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Director Prefers to Get Funding From Abroad

By Han Eun-jung
Staff Reporter

Acclaimed South Korean director Kim Ki-duk said that he will not receive local funding for his movies for the time being, according to the Yonhap News Agency.

Kim said that local funding keeps him from owning the copyrights to his movies, which often leads to conflicts with distributors when they are locally released.

"Having Japanese and European companies invest in my movies is less of a burden for me because the deals are made on the condition that I share the profits made from copyrights and ticket sales," Kim said.

Kim, who is known for his involving yet disturbing films, has moved into the international spotlight in recent years for films like "The Isle," "Bad Guy," "3-Iron" and "Samaritan Girl - Samaria."

More that half of the production cost that went in to his latest work "The Bow (Hwal)" came from Japan-based Happinet Pictures, the same company that funded "3-Iron." Kim's personal assets were the only other source of financing for the film.

Last year, his film "3-Iron" earned Kim the Silver Lion Special Prize for Best Director, following the best director prize at the Berlin Film Festival earlier in the year.

"Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... And Spring," a film that parallels a Buddhist monk's passage through life with the changing of the seasons, was well received in the United States last year. Bringing in some $42,000 (48.7 million won), the movie was ranked the third most popular independent film in the U.S. by Web site IndieWire in its opening week and later went on to expand its release in theaters from the initial 8 to 57.

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