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'Parasite' director Bong Joon-ho to head jury at 2021 Venice Film Festival
CGTN

South Korean director Bong Joon-ho, whose 2019 feature "Parasite" swept four Oscars including the Academy Award for Best Picture last year, has been selected as jury president of the 78th International Venice Film Festival, the organizers announced Friday.

It marks the first time a South Korean director has been picked as the top juror of the oldest film festival in the world. In September, the Oscar winner will preside over seven jurors to hand out the festival's top awards, including the prestigious Golden Lion.

In accepting the proposal, the 51-year-old director in a statement issued by festival organizers said, "The Venice International Film Festival carries with it a long and varied history, and I'm honored to be woven into its beautiful cinematic tradition."

(L-R)Anna Foglietta, director of the festival Alberto Barbera and Julia Barbera walk the red carpet ahead of closing ceremony at the 77th Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, September 12, 2020. /CFP

(L-R)Anna Foglietta, director of the festival Alberto Barbera and Julia Barbera walk the red carpet ahead of closing ceremony at the 77th Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, September 12, 2020. /CFP

"As president of the jury – and more importantly as a perpetual cinephile – I'm ready to admire and applaud all the great films selected by the festival. I'm filled with genuine hope and excitement," the veteran filmmaker added.

Venice artistic director Alberto Barbera remarked upon the historic nature of the selection and saluted Bong as "one of the most authentic and original voices in worldwide cinema."

Barbera noted in the statement that the decision is "confirmation that the Venetian event embraces the cinema of the entire world, and that directors from every country know they can consider Venice their second home."

Director Bong Joon-ho, winner of the Palme d'Or award for his film "Parasite" poses at the winner photocall during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, May 25, 2019. /CFP

Director Bong Joon-ho, winner of the Palme d'Or award for his film "Parasite" poses at the winner photocall during the 72nd annual Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, May 25, 2019. /CFP

"We are immensely grateful to him for having agreed to put his passion as a cinephile attentive, inquisitive and unprejudiced at the service of our festival," said the festival director, adding: "It is a pleasure and an honor to be able to share the joy of this moment with the countless admirers, throughout the world, of his extraordinary movies."

Bong made history in 2020 when his work "Parasite," a dark comedy about the gap between rich and poor, became the first foreign-language film to win an Oscar for Best Picture in the nearly 100-year history of the Academy Awards, and also took home three other statuettes for Best Director, Best International Feature and Best Original Screenplay, after winning the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2019.

"Parasite" director Bong Joon-ho (2nd R), alongside the actors starring in the film attend a press conference at a hotel in Seoul, South Korea, February 19, 2020. /CFP

"Parasite" director Bong Joon-ho (2nd R), alongside the actors starring in the film attend a press conference at a hotel in Seoul, South Korea, February 19, 2020. /CFP

The Venice International Film Festival is one of the most prestigious in the world, rivaling Cannes and Berlin, and the oldest. 

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, the top-tier film fest ran an, albeit smaller than usual, physical edition last September before the second wave struck.

Its 78th edition is scheduled for September 1 to 11, 2021.

(Cover: Oscar winner Bong Joon-ho poses during the 92nd Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California, U.S., February 9, 2020. /CFP)

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