Oscars: South Korea Selects Lee Chang-dong’s ‘Possible Love’ for International Feature Race

The Korean Film Council (KOFIC) has selected “Possible Love,” directed by Lee Chang-dong, as South Korea‘s official entry for the international feature film category at the 2027 Academy Awards.

“Possible Love” marks Lee’s first feature in eight years, following “Burning,” “Poetry” and “Secret Sunshine.” The film centers on two married couples whose lives intersect after a funeral: Mi-ok and her laid-off husband Ho-seok (Sul Kyung-gu), who live quietly with their young son Cheol, and Ye-ji, a filmmaker making a documentary about workers who lost their jobs, and her husband Sang-woo (Zo In-sung). When Mi-ok agrees to be filmed by Ye-ji, the two women grow close, while Mi-ok finds herself unsettled by an attraction to Sang-woo. As the two couples’ worlds overlap, cracks begin to surface in both marriages.

A 15-member selection committee, chaired by film critic Jung Sung-il, made the choice. Other committee members included Kang Myung-chan, Kim So-young, Kim Jae-joong, Kim Tae-sung, Kim Hyun-chul, Moon Young-hwa, Song Kyung-won, Won Dong-yeon, Yoo Hyun-taek, Yoon Sung-eun, Lee Han, Lim Dae-hyung, Jung Yi-jun and Cho Hwa-sung.

In its evaluation, the committee cited the film’s polished craftsmanship and the clarity of its directorial vision, pointing to the tone and mise-en-scène that sustain a sense of pressure throughout the story. The drama was described as prompting reflection on gentle forms of violence, incomplete freedom and the nature of true happiness, alongside a labor movement sequence that the committee said captured layered social undercurrents.

The committee also highlighted the film’s humanism and delicate direction, its dense, multidimensional character relationships, and its meditation on love, desire and original sin. Members called it the culmination of Lee’s perspective and preoccupations as a filmmaker, praising what they described as nearly flawless performances from the four leads.

The committee pointed to the international feature category’s track record of favoring auteur-driven dramas, noting that Lee’s 2018 film “Burning” became the first Korean title to advance to the Academy’s foreign language film shortlist. Members also flagged strong anticipation from North American press and said a Netflix awards team is preparing a campaign for the film that extends to a best picture push.

The film’s world premiere will be at the Venice Film Festival and North American Premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.

Under Academy international feature film category rules, “Possible Love” must complete its local theatrical release in South Korea by Sept. 30. The film will open in Korean theaters Sept. 23, followed by select theatrical releases in Australia Oct. 22 and in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland and Japan Oct. 23, before streaming globally on Netflix starting Nov. 6.

South Korea has submitted films in the category since 1962 without a nomination for decades, until Lee Chang-dong’s “Burning” became the first Korean film to make the shortlist in 2018. Bong Joon Ho’s “Parasite” then won the category and best picture in 2020 – the first non-English-language film to do so – and Park Chan-wook’s “Decision to Leave” (2022) and “No Other Choice” (2025) both reached the shortlist without landing a nomination.