{
  "id": 8187512,
  "title": "Korean director Yeon Sang-ho credits mother for inspiring new film 'Paradise Lost'",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/korean-director-yeon-sang-ho-credits-mother-for-inspiring-new-film",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-18T06:22:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/entertainment/films/20260918/korean-director-yeon-sang-ho-credits-mother-for-inspiring-new-film-paradise-lost"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Korean filmmaker Yeon Sang-ho revealed that his latest film, Paradise Lost, was inspired by a story written by his mother. The psychological thriller, which premiered in Seoul, follows the unsettling reunion between the mother, So-young (Kim Hyun-joo), and her son, Sun-woo (Bae Hyun-sung), who was presumed dead in a school bus accident nine years earlier.\n\nYeon Sang-ho, known for hits such as Colony, The Ugly, and Train to Busan, shared at a press conference that his mother was always supportive of his screenwriting aspirations. During one visit, she showed him a three-page story she had penned, which became the basis for the film. The director playfully mentioned that he purchased the story at a discount and that it served as the foundation for the screenplay he developed.",
  "summary": "Yeon Sang-ho, the prolific Korean filmmaker behind the hits \"Colony\" (2026), \"The Ugly\" (2025) and \"Train to Busan\" (2016), said Friday his latest film, \"Paradise Lost,\" was inspired by a three-page story penned by his own mother. \"Paradise Lost\" is a psychological thriller that follows the unsettling reunion between So-young (Kim Hyun-joo) and her son Sun-woo (Bae Hyun-sung), who was presumed to…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Gulf News",
        "title": "Han So-Hee and Choi Min Sik's The Intern becomes first Korean film to top box office in 50 days, beats Odyssey",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/han-so-hee-and-choi-min-siks-the-intern-becomes-first-korean-film-to",
        "published": "2026-09-18T03:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "Korean director Yeon Sang-ho credits mother for inspiring new film 'Paradise Lost'",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/korean-director-yeon-sang-ho-credits-mother-for-inspiring-new-film-8188916",
        "published": "2026-09-18T05:55:25.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Korean director Yeon Sang-ho credits mother for inspiring new film 'Paradise Lost'",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/korean-director-yeon-sang-ho-credits-mother-for-inspiring-new-film-8189594",
        "published": "2026-09-18T06:32:04.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}