Filmmaker Lee Chang-dong finds poetry in fight of the powerless individual

The Korea Times - Nov 9, 2026

"'Possible' and 'love' are both commonly used words, but when they came together, the combination felt unfamiliar. I wondered, 'What kind of love is possible?' I thought the title would pose a question to audiences and prompt them to reflect on the nature of love." The title "Possible Love" sparks curiosity before the film and leaves audiences with a peculiar sense of sadness afterward. It emerged from this very idea, according to director Lee Chang-dong, whose seventh feature film marks his return to the big screen after an eight-year hiatus. The Hankook Ilbo met Lee at a cafe in central Seoul on Friday, the day Netflix, the film's investor and distributor, released it worldwide. As its title suggests, the film explores several intertwined layers of love. It follows the events that unfold when Ho-seok (Sol Kyung-gu), a laid-off worker, and his wife Mi-ok (Jeon Do-yeon) encounter Ye-ji (Cho Yeo-jeong), an affluent documentary filmmaker who films their lives, and her husband Sang-woo (Zo In-sung). Issues of labor, class and the ethics of artistic creation overlap on multiple levels. Lee

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