Kim Ki Duk was a South Korean filmmaker noted for his idiosyncratic art-house cinematic works. His films have received many distinctions in the festival circuit, making him one of the most important contemporary Asian film directors. Two of his films served as official submissions for the Academy Award for the best foreign-language film award as South Korean entries.
In August 2017 an actress referred to as “Actress “A” by prosecutors filed a complaint against Kim through Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office. In the complaint actress accused Kim of slapping her face and forcing her to do an unscripted sex scene on the set of his film, Moebius. In December 2017, Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office fined Kim $4,450 (KRW 5 million) for physical assault but didn’t charge him otherwise citing lack of physical evidence.
On 11 December 2020, Kim died from complications caused by COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Latvia at the age of 59, nine days before his 60th birthday, in Latvia, where he had traveled in November 2020.