South Korean star director Park Chan-wook (JSA, Old Boy), has thrilled both critics and audiences in his native country for a decade. His "vengeance" trilogy brought international recognition, including a Cannes Film Festival Grand Prize (2008) and a Jury Prize (2009), and established Park as a virtuoso filmmaker with a thoroughly original artistic vision. On July 24, 2009, The Korea Society recorded a special interview with the director in which he spoke about his influences, his meteoric ascension into the pantheon of internationally celebrated directors, and his latest film, Thirst.

Thirst is a stylish vampire thriller with a dramatic bite, and continues Park's exploration of the dark side of the human soul. A devout priest (Song Kang-ho, The Host) on a mission to Africa volunteers as a test subject in a vaccine trial-gone-awry. Now a vampire, he returns to Korea to endure the torments of temptation, embodied by a childhood friend's wife (Kim Ok-bin).