Director Park Chan-wook receives France‘s highest cultural and artistic honor

May 18, 2026, 01:22 pm

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Director Park Chan-wook (left), currently staying in Cannes, France, as the jury president for the competition section of the 79th Cannes Film Festival, receives the Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from French Culture Minister Catherine Pégard on May 17, local time. /Reuters via Yonhap News

Director Park Chan-wook was awarded France's highest honor for cultural and artistic achievement.

According to Reuters and other media outlets on May 17, local time, French Culture Minister Catherine Pégard presented the Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres to Park in Cannes, France, where the 79th Cannes Film Festival is currently underway.

The Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is bestowed upon individuals who have demonstrated outstanding creativity in all artistic fields—including literature, music, theater, and cinema—or who have contributed significantly to raising the international profile of French culture. It is divided into three ranks: Chevalier, Officier, and Commandeur, with Commandeur being the highest.

Park is the fourth South Korean to receive the Commandeur rank, following Kim Jeong-ok, then-president of the Korean Culture and Arts Foundation, in 2002; conductor Myung-whun Chung in 2011; and soprano Sumi Jo last year.

Staying in Cannes as this year's jury president for the competition section, Park shared his thoughts on the honor: "French cinema and philosophy have had a profound influence on my creative world. Receiving this award makes me feel as though all the influences I've drawn from France are coming together inside me. Just as I have been and continue to be deeply influenced by France, it is deeply moving and rewarding to think that I might be offering even a small amount of inspiration to young French directors." He added, "My final remaining wish is to one day shoot a film in France, working alongside French actors."

Park's relationship with the French film industry began in 2004 when he clinched the Grand Prix at Cannes for "Oldboy." Since then, he has received four invitations to the festival's competition section—including "Thirst" in 2009, "The Handmaiden" in 2016, and "Decision to Leave" in 2022—winning the Jury Prize for "Thirst" and Best Director for "Decision to Leave."

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