Wikipedia counts 38 Korean submissions since 1962, with one nomination and one win, both for Parasite. Other answers counted 36 or 37.
Back to the trend of the day: A Korean film star is tipped for an Oscar nomination (in Korean)
Poly Rating · from the trend of the day
South Korea Oscar Submissions: Top 10, 1962–2026
South Korea has sent 38 films to the Oscars since 1962, and only one, Parasite, was ever nominated. It went on to win, while even a Venice Golden Lion winner, Pietà, never made the shortlist.
- No. 1: Parasite (2019)
- 10 places
01Final list
The leading AIs each built their own list of ten independently. Here is one result that is easy to check: every place has a reason, a source, and the list of AIs that included it.
Order: from most to least AI agreement.
A bright badge means this AI put the entry on its list. A dim badge means it did not.
- 1
Parasite (2019)
The only Korean submission ever nominated, and it won four Oscars, including the first Best Picture for a non-English film. It also had a Palme d'Or and over 10 million admissions at home.
Included it: Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Gemini, Kimi, DeepSeek, Qwen. Did not include: Nemotron.In their lists: Claude: 1 · ChatGPT: 1 · Grok: 1 · Gemini: 1 · Kimi: 1 · DeepSeek: 1 · Qwen: 1
What each AI noted 7
- Claudeplace 1
The only Korean winner, with 4 Oscars including Best Picture, and over 10 million home admissions.
Source ↗ - ChatGPTplace 1
The only South Korean submission to win Best International Feature—and the first non-English-language Best Picture winner.
- Grokplace 1
The only Korean submission to win — four Oscars, including the first Best Picture not in English — after a Palme d’Or and a 97 Metascore.
- Geminiplace 1
The only film in Oscar history to win both the Palme d'Or and the Academy Award for Best Picture alongside Best International Feature.
- Kimiplace 1
The only Korean submission that turned a Cannes top prize into a Best Picture win.
Source ↗ - DeepSeekplace 1
The only South Korean submission ever to win Best International Feature — and it also took Best Picture, the first non-English film to do so.
- Qwenplace 1
Erased the gap between arthouse prestige and Academy voters, becoming the first non-English Best Picture winner.
7 AIs put it here - 2
Burning (2018)
The first Korean film to make the Academy shortlist, after a Cannes critics' prize and Metacritic 90–91. It drew only 528,168 admissions at home and was then dropped.
Included it: Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Gemini, Kimi, DeepSeek, Qwen. Did not include: Nemotron.In their lists: Claude: 2 · ChatGPT: 2 · Grok: 2 · Gemini: 2 · Kimi: 3 · DeepSeek: 2 · Qwen: 2
What each AI noted 7
- Claudeplace 2
The first Korean film shortlisted, after the highest Screen critics' poll score at Cannes, and then it was dropped.
Source ↗ - ChatGPTplace 2
Its Cannes critics’ prize and Academy shortlist run made it a landmark—yet it stopped one stage before nomination.
Source ↗ - Grokplace 2
The first Korean film onto the Academy shortlist, with Cannes’ critics’ prize and the highest Screen International jury-grid score the festival had recorded — then no nomination.
Source ↗ - Geminiplace 2
Broke Cannes Screen Daily's all-time jury grid record with a 3.8/4.0 average and became South Korea's first-ever film to reach the Academy shortlist.
- Kimiplace 3
A 528,168-admission art film outlasted Korea's 12-million crowd-pleasers by reaching the shortlist first.
- DeepSeekplace 2
The first South Korean film ever shortlisted for the foreign-language Oscar — it made the nine-film January list but not the final five.
- Qwenplace 2
Universally acclaimed by critics but halted at the shortlist, proving that slow-burn ambiguity rarely secures final votes.
7 AIs put it here - 3
Decision to Leave (2022)
Park Chan-wook won best director at Cannes and the film scored Metacritic 85. It made the 15-film shortlist but missed the final five.
