Korean actors and films win at Asian Film Awards

Movie poster for "The Yellow Sea" and "Poetry" [Showbox/Uni-Korea]

Korean actors and films have won at the 5th annual Asian Film Awards which took place in Hong Kong on Monday.

Korean actor Ha Jung-woo took home the prize for best actor for his role in movie "The Yellow Sea" and director Lee Chang-dong won best director for his film "Poetry" while the film itself scored the award for best screenplay.

Veteran actress Yoon Yeo-jeong, who starred in "The Housemaid," won the award for best supporting actress and "I Saw the Devil," which starred Hallyu star Lee Byung-hun and Choi Min-sik, claimed the trophy for best editing.

Ha, whose real name is Kim Sung-hoon, is the son of veteran Korean actor Kim Yong-gun. He first gained recognition appearing in several television dramas including "Lovers in Prague" (SBS, 2005) and "H.I.T." (MBC, 2007) alongside top Korean actress Ko Hyun-joung.

He rose to stardom after playing a serial killer in suspense thriller pic "The Chaser" (2008) and solidified his movie star status with "Take Off" (2009), which became one of the most-watched films in Korean box office history. His also recently starred in “The Yellow Sea” (2010) a film of murderous chase between three men.

"Poetry," which was released in Korea on May 13 last year, is about an elderly woman who learns how to write her own poems while fighting Alzheimer's.

The film was also a smash hit during the Cannes Film Festival, winning the award for best screenplay and sold its distribution rights to several countries including Hong Kong, Syria, Japan, Portugal, Spain, Russia, Taiwan and Brazil.

"The Housemaid," a remake of the classic 1960s film by the late director Kim Ki-young, is about a young woman who is hired to work for a wealthy family and begins to have an affair with the man of the household.

The erotic thriller which stars 2007 Cannes best actress award-winner Jeon Do-youn, Lee Jung-jae, Yoon Yeo-jung and Seo Woo, attracted over 2.3 million moviegoers during its run which totals to about 17 billion Korean won since its opening in local theaters on May 13 last year.

"I Saw the Devil" is about a secret agent (Lee) who plots revenge against a serial killer (Choi) who killed his fiancee. It has garnered much attention from both fans in Korea and overseas since its release in August last year.

The film also won rave reviews after being screened last year at the Toronto International Festival and San Sebastian International Film Festival.

※ Any copying, republication or redistribution of 10Asia's content is expressly prohibited without prior consent of 10Asia. Copyright infringement is subject to criminal and civil penalties.

Reporter : Lucia Hong luciahong@
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@