President Moon Hosts 'Parasite Team' Luncheon at Blue House... Bong Joon-ho, Song Kang-ho Attend

The cast and crew of the movie Parasite are posing after the press conference held on the afternoon of the 19th at the Westin Chosun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sun-hee] On the 20th, President Moon Jae-in invited the director and actors of the film "Parasite," which won four awards at the American Academy Awards, to the Blue House for a luncheon. This event is to express gratitude and encouragement to the film personnel who brought national pride amid difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

President Moon is scheduled to meet with about 20 members of the "Parasite" production and cast at 12 noon at the Blue House main building for a preliminary conversation, followed by a luncheon. Twelve production staff members will attend, including director Bong Joon-ho, Kwak Shin-hye, CEO of Barunson E&A, producer Jang Young-hwan, and screenwriter Han Jin-won, who won the Best Original Screenplay award. Ten main cast members, including Song Kang-ho, Jang Hye-jin, Park So-dam, Choi Woo-shik, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Lee Jung-eun, and Park Myung-hoon, will also attend. Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Yang-woo will be present as well.

At this event, President Moon is expected to congratulate "Parasite" for winning four awards, including Best Picture, at the 92nd Academy Awards. He is also anticipated to express the government's intention to strengthen support for the cultural content sector. In particular, since the "Parasite" production team signed standard labor contracts, complied with the 52-hour workweek, and made efforts to protect child and adolescent actors, President Moon is likely to specifically mention and commend these efforts.

One administrative officer from the Blue House Office of Civil Society will also attend the preliminary conversation before the luncheon, drawing attention. This officer is a university classmate of director Bong and has been close to him in the past, providing assistance, which is why he was specially invited to join the conversation.

Following President Moon's opening remarks at the luncheon, director Bong and actor Song Kang-ho are expected to speak. Then, director Bong will present gifts prepared for President Moon, including the screenplay book and storyboard book. These creations, which contain the meticulous screenplay work of director Bong, nicknamed "Bong-tail (Bong Joon-ho + detail)," have already attracted significant interest, especially on social networking services (SNS).