South Korean TV channel MBC's investigative report show ''

PD Notebook ''PD Note'' (Korean language: PD수첩) is an investigative journalism program on MBC in South Korea. ''PD Note'' is noteworthy for its role in stimulating the US beef protest and raising questions regarding the subsequently-discredited Hwa ...

'' aired an episode titled "Movie director Kim Ki-duk, Master's Naked Face" with more accusations from Actress A and two others (Actress B and C as they mentioned in the show). Actresses accused Kim and his frequent collaborator, actor Cho Jae-hyun of verbal and physical sexual harassment and rape. In response Kim filed false accusation and defamation suits against the accusers and ''PD Notebook''. After that on August 7, 2018 MBC aired a second episode of the ''PD Notebook'' show "Master's Naked Face. Aftermath" with more accusations from other actresses and staff members against Kim and Cho. In that episode journalists interviewed a Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Special Investigation Unit on Sexual Violence official about the cases. The official explained that the police approached the survivors and established the facts behind accusations but could not indict actor Cho and director Kim because of expired statute of limitation. In January 2019 Seoul Central District Prosecutor's Office decided to drop the criminal lawsuits filed by Kim Ki-duk against actresses and ''PD Notebook'' because "there was neither proof that actress' initial accusation was false, nor was there evidence that the news show had been programmed with the purpose of defamation". In March 2019 Kim Ki-duk filed another lawsuit in civil court against Actress A and ''PD Notebook'' seeking $885,740 ( KRW 1 billion) in damages. The lawsuit was ruled by court in defendants' favor on October 28, 2020. The court also ordered Kim to pay legal fees for the defendants.

Animal cruelty allegations

The

British Board of Film Classification The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of ...

delayed the release of Kim Ki-duk's ''

'' (2000) in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

because of instances of animal cruelty in the film. Concerning scenes in which a frog is skinned after being beaten to death and fish are mutilated, the director stated, "We cooked all the fish we used in the film and ate them, expressing our appreciation. I've done a lot of cruelty on animals in my films. And I will have a guilty conscience for the rest of my life." To a U.S. interviewer who suggested that scenes such as these are "very disturbing and eemto place an obstacle to the films reception, or... distribution, to other countries", Kim said, "Yes, I did worry about that fact. But the way I see it, the food that we eat today is no different. In America you eat beef, pork, and kill all these animals. And the people who eat these animals are not concerned with their slaughter. Animals are part of this cycle of consumption. It looks more cruel onscreen, but I don't see the difference. And yes, there's a cultural difference, and maybe Americans will have a problem with it - but if they can just be more sensitive to what is acceptable in different countries I'd hope they wouldn't have too many issues with what's shown on-screen."

Death

On 11 December 2020, Kim died from complications caused by

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Latvia The COVID-19 pandemic in Latvia was a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have reached Latvia on 2 March ...

at the age of 59, nine days before his 60th birthday.

Filmography

International awards

References

Notes

Sources

Bibliography

* * MARTONOVA, A. (2004
Contemporary Korean cinema – production, tradition and… Kim Ki-Duk
– In: The Plum Blossom. Papers from Korean Studies Conference, Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski", Centre for Eastern Languages and Cultures, Sofia: Ex-M, p. 129 – 151 * MARTONOVA, (2012) A
To feel HAN
(Arirang by Kim Ki-duk) // Kino, No.3, Sofia:p. 49-47, ISSN 0861-4393 �а чувстваш ХАН ("Ариран" на Ким Ки-док). — Original title in Bulgarian* MARTONOVA, A. (2007) The hieroglyph of cinema. Aesthetics and meaning in East Asia movies. Sofia: Panorama Publishing House, 242 pages, (in Bulgarian)

External links

*
Kim Ki-Duk: the past, the persistent problems and the near future
About Kim Ki-Duk's 2006 controversial declarations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Ki-duk Cruelty to animals 1960 births 2020 deaths 21st-century South Korean male actors Asian film producers South Korean male film actors South Korean film producers South Korean film directors South Korean screenwriters Directors of Golden Lion winners Venice Best Director Silver Lion winners Silver Bear for Best Director recipients Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Latvia Republic of Korea Marine Corps personnel