The increasing availability of film and television series from South Korea via streaming services and the insatiable appetite of the growing K-pop fan base has meant a surge in interest in the cultural output of the country. The Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), in partnership with the Korean Cultural Centre in South Africa (KCCSA), is proud to be highlighting the work of one of Korea’s most celebrated artists at this year’s festival, taking place from 17 to 27 July 2025.
Lee Chang-dong stands out as a pivotal figure in Korean cinema as he brings a rare depth to storytelling, blending poetic visuals with an unflinching look at the human condition. Not just entertainment, his films are meditations on life’s messiness, often leaving audiences wrestling with complex questions rather than handing out easy answers. While he has written and directed just six features in over two decades the calibre of his work has placed him among the most admired auteurs in film. A celebrated literary figure in South Korea whose fiction earned him accolades well before his foray into cinema, Lee writes and directs harrowing tales that place his characters in extreme psychological and physical agony to test the limits of the human spirit. His tightly structured plotlines deliver unflinching exposés of pain, trauma, and rage. He appears to follow conventional genre tropes, from melodrama to noir and gangster flicks, only to subvert audience expectations with exceptionally complex stories that leave them to contemplate perplexing existential, spiritual, and moral questions. A writer turned director whose literary background lends his films their novelistic weight, he has made some of the most searching and emotionally devastating works in contemporary cinema.
Lee was born in Daegu in 1954 to a leftist family. He hoped to become a painter at an early age but made a name for himself in the theatre and literary worlds. He started filmmaking at nearly 40, initially working as a screenwriter and assistant director for Park Kwang-su, an influential figure in the Korean New Wave of the late 1980s and 1990s. Between making Oasis (2002) and Secret Sunshine (2007), from 2003 to 2004, Lee served as South Korea’s Minister of Culture and Tourism.
Suffused with all the beauty, pain, and tension of real life, his films look closely at ordinary people pushed to emotional extremes as they grapple with tragedy and trauma: In Burning (2018), a slow-burn mystery about class, jealousy, and existential drift, adapted from a Haruki Murakami story, Lee transforms a slim narrative into a haunting, ambiguous masterpiece that has earned him critical acclaim and a Palme d’Or nomination at Cannes Film Festival.
Poetry (2010) focuses on an elderly woman who confronts her grandchild’s utter indifference to morality while facing Alzheimer’s. Tender yet brutal, it won Best Screenplay at Cannes, lauded for its deep emotional and intellectual impact.
His earlier work, Peppermint Candy (1999), rewinds a man’s life to unpack South Korea’s turbulent history, enhancing his reputation for weaving personal stories with societal scars. In Secret Sunshine (2007) he weaves the quiet desperation of a single mother as she endures a cascade of tragedies. Through these profoundly human characters, Lee contemplates the greatest question of all: what is the meaning of life in an often-senseless world? His restraint is one of his hallmarks. He does not rely on melodrama or flashy action—common in some Korean hits—but trusts quiet moments and subtle performances to carry the weight. Actors like Yoon Jeong-hee in Poetry or Yoo Ah-in Burning shine under his direction, delivering raw, lived-in portrayals. Jeon Do-yeon won Best Actress at Cannes for Secret Sunshine, while Moon So-ri received the Marcello Mastroianni Award at Venice for her breakout role in Oasis, further testament to the power of Lee’s human-focused storytelling.
The retrospective is made possible with the support of the Korean Cultural Centre in South Africa (KCCSA), which has played a key role in showcasing the richness and diversity of Korean culture to South African audiences. From film, art, and food to language, fashion, beauty, sports, and the global phenomenon of K-pop and K-dramas, the Centre has introduced a vibrant spectrum of Korean content to South Africa. Through collaborative projects and cultural initiatives, KCCSA is committed to foster deeper mutual understanding and strengthen enduring ties between South Korea and South Africa. To learn more about the Centre’s programmes and initiatives, visit their website (https://sa.korean-culture.org/en) or follow their social media pages.
Audiences will be able to enjoy five of Lee Chang-dong’s films –
PEPPERMINT CANDY – 19 Jul 19:00 Gateway 9
BURNING – 20 Jul 16:30 Gateway 9
POETRY – 20 Jul 18:30 Pavilion 12
SECRET SUNSHINE – 22 Jul 18:30 Gateway 8
OASIS – 23 Jul 18:30 Gateway 8
Festival Passes, bundles of 6 or 8 tickets so each ticket is 50% off the normal festival price, are now available at Webtickets. Offer valid until 4 July 2025.
Single tickets, at the normal festival price of R80, will be available for purchase from 10 June 2025 though each cinema.