(News Focus) Lee Chang-dong: Korean maestro whose profound cinematic gaze captures human dignity

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SEOUL, Sept. 13 (Yonhap) -- From his directorial debut "Green Fish" (1997) to his latest feature "Possible Love" (2026), Korean auteur Lee Chang-dong is known for his realistic yet poetic portrayal of humanism and society.

"Possible Love," which won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at the 83rd edition of the Venice International Film Festival, is another masterpiece that continues this cinematic journey by exploring themes of human connection, hidden desire and social status.

Throughout his 30-year career as a filmmaker, Lee has focused on the lives of seemingly ordinary people and how they are both shaped by and shape society.

This image, provided by Netflix, shows Korean director Lee Chang-dong working on set for his film "Possible Love." (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

Born in 1954 in the southern city of Daegu, Lee majored in Korean language education and began his career as a high school teacher. After winning a major literary award in 1983, he began writing fiction while teaching and later moved into screenwriting.

In 1997, he made a sweeping debut in Korean cinema with his first feature film, "Green Fish," which portrays the tragic fate of a young man whose life is upended by rapid urbanization.

Through his second feature, "Peppermint Candy" (2000), which centers on a man whose life is swept up in South Korea's tumultuous modern history, Lee established himself as a filmmaker who navigates human trauma in harsh reality.

Yet, he remained committed to his belief in the enduring power of human dignity.

"An individual's life cannot be entirely free from history or social realities, because they do not leave an individual untouched," he said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency held around the release of the breakthrough film.

"At the same time, no political reality or destructive power that comes from the outside can completely destroy the nobility of human dignity," he added.

This image, provided by the Korean Film Council, shows a poster for the Korean film "Peppermint Candy" (2000). (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

Lee also turned the camera toward society's marginalized, portraying the unlikely romance between a woman with severe cerebral palsy and a man who has just been released from prison in "Oasis" (2002), his third feature.

The film, which earned him international acclaim, won the Silver Lion for best director at the Venice International Film Festival, with lead actor Moon So-ri also receiving an award for an emerging actor.

After a five-year hiatus, during which he also served as South Korea's culture minister and oversaw policies aimed at promoting the Korean film industry, Lee made a long-awaited return with his fourth feature, "Secret Sunshine," in 2007.

Starring Jeon Do-yeon, who also is the lead actor in "Possible Love," the film explores themes of agony, faith and forgiveness through a woman who loses her son. Jeon won best actress at the Cannes Film Festival for her role in the film.

Lee added another Cannes prize -- this time for best screenplay -- with his fifth feature, "Poetry," (2010), which weaves together quotidian beauty, human suffering and moral dilemmas through the life of an old woman whose grandson becomes involved in a crime.

The director, meanwhile, delved into the anxiety of the young generations and social class divisions that exist even among people of the same generation in "Burning" (2018), which competed at Cannes.

This still, provided by the Korean Film Council, shows a scene from the Korean film "Oasis" (2002). (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

"Possible Love," his first feature in eight years since 2018, asks what forms of love are actually possible through the intertwined lives of a laid-off worker and his spouse and a documentary maker and her wealthy husband.

While speaking to reporters at Venice, Lee noted how society continues to change, engulfing the lives of people without giving them much to do. Still, what saves ordinary people from such situations appears to be human connection with others, or love, he said.

Lee is known for posing questions for audiences rather than delivering a specific, clear-cut message in his films. The filmmaker said in 2022 that he wants his films to leave audiences with questions and make them feel that cinema is connected to life.

The auteur reaffirmed his determination to keep asking questions through cinema.

"We are living in an era where the meaning of labor is fading and human connections are increasingly becoming severed," he said in his acceptance speech for the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize.

"I made this film to ask what cinema can and should do in times like these. I take this award as a sign that you want me to keep asking these questions."