Included it: Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Gemini, Kimi, DeepSeek, Qwen. Did not include: Nemotron.In their lists: Claude: 3 · ChatGPT: 3 · Grok: 3 · Gemini: 3 · Kimi: 2 · DeepSeek: 3 · Qwen: 3
What each AI noted 7
- Claudeplace 3
Park Chan-wook's Cannes best director win became a shortlist spot, with no nomination.
- ChatGPTplace 3
Metacritic’s 85 and a Cannes directing prize place it among the strongest critical submissions, but it missed the final five.
Source ↗ - Grokplace 3
Park Chan-wook’s Cannes best-director prize and a second Korean shortlist, then the same stop as Burning: no nomination.
Source ↗ - Geminiplace 3
Claimed Cannes Best Director for Park Chan-wook and advanced to the 15-film Oscar shortlist, only to be snubbed in the final nominations envelope.
Source ↗ - Kimiplace 2
Best Director at Cannes, shortlist at the Academy, but the final nomination stayed out of reach.
Source ↗ - DeepSeekplace 3
Won Best Director at Cannes and scored 85 on Metacritic, yet the Academy did not shortlist it — the starkest critics-versus-Academy gap in the list.
Source ↗ - Qwenplace 3
Its Cannes director prize and high critics' scores pushed it to the shortlist, bypassing the usual genre hurdles.
Source ↗
7 AIs put it here - 4
Possible Love (2026)
The first Korean Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize, rated 100% from 56 reviews, yet only 230,479 admissions at home. Its Academy stage is still pending.
Included it: Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Gemini, Kimi, DeepSeek, Qwen. Did not include: Nemotron.In their lists: Claude: 5 · ChatGPT: 5 · Grok: 4 · Gemini: 4 · Kimi: 5 · DeepSeek: 6 · Qwen: 4
What each AI noted 7
- Claudeplace 5
A Silver Lion and 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, with the Academy verdict still to come.
Source ↗ - ChatGPTplace 5
Already carrying Venice’s Silver Lion and Korean critics’ Best Film, it is the first entry here whose Academy stage is still pending.
- Grokplace 4
Venice’s second prize and 100% of 56 reviews, with 230,479 admissions — about one-seventieth of this year’s Korean chart-topper.
Source ↗ - Geminiplace 4
Won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at Venice 2026, marking director Lee Chang-dong's fourth official entry submitted by KOFIC to the Academy.
Source ↗ - Kimiplace 5
Lee Chang-dong's fourth submission arrives with the Silver Lion and a Korean critics' sweep before the Academy stage is even set.
Source ↗ - DeepSeekplace 6
The current submission: a Venice Grand Jury Prize and a 93 Metacritic score make it the strongest South Korean entry on paper since Parasite, but the shortlist is still pending.
- Qwenplace 4
Its Venice Silver Lion and perfect RT score aim to bridge the massive gap that has kept Korean dramas out of the final five.
Source ↗
7 AIs put it here - 5
No Other Choice (2025)
Won Toronto's International People's Choice Award, scored Metacritic 86 and drew 2.94 million admissions. It earned three Golden Globe nominations and made the shortlist, but got no Oscar nomination.
Included it: Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Kimi, Qwen. Did not include: Nemotron, Gemini, DeepSeek.In their lists: Claude: 4 · ChatGPT: 4 · Grok: 5 · Kimi: 4 · Qwen: 7
What each AI noted 5
- Claudeplace 4
A nine-minute Venice ovation and Golden Globe nominations, then Park's second shortlist exit in three years.
Source ↗ - ChatGPTplace 4
A shortlist finish after a Neon campaign still ended before nomination, extending Korea’s near-miss pattern.
- Grokplace 5
Toronto’s international audience prize, three Golden Globe nominations, a shortlist — and a complete Oscar shutout.
Source ↗ - Kimiplace 4
Venice came up short, but the Academy shortlist made it three Korean shortlists in eight years.
Source ↗ - Qwenplace 7
Its shortlist placement proves that Park Chan-wook's established critical regard now clears the committee hurdle.
