Hong Sang-soo’s ‘A Traveler’s Needs’ Wins the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at 74. Berlinale

At the 74th Berlinale, the Berlin International Film Festival, from February 15–25, 2024, South Korean director and screenwriter Hong Sang-soo won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize.

As acclaimed as he is, director Hong specializes in slow-moving stories on romance and recurring themes in modern-day Korea. His films typically follow his characters as they go about their daily lives, with an emphasis on domestic life and routines.

Hong’s drama film A Traveler’s Needs won the second-highest Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at the 74th Berlinale, trailing the Golden Bear prize awarded to French-Senegalese director Mati Diop’s documentary film Dahomey.

Other notable honors this year were an Honorary Golden Bear for American director Martin Scorsese and a Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance for the American psychological thriller film A Different Man, starring Romanian–American actor, Sebastian Stan.

Director Hong has previously taken home the Silver Bear for his prior works: On the Beach at Night Alone (2017), starring Kim Min-hee, won the Silver Bear for Best Actress; The Woman Who Ran (2020) got the Silver Bear for Best Director; Introduction (2021) took the Silver Bear for Best Screenplay; and The Novelist’s Film (2022) received the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize, respectively.

A Traveler’s Needs marks Hong’s fifth Silver Bear win at the Berlinale. It follows French actress Isabelle Huppert’s role as Iris, a French teacher of two Korean women. She attempts to live judiciously in the present, having endured financial hardships in the past. For solace, she turns to Makgeolli (Korean rice wine), relaxing on rocks, and taking barefoot walks. However, difficulties persist.

In his winning speech for the movie, Hong thanked the jury, adding, “I don’t know what you saw in the film.” “I’m curious. Anyway, I really thank you,” citing Yonhap News Agency.

While A Traveler’s Needs was a competition entry, five other Korean films screened at the festival this year, namely the action crime The Roundup: Punishment for the special gala section, the suspenseful thriller Exhuma for the forum section, the short animation film Circle, and the coming-of-age drama film It’s Okay! showed up in the shorts and generation competition sections, and the documentary Voices of the Silenced made it to the forum’s special section.