Director Kim Jee-woon to receive French honor

September 28, 2018

SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Yonhap) — South Korean director Kim Jee-woon will be decorated with a cultural medal by the French government for his contribution to the arts, the country’s embassy in Seoul said Friday.

Kim will be made an Officer in the Order of Arts and Letters at a dinner to be hosted by the French Embassy during the 23rd Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) in the southern port city of Busan on Oct. 6.

Kim is best known to French viewers for the postmodern spaghetti western “The Good, The Bad, The Weird,” which was premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2008.

His filmography also includes “The Quiet Family” (1998), “The Foul King” (2000), “A Tale Of Two Sisters” (2003), “Bittersweet Life” (2005), “The Age of Shadows” (2016) and “Illang: The Wolf Brigade” (2018), as well as the Hollywood movie “The Last Stand” (2013).

The other Korean film icons previously honored by the French government are former BIFF chairman Kim Dong-ho, directors Hong Sang-soo and Bong Joon-ho and actress Jeon Do-yeon.

This file photo shows director Kim Jee-woon. (Yonhap)

This file photo shows director Kim Jee-woon. (Yonhap)