Source ↗
5 AIs put it here - 6
Secret Sunshine (2007)
Jeon Do-yeon won Cannes best actress, the first Korean actor to win there. The film had 94% on Rotten Tomatoes and 1.71 million admissions, and was not nominated.
Included it: Claude, Grok, Gemini, Kimi, Qwen. Did not include: ChatGPT, Nemotron, DeepSeek.In their lists: Claude: 6 · Grok: 6 · Gemini: 6 · Kimi: 6 · Qwen: 6
What each AI noted 5
- Claudeplace 6
Jeon Do-yeon won Cannes best actress for it, nineteen years before her Oscar talk for Possible Love.
Source ↗ - Grokplace 6
Jeon Do-yeon’s Cannes best-actress prize, the first for a Korean actor there, and the submission still never made the Oscar list.
Source ↗ - Geminiplace 6
Earned Jeon Do-yeon Cannes Best Actress honors and unanimous praise, but failed to penetrate the Academy's foreign-language branch in 2007.
Source ↗ - Kimiplace 6
Jeon Do-yeon's Cannes trophy made this the rare submission whose star outshone the film's Oscar result.
Source ↗ - Qwenplace 6
Jeon Do-yeon's Cannes win highlighted a massive gap, as the Academy historically ignores pure, untranslated grief.
Source ↗
5 AIs put it here - 7
Oasis (2002)
At Venice, Lee Chang-dong won a Silver Lion for directing and Moon So-ri won the Mastroianni Award. The Academy took it as a submission and nothing more.
Included it: Claude, Grok, Gemini, Kimi, Qwen. Did not include: ChatGPT, Nemotron, DeepSeek.In their lists: Claude: 7 · Grok: 9 · Gemini: 5 · Kimi: 7 · Qwen: 8
What each AI noted 5
- Claudeplace 7
Lee Chang-dong's Venice prize gave Korea its last Venice win until 2012's Pietà, 24 years before Possible Love.
Source ↗ - Grokplace 9
Lee Chang-dong’s Venice directing prize in 2002, twenty-four years before Possible Love, and the submission stopped at the front door.
Source ↗ - Geminiplace 5
Took home the Venice Silver Lion and FIPRESCI prize in 2002, yet was completely excluded from Oscar consideration during the pre-shortlist voting era.
- Kimiplace 7
Venice gave Lee Chang-dong directing silver and Moon So-ri the Mastroianni; the Academy gave it a submission and nothing more.
- Qwenplace 8
Its Venice prizes and 90% RT score were outweighed by its uncompromising subject matter, leaving it entirely unrewarded by AMPAS.
5 AIs put it here - 8
Mother (2009)
Bong Joon-ho's entry ten years before Parasite drew 96% on Rotten Tomatoes and 3.0 million admissions. It was chosen over Park's Thirst and not nominated.
Included it: Claude, Grok, Gemini, Kimi, Qwen. Did not include: ChatGPT, Nemotron, DeepSeek.In their lists: Claude: 9 · Grok: 7 · Gemini: 8 · Kimi: 8 · Qwen: 9
What each AI noted 5
- Claudeplace 9
Bong Joon-ho's film was picked over Park Chan-wook's Thirst and went unnominated, ten years before Parasite.
Source ↗ - Grokplace 7
96% from 114 reviews and an 8.1 audience score on Metacritic, sent by the country and never nominated.
- Geminiplace 8
Named Best Film by the Boston and Los Angeles film critics societies, yet was completely overlooked by the AMPAS selection committee.
- Kimiplace 8
Bong's pre-Parasite submission out-reviewed most winners: 96% RT and 3.0 million admissions from only a Un Certain Regard launch.
- Qwenplace 9
A 96% RT Bong Joon Ho masterpiece that suffered the ultimate gap: brilliant at home, completely ignored by the Academy.
5 AIs put it here - 9
Pietà (2012)
The first Korean Golden Lion, the top prize at a big three festival, yet it was not even shortlisted. Critics gave it just 73% and a Metascore of 72.
