Director Park Chan-wook, who served as the Jury President of the 79th Cannes International Film Festival, attended the jury photocall event held in Cannes, southern France, on the 12th (local time). Photo=Yonhap News“/>In an interview with AFP on the 11th (local time), just one day before the festival’s opening, Director Park Chan-wook shared his criteria for judging, stating, “I believe awards should be given to works that will remain relevant for 50 or even 100 years.”
He emphasized that evaluations should be based solely on the value of the work itself, excluding external factors such as nationality, genre, and political ideology.
He added, “A film should not be excluded simply because it contains a political message, nor should it be favored for that reason alone.” He further noted that while filmmakers are free to engage with political themes, the ultimate artistic achievement of the film is what matters most.
As the first Korean to serve as the Jury President of the Cannes Film Festival, Director Park expressed his thoughts, saying, “I can’t help but feel the significance of being the first Korean to take on this role.”
He continued, “There was a long period when Korean cinema was treated as if it were on the periphery of the film world, but even then, Korea had wonderful directors and actors.” He added, “As time has passed, Korea has become one of the centers of global cinema, and I believe this appointment is a movement that fits the current era.”
However, he stressed that his nationality would not influence the results, stating, “I plan to judge as fairly and objectively as possible.”
He also mentioned, “This is an important role that can influence film history itself.” He added, “It’s like contributing to letting the world know which films are important in our time, and ideally, I hope history will confirm in the future that these judgments were correct.”
Meanwhile, the Cannes Film Festival opens on the evening of the 12th and will run until the 23rd.
