Hollywood honours Parasite stars Cho Yeo-jeong, Park So-dam and Choi Woo-shik as the Oscars academy welcomes South Korean talent

Jul 5, 2020

Choi Woo-shik, Song Kang-ho, Chang Hyde-jin and Park So-dam (from L-R) in a still from Parasite. Photo: CJ Entertainment

Following this year’s Oscars upset, the cast and crew of Parasite have been invited to join Hollywood’s Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences – joining director Bong Joon-ho and lead actor Song Kang-ho at the heart of the Oscar-making machine

The cast and lead crew of director Bong Joon-ho’s Oscar-winning Parasite have been invited to join the US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, according to the Hollywood film trade organisation.

The academy announced on its website that it extended invitations to 819 artists and executives “who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures”.

South Korean actors Cho Yeo-jeong (left), Park So-dam (centre) and Choi Woo-shik (right) make their mark at the 92nd Oscars ceremony. Photo: AFP

Choi Woo-shik, Jang Hye-jin, Cho Yeo-jeong, Lee Jung-eun and Park So-dam from the film were included in the list of new actor invitees.

Non-acting staff of the film – costume designer Choi Se-yeon, editor Yang Jin-mo, composer Jung Jae-il, producer Kwak Sin-ae, production designer Lee Ha-jun, sound designer Choi Tae-young and co-writer Han Jin-won – were also extended invitations.

South Korean director Bong Joon-ho accepts Oscar for Best International Feature Film for Parasite. Photo: AFP

Parasite director Bong and lead actor Song Kang-ho joined the academy in 2015, along with fellow South Korean film director Im Kwon-taek and actor Choi Min-sik.

South Korean director Yi Seung-jun of In the Absence, a documentary on the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster nominated for best short documentary at this year's Oscars, and Lee Hyun-min, supervisor for Walt Disney Animation Studios' Moana and Frozen 2, were also offered invitations by the academy this year.

The academy currently has some 40 South Korean members, including auteurs Park Chan-wook and Lee Chang-dong, and star actor Lee Byung-hun, who joined the prestigious organisation in 2016.