The superhero is a really popular figure in the West. In Asia or Korea, the young viewers are amused by the figure, but it is not really so sensational.
I have a complex feeling about genre. I love it, but I hate it at the same time. I have the urge to make audiences thrill with the excitement of a genre, but I also try to betray and destroy the expectations placed on that genre.
Until the end of elementary school, I lived in a suburban area, so the type of village I used to live in is borderline between village and the city, so I'm familiar with the rustic environment.
The mother's love for her child is very strong in Korean society - almost on the borderline of being an obsession.
As a director, or just a film fan who wants to enjoy the festival, Cannes is the worst place to be. But it must be a paradise for distributors and importers.
There's hardly any governmental censorship in Korea.
I have a group of cafes and coffee shops that I go to regularly. They usually have an area where I can plug in my computer and have a corner seat where I can do a couple hours of writing or whatever, even the noise of the surrounding people walking by. Those things are the things that stimulate me into writing.
I really hate the creature film convention that says you have to wait until the end to see the monster. One hour and all you've seen is just the tip of the creature's tail.
No matter where I am working, I cannot make a film without 100% creative control and final cut. If there is such a guarantee, I can work anywhere.
There is a lot of extreme emotion in Korean film. It's because there are a lot of extremes in Korean society.
In the mid 1990s the Korean film industry was really open-minded.
I don't intentionally make my films with the express goal of surprising the viewer.
I'm sure mothers are important across every culture, but particularly in Korean society, the role of the mother is of great importance.
In Korean films there is only really a strong tradition of melodramas.
I love the Japanese director Shohei Imamura. His masterpiece in 1979 called, the English title was 'Vengeance is Mine.'
I don't write any kind of sequel or remake.
I think when one becomes very close to another person, it can mean loving and intimacy, but on the other hand, there's also the danger of one destructing another under the name of love. I think that is the scariest thing for me in various relationships.
My favourite genre lies inside myself, and as I follow my favourite stories, characters and images, it sums up to a certain genre. So at times even I have to try to guess which genre a film will be after I've made it.
