With his 95th film Chihwaseon, South Korea’s most famous director, the prodigiously gifted and fearlessly humanistic Im Kwon-taek, brings us his finest masterpiece. It is a fiery portrait of the renowned 19th century painter Ohwon, an artist who – like Im himself – rose from modest roots to great heights. Ohwon’s lowly caste, wild lifestyle and rough appetites placed him on the fringes of the stratified, moralistic Korean society. He was an unapologetic philanderer and worked in a haze of alcohol, but his creative prowess and devotion to his art were immense. He left a legacy that remains an inspiration and a treasure to this day.

Restless and beholden only to his art, Ohwon was a true revolutionary. While others fit into neat categories, he forged his own path, thumbing his nose at convention, seeking inspiration from wine, women and life – and in the process creating timeless masterpieces. Hunched over his paintings, he poured every ounce of his feeling into his watercolors and calligraphy.

Im balances the artist’s fervent personality with the serenity of the paintings which constantly illuminate the screen – landscapes of sumptuous beauty, misty rivers and mountain valleys. As Ohwon looked to his art to transcend his own mortality, Im looks to this misfit’s creative power to reveal truths about Korea’s experience as a nation.
For his epic recreation of Ohwon’s dramatic paintings and turbulent life, Im shared the prize for Best Director at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival.
- edited from the Toronto International Film Festival program guide