Included it: Claude, Grok, Gemini, Qwen. Did not include: ChatGPT, Nemotron, Kimi, DeepSeek.In their lists: Claude: 8 · Grok: 8 · Gemini: 7 · Qwen: 5
What each AI noted 4
- Claudeplace 8
Korea's last Venice win before 2026, and it did not reach the Oscar shortlist.
Source ↗ - Grokplace 8
The first Korean Golden Lion, and the critics were at 73% and 72 — the Academy did not even shortlist it.
- Geminiplace 7
Won the coveted Venice Golden Lion—the highest prize among all submissions—yet couldn't even make the 9-film Oscar shortlist.
- Qwenplace 5
A Golden Lion winner whose extreme narrative created an unbridgeable gap between festival juries and AMPAS sensibilities.
4 AIs put it here - 10
A Taxi Driver (2017)
With 12.19 million admissions, the biggest home audience in this top ten, it still could not reach the Academy shortlist.
Included it: Gemini, Kimi, DeepSeek, Qwen. Did not include: Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Nemotron.In their lists: Gemini: 10 · Kimi: 9 · DeepSeek: 5 · Qwen: 10
What each AI noted 4
- Geminiplace 10
Mobilized 12.2 million Korean theatergoers and won Fantasia's Best Film, yet failed to secure an Oscar nod amid conventional historical storytelling.
Source ↗ - Kimiplace 9
The biggest audience in this top ten could not buy an Academy shortlist.
Source ↗ - DeepSeekplace 5
A domestic smash and a 97% Rotten Tomatoes critic score, but the Academy did not shortlist it — another case of popular and critical success not translating into Oscar traction.
Source ↗ - Qwenplace 10
Its massive 12M domestic admissions highlight a stark gap: home audience favorites rarely translate to international Oscar votes.
Source ↗
4 AIs put it here
02Worth knowing
What the AIs noticed while building the list.
Three of the last eight entries made the shortlist, all by Lee Chang-dong or Park Chan-wook, and each stopped before the final five.
Possible Love's 230,479 admissions sit next to 16,932,841 for The King's Warden on the same 2026 KOBIS chart.
The shortlist has changed size over time: Burning made a list of nine, while Decision to Leave and No Other Choice made lists of 15.
03Questions people ask
Which South Korean movie won an Oscar?
Parasite (2019) won four Oscars, including Best International Feature and Best Picture. Youn Yuh-jung's supporting-actress Oscar was for Minari, a US production, not a Korean entry.
How many films has South Korea submitted to the Oscars?
Wikipedia counts 38 since 1962, from My Mother and the Roomer to Possible Love. Some answers counted 36 or 37 because they used older versions of the list.
Source ↗Has any other South Korean submission been nominated?
No. Burning, Decision to Leave and No Other Choice all made the shortlist, but only Parasite reached the final five.
Source ↗Is Possible Love shortlisted for the 2027 Oscars?
Not yet. It is Korea's official entry, the shortlist is due December 15, 2026, and nominations come January 21, 2027.
Source ↗04How we counted
In plain words, no formulas.
1The question
Top 10 South Korean Oscar Submissions: Festival Prizes, Critics, Audiences and How Far Each Got with the Academy
2Why this topic
Readers see Korea's whole Oscar history, scored against festival juries, critics and audiences, and how rarely quality led to recognition.
3Where it applies
South Korea's official entries for Best International Feature (earlier called Foreign Language Film), from the first entry to Possible Love in 2026
4What we looked at
- Major competition prizes at Cannes, Venice and Berlin
- International critics' score
- Audience rating, plus home box office admissions
- The furthest Oscar stage reached: submitted, shortlisted, nominated or won
- The gap between how highly each film is regarded and how far it got
- Wikipedia list of South Korean submissions (from Academy records) — Each year's entry and how far it got: not nominated, shortlisted, nominated or won. The list counts 38 submissions.
- Korean Film Council (KOFIC / KOBIS / KoBiz) — Theatrical admissions in Korea, plus official submission notices
- Cannes, Venice and Berlin juries — Competition prizes actually awarded: Palme d'Or, Golden Lion, Silver Lion, and the Cannes directing and acting prizes
5Who ranked
The leading AIs, each building its own list of ten independently and naming a source for every place: Claude, ChatGPT, Grok, Nemotron, Gemini, Kimi, DeepSeek, Qwen.
