The Korean Film Council has selected Lee Chang-dong's Possible Love as South Korea's official submission for the Academy Awards' Best International Feature Film category. The film premieres at the Venice Film Festival this September in competition for the Golden Lion, and marks Chang-dong's first feature since Burning in 2018.
Possible Love centers on two married couples whose lives intersect in the aftermath of a funeral. Sul Kyung-gu plays Ho-seok, a laid-off worker living quietly with his wife Mi-ok and their young son. Zo In-sung plays Sang-woo, whose wife Ye-ji is a documentary filmmaker covering workers who lost their jobs. The film opens in Korean theatres September 23, expands to Australia on October 22 and to the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Ireland, and Japan on October 23, then streams worldwide on Netflix from November 6.
Netflix, which holds international rights, is planning a Best Picture campaign alongside the international feature push, according to Deadline. The studio set an awards-qualifying theatrical release specifically to support the wider campaign.
Lee Chang-dong is one of the few filmmakers whose silences function as events. Secret Sunshine, Poetry, Burning. Each film arrived years from the last and shifted what South Korean cinema looked like to the rest of the world. Possible Love comes to Venice with full KOFIC backing and a streaming partner treating it like a major awards player. What the Golden Lion jury makes of it is the first open question of the season.
The film also screens as a gala selection at the Toronto International Film Festival, which runs September 10 through 20.
