South Korea’s top filmmaker, Bong Joon-ho has begun shooting “Parasite,” his first film since “Okja” which was backed by Netflix and debuted in competition last year in Cannes. It stars Song Kang-ho, Korea’s leading character actor.
The film is a drama about a family of four, in which each member has unique characteristics. Bong says that, despite the title, the film does not include either parasites or alien creatures.
Production started on Sunday. “The film had been originally scheduled to start shooting in our studio on May 25, but was pushed back slightly,” a spokesperson from Goyang Aqua Studio, an outfit that specializes in underwater shooting, told Variety on Wednesday.
After shooting “Snowpiercer” and “Okja” largely in English, the film is Bong’s first Korean-language title since his 2009 “Mother.” He has reassembled production elements from “Mother.” Barunson E&A is on board as producer. CJ Entertainment is set as the Korean distributor. CJ is also to handle international sales, ahead of a release anticipated in 2019.
Aside from Song, who previously played lead roles in Bong’s “The Host” and “Snowpiercer,” “Parasite” also features Jang Hye-jin (“The World of Us”) as the wife. Park So-dam (“The Priests”) and “Okja” and “Train to Busan” star Choi Woo-shik appear as the couple’s children. The cast also includes veteran actors Lee Sun-kyun (“A Hard Day”) and Jo Yeo-jeong (“The Target”).