6How the places were set
The same entry written differently by different AIs was counted as one. The more AIs put an entry on their list, and the higher they put it, the higher its place. "AI agreement" shows how many of the AIs had it on their own list. Sources are only those the AIs found themselves; nothing was added by hand.
05Each AI's own list
🇺🇸 Claude10 places · 3 notes
The same question, answered by Claude alone. The final list above combines all the AIs.
- 1Parasite (2019 submission)
The only Korean winner, with 4 Oscars including Best Picture, and over 10 million home admissions.
Source ↗ - 2Burning (2018 submission)
The first Korean film shortlisted, after the highest Screen critics' poll score at Cannes, and then it was dropped.
Source ↗ - 3Decision to Leave (2022 submission)
Park Chan-wook's Cannes best director win became a shortlist spot, with no nomination.
- 4No Other Choice (2025 submission)
A nine-minute Venice ovation and Golden Globe nominations, then Park's second shortlist exit in three years.
Source ↗ - 5Possible Love (2026 submission)
A Silver Lion and 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, with the Academy verdict still to come.
Source ↗ - 6Secret Sunshine (2007 submission)
Jeon Do-yeon won Cannes best actress for it, nineteen years before her Oscar talk for Possible Love.
Source ↗ - 7Oasis (2002 submission)
Lee Chang-dong's Venice prize gave Korea its last Venice win until 2012's Pietà, 24 years before Possible Love.
Source ↗ - 8Pietà (2012 submission)
Korea's last Venice win before 2026, and it did not reach the Oscar shortlist.
Source ↗ - 9Mother (2009 submission)
Bong Joon-ho's film was picked over Park Chan-wook's Thirst and went unnominated, ten years before Parasite.
Source ↗ - 10Chunhyang (2000 submission)
Im Kwon-taek's film came before the long run of Cannes-linked entries and was not nominated.
Source ↗
What Claude noticed
Korea has made 38 submissions. One won (Parasite), 3 were shortlisted (Burning, Decision to Leave, No Other Choice) and 33 were not nominated, with Possible Love pending.
Three of the last eight entries were shortlisted. All three were by Lee Chang-dong or Park Chan-wook, and each stopped before the final five.
Possible Love is the first Korean film to win the Venice Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize. Netflix is reportedly campaigning it in five Oscar categories.
🇺🇸 ChatGPT10 places · 1 notes
The same question, answered by ChatGPT alone. The final list above combines all the AIs.
- 1Parasite (2019, South Korea)
The only South Korean submission to win Best International Feature—and the first non-English-language Best Picture winner.
- 2Burning (2018, South Korea)
Its Cannes critics’ prize and Academy shortlist run made it a landmark—yet it stopped one stage before nomination.
Source ↗ - 3Decision to Leave (2022, South Korea)
Metacritic’s 85 and a Cannes directing prize place it among the strongest critical submissions, but it missed the final five.
Source ↗ - 4No Other Choice (2025, South Korea)
A shortlist finish after a Neon campaign still ended before nomination, extending Korea’s near-miss pattern.
- 5Possible Love (2026, South Korea)
Already carrying Venice’s Silver Lion and Korean critics’ Best Film, it is the first entry here whose Academy stage is still pending.
- 6The Handmaiden (2016, South Korea)
A Cannes competition title with striking audience and critic interest, but it was not Korea’s Oscar submission that year.
- 7Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003, South Korea)
A major international critical touchstone, but South Korea did not send it as its Academy entry.
- 8The Wailing (2016, South Korea)
A high-profile genre favorite that demonstrates how strong audience conversation can exist without an Academy submission or shortlist run.
Source ↗ - 9Mother (2009, South Korea)
A Cannes-selected film frequently discussed among Korea’s major auteur works, but it did not become the country’s Oscar entry.
