Lee Chang-dong’s film ‘Possible Love,’ featuring actor Jo Yeo-jeong, won the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice International Film Festival.
This became the first Grand Jury Prize awarded to a Korean film at Venice.
Jo Yeo-jeong played Ye-ji, a documentary director who meets a couple of laid-off workers in the film.
3-line summary
1. A film featuring Jo Yeo-jeong won the Venice Grand Jury Prize
2. It is the first Grand Jury Prize at Venice for a Korean film
3. The award and the release schedule should be considered separately
The Award Received in Venice, Italy, on September 12
Lee Chang-dong’s ‘Possible Love’ received the Silver Lion, the Grand Jury Prize, at the closing ceremony of the 83rd Venice International Film Festival, held at Sala Grande, Palazzo del Cinema, on Lido Island in Venice, Italy, on September 12 local time. The award was introduced as a major prize in the competition section, following the Golden Lion.
According to reports by Digital Chosun TV and JoyNews24, this was the first time a Korean film had received the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice International Film Festival. For director Lee Chang-dong, it was also a Silver Lion received again after 24 years, following his Best Director award for ‘Oasis’ in 2002.
In his acceptance speech, Director Lee credited Jeon Do-yeon, Seol Kyung-gu, Jo In-sung, and Jo Yeo-jeong as the actors who gave the work its life, and said the award belonged to these actors. He also explained that he made the film to ask what cinema can and should do.
Ye-ji, the Documentary Director Played by Jo Yeo-jeong
‘Possible Love’ is the story of Ho-seok, a laid-off worker, his wife Mi-ok, documentary director Ye-ji, and her husband Sang-woo, who meet through the production of a documentary and confront different lives and hidden desires. Jo Yeo-jeong played Ye-ji, while Jeon Do-yeon, Seol Kyung-gu, and Jo In-sung also appeared in the film.
At a press conference after the award, Director Lee Chang-dong explained that he wanted to ask himself how the pain of others should be captured in film and share that question with the audience. The documentary-production setting in the work can be read not simply as occupational background, but as a device that questions the very way of looking at and recording someone’s life and suffering.
In her acceptance speech, Jo Yeo-jeong congratulated and thanked the director and said she wanted to share the film’s emotion with more audiences. Rather than the attention being focused on an individual actor, the ensemble created by the four actors was what was confirmed through this award.
Reports of a Theatrical Release and Planned Netflix Availability
September reports said that ‘Possible Love’ was scheduled to open in theaters on September 23 and become available through Netflix on November 6. However, because these were plans made public at the time, they need to be understood separately from the confirmed result of the award.
This award was not given in advance to assess Jo Yeo-jeong’s new role, but was a result awarded to the film as a whole. However, how Jo Yeo-jeong participated in the work’s central questions through the character Ye-ji remains something audiences will be able to determine for themselves after its release.
References
Tags #JoYeo-jeong #PossibleLove #LeeChang-dong #VeniceInternationalFilmFestival #VeniceFilmFestival #GrandJuryPrize #SilverLion #JeonDo-yeon #SeolKyung-gu #JoIn-sung #NetflixFilm #KoreanFilm