This still, provided by Netflix, shows a scene from Lee Chang-dong's latest feature, "Possible Love." (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

mlee@yna.co.kr (END)

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(News Focus) Lee Chang-dong: Korean maestro whose profound cinematic gaze captures human dignity

这将使谷歌能够向您展示与您的搜索匹配或相关的韩联社新闻文章。

首尔，9月13日（韩联社）——从他的导演处女作《绿鱼》（1997年）到他的最新作品《可能的爱情》（2026年），韩国导演李沧东以其对人性和社会现实而又诗意的刻画而闻名。

荣获第 83 届威尼斯国际电影节银狮评审团大奖的《可能的爱》是另一部杰作，它延续了这一电影之旅，探索了人际关系、隐藏的欲望和社会地位等主题。

在李安30年的电影生涯中，他一直关注看似普通人的生活，以及他们如何被社会塑造，又如何塑造社会。

这张由Netflix提供的照片显示，韩国导演李沧东正在拍摄他的电影《可能的爱》。（照片非卖品）（韩联社）

李于1954年出生于韩国南部城市大邱，大学专业是韩语教育，毕业后成为一名高中教师。1983年获得一项重要的文学奖后，他一边教书一边开始创作小说，后来又转行从事剧本创作。

1997 年，他凭借首部故事长片《绿鱼》在韩国影坛一鸣惊人，该片描绘了一个年轻人的生活因快速的城市化而发生的悲惨命运。

李安的第二部电影《薄荷糖》（2000 年）以一个男人的生活被卷入韩国动荡的现代历史中为中心，确立了他作为一位在残酷现实中处理人类创伤的电影制作人的地位。

然而，他始终坚信人类尊严的永恒力量。

“一个人的生活不可能完全脱离历史或社会现实，因为它们不会对个人产生影响，”他在接受韩联社采访时说道，当时正值这部突破性电影上映之际。

“与此同时，任何来自外部的政治现实或破坏性力量都无法彻底摧毁人类尊严的高贵，”他补充道。

这张图片由韩国电影振兴委员会提供，展示的是韩国电影《薄荷糖》（2000年）的海报。（图片非卖品）（韩联社）

李安还将镜头转向了社会边缘群体，在他的第三部电影《绿洲》（2002 年）中，描绘了一位患有严重脑瘫的女子和一位刚出狱的男子之间不太可能的爱情故事。

这部电影为他赢得了国际赞誉，并荣获威尼斯国际电影节最佳导演银狮奖，主演文素利也获得了新人演员奖。

在经历了五年的沉寂之后，李安于 2007 年携其第四部电影《密阳》回归影坛。在这五年间，他还担任了韩国文化部长，并负责监督旨在促进韩国电影产业发展的政策。

该片由全度妍主演，她同时也是《可能的爱》的女主角。影片通过一位失去儿子的母亲，探讨了痛苦、信仰和宽恕等主题。全度妍凭借此片荣获戛纳电影节最佳女演员奖。

李安凭借他的第五部电影《诗》（2010）再次获得戛纳电影节最佳剧本奖。该片通过一位老妇人的生活，将日常之美、人类苦难和道德困境交织在一起，而她的孙子却卷入了一起犯罪事件。

与此同时，导演在参加戛纳电影节竞赛的影片《燃烧》（2018）中，深入探讨了年轻一代的焦虑以及即使在同一代人之间也存在的社会阶级分化。

这张由韩国电影振兴委员会提供的剧照，展示了韩国电影《绿洲》（2002年）中的一个场景。（图片非卖品）（韩联社）

《可能的爱情》是他自 2018 年以来的首部剧情长片，影片通过一位失业工人和他配偶以及一位纪录片制作人和她富有的丈夫交织的生活，探讨了爱情究竟有哪些形式。

李在威尼斯接受记者采访时指出，社会不断变化，吞噬着人们的生活，却鲜少有人能真正有所作为。但他表示，即便如此，似乎真正能将普通人从这种困境中拯救出来的，还是人与人之间的联结，或者说是爱。

李安的电影以向观众提出问题而非传递明确具体的讯息而闻名。这位电影人曾在2022年表示，他希望自己的电影能给观众留下疑问，并让他们感受到电影与生活的联系。

这位电影大师重申了他将继续通过电影提出问题的决心。

“我们生活在一个劳动意义逐渐消逝、人际关系日益疏离的时代，”他在获得银狮大奖评审团大奖的获奖感言中说道。

“我拍这部电影是为了探讨在这样的时代，电影能够而且应该做些什么。我把这个奖项视为你们希望我继续探讨这些问题的信号。”

这张由Netflix提供的剧照展示了李沧东最新电影《可能的爱》中的一个场景。（图片非卖品）（韩联社）

mlee@yna.co.kr (完)

（第二条）李沧东执导的《可能的爱》荣获威尼斯电影节评审团大奖

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