- 10The World of Us (2016, South Korea)
A critics-and-viewers discovery that illustrates the key boundary in this ranking: acclaim alone cannot advance a film that was not submitted.
Source ↗
What ChatGPT noticed
Decision to Leave’s reported opening day of 114,592 admissions is a different measure from its full theatrical admissions or critic score.
🇺🇸 Grok10 places · 3 notes
The same question, answered by Grok alone. The final list above combines all the AIs.
- 1Parasite (South Korea, 2019)
The only Korean submission to win — four Oscars, including the first Best Picture not in English — after a Palme d’Or and a 97 Metascore.
- 2Burning (South Korea, 2018)
The first Korean film onto the Academy shortlist, with Cannes’ critics’ prize and the highest Screen International jury-grid score the festival had recorded — then no nomination.
Source ↗ - 3Decision to Leave (South Korea, 2022)
Park Chan-wook’s Cannes best-director prize and a second Korean shortlist, then the same stop as Burning: no nomination.
Source ↗ - 4Possible Love (South Korea, 2026)
Venice’s second prize and 100% of 56 reviews, with 230,479 admissions — about one-seventieth of this year’s Korean chart-topper.
Source ↗ - 5No Other Choice (South Korea, 2025)
Toronto’s international audience prize, three Golden Globe nominations, a shortlist — and a complete Oscar shutout.
Source ↗ - 6Secret Sunshine (South Korea, 2007)
Jeon Do-yeon’s Cannes best-actress prize, the first for a Korean actor there, and the submission still never made the Oscar list.
Source ↗ - 7Mother (South Korea, 2009)
96% from 114 reviews and an 8.1 audience score on Metacritic, sent by the country and never nominated.
- 8Pietà (South Korea, 2012)
The first Korean Golden Lion, and the critics were at 73% and 72 — the Academy did not even shortlist it.
- 9Oasis (South Korea, 2002)
Lee Chang-dong’s Venice directing prize in 2002, twenty-four years before Possible Love, and the submission stopped at the front door.
Source ↗ - 1012.12: The Day (South Korea, 2023)
About 13.1 million admissions at home, and the Academy never nominated it.
Source ↗
What Grok noticed
Wikipedia’s current count is 38 South Korean submissions since 1962, one nomination and one win. That win is Parasite.
Three of the most admired recent entries made the December shortlist and still missed the final five: Burning, Decision to Leave and No Other Choice.
Possible Love’s 230,479 admissions sit beside 16,932,841 for The King’s Warden on the same 2026 KOBIS chart. The Venice runner-up is playing on 202 screens ahead of a November 6 Netflix launch.
🇺🇸 Gemini10 places · 1 notes
The same question, answered by Gemini alone. The final list above combines all the AIs.
- 1Parasite (2019)
The only film in Oscar history to win both the Palme d'Or and the Academy Award for Best Picture alongside Best International Feature.
- 2Burning (2018)
Broke Cannes Screen Daily's all-time jury grid record with a 3.8/4.0 average and became South Korea's first-ever film to reach the Academy shortlist.
- 3Decision to Leave (2022)
Claimed Cannes Best Director for Park Chan-wook and advanced to the 15-film Oscar shortlist, only to be snubbed in the final nominations envelope.
Source ↗ - 4Possible Love (2026)
Won the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at Venice 2026, marking director Lee Chang-dong's fourth official entry submitted by KOFIC to the Academy.
Source ↗ - 5Oasis (2002)
Took home the Venice Silver Lion and FIPRESCI prize in 2002, yet was completely excluded from Oscar consideration during the pre-shortlist voting era.
- 6Secret Sunshine (2007)
Earned Jeon Do-yeon Cannes Best Actress honors and unanimous praise, but failed to penetrate the Academy's foreign-language branch in 2007.
Source ↗ - 7Pieta (2012)
Won the coveted Venice Golden Lion—the highest prize among all submissions—yet couldn't even make the 9-film Oscar shortlist.
- 8Mother (2009)
Named Best Film by the Boston and Los Angeles film critics societies, yet was completely overlooked by the AMPAS selection committee.
