Korean movie director Kim Ki-duk, who won at the Cannes, Venice and Berlin film festivals, died from coronavirus disease (COVID-19) complications in Latvia on Dec. 11. He was 59.
Kim arrived in Latvia on Nov. 20 but by Dec. 5 he could no longer be contacted, according to Russian documentary film director Vitaly Mansky, the Latvian news portal Delfi reported.
The report stated that Kim came to Latvia supposedly to buy a house in Jurmala City and apply for a residence permit. After he did not show up for a meeting, his colleagues searched for him in hospitals in Latvia.
Mansky confirmed to Delfi that Kim died at a hospital on Dec. 11. His death was also confirmed by his interpreter. Kim died just over a week before his 60th birthday on Dec. 20.
Kim’s body will likely be cremated in Latvia and his family requested the Korean Embassy in Latvia to take care of the funeral process as it is difficult for them to travel because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Yonhap News reported.
Kim started his career as director in South Korea with the film “Crocodile” that was released in 1996. He won the Golden Lion for his film “Pieta’ at the 69th Venice Film Festival in 2012; Silver Lion for “3-Lion” at the 61st Venice Film Festival in 2004; Silver Bear for “Samaritan Girl” at the 54th Berlin International Film Festival in 2004; and Un Certain Regard Prize for “Arirang” at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.
However, his achievements were overshadowed by allegations of assault and sexual assault. He became embroiled in a controversy in August 2017 when an unnamed actress accused Kim of hitting her and forcing her to film a sex scene for the movie “Moebius” that was released in 2013. Kim sued the actress and a Korean TV channel MBC for defamation but lost. In 2018, Kim was accused of sexually assaulting actresses.