- 912.12: The Day (2023)
Racked up 13.1 million admissions at home—the highest box office of any Korean submission in modern history—but missed the 2024 shortlist.
Source ↗ - 10A Taxi Driver (2017)
Mobilized 12.2 million Korean theatergoers and won Fantasia's Best Film, yet failed to secure an Oscar nod amid conventional historical storytelling.
Source ↗
What Gemini noticed
Out of 36 official entries submitted by South Korea to the Academy since 1962, exactly 1 film has won (Parasite in 2019) and only 2 others ever cracked the preliminary shortlist (Burning in 2018 and Decision to Leave in 2022).
🇨🇳 Kimi10 places · 2 notes
The same question, answered by Kimi alone. The final list above combines all the AIs.
- 1Parasite (2019)
The only Korean submission that turned a Cannes top prize into a Best Picture win.
Source ↗ - 2Decision to Leave (2022)
Best Director at Cannes, shortlist at the Academy, but the final nomination stayed out of reach.
Source ↗ - 3Burning (2018)
A 528,168-admission art film outlasted Korea's 12-million crowd-pleasers by reaching the shortlist first.
- 4No Other Choice (2025)
Venice came up short, but the Academy shortlist made it three Korean shortlists in eight years.
Source ↗ - 5Possible Love (2026)
Lee Chang-dong's fourth submission arrives with the Silver Lion and a Korean critics' sweep before the Academy stage is even set.
Source ↗ - 6Secret Sunshine (2007)
Jeon Do-yeon's Cannes trophy made this the rare submission whose star outshone the film's Oscar result.
Source ↗ - 7Oasis (2002)
Venice gave Lee Chang-dong directing silver and Moon So-ri the Mastroianni; the Academy gave it a submission and nothing more.
- 8Mother (2009)
Bong's pre-Parasite submission out-reviewed most winners: 96% RT and 3.0 million admissions from only a Un Certain Regard launch.
- 9A Taxi Driver (2017)
The biggest audience in this top ten could not buy an Academy shortlist.
Source ↗ - 10The King and the Clown (2006)
A 12.3-million-admission phenomenon with a tiny critical footprint: 88% on Rotten Tomatoes from only three reviews.
What Kimi noticed
Before Parasite, South Korea had 30 submissions without a nomination; Burning then became the first shortlist, and Parasite became the first nomination and win.
Lee Chang-dong is the most-submitted Korean auteur in the list with four chosen films—Oasis, Secret Sunshine, Burning and Possible Love—but still has no international-feature nomination; Park Chan-wook has two submissions and two shortlists.
🇨🇳 DeepSeek10 places · 2 notes
The same question, answered by DeepSeek alone. The final list above combines all the AIs.
- 1Parasite (2019) – Bong Joon-ho
The only South Korean submission ever to win Best International Feature — and it also took Best Picture, the first non-English film to do so.
- 2Burning (2018) – Lee Chang-dong
The first South Korean film ever shortlisted for the foreign-language Oscar — it made the nine-film January list but not the final five.
- 3Decision to Leave (2022) – Park Chan-wook
Won Best Director at Cannes and scored 85 on Metacritic, yet the Academy did not shortlist it — the starkest critics-versus-Academy gap in the list.
Source ↗ - 4The Handmaiden (2016) – Park Chan-wook
Critically adored (85 Metacritic, 96% Rotten Tomatoes) but never submitted — South Korea chose The Age of Shadows instead, and the Academy never got to vote on it.
Source ↗ - 5A Taxi Driver (2017) – Jang Hoon
A domestic smash and a 97% Rotten Tomatoes critic score, but the Academy did not shortlist it — another case of popular and critical success not translating into Oscar traction.
Source ↗ - 6Possible Love (2026) – Lee Chang-dong
The current submission: a Venice Grand Jury Prize and a 93 Metacritic score make it the strongest South Korean entry on paper since Parasite, but the shortlist is still pending.
- 7The Man Standing Next (2020) – Woo Min-ho
A political thriller that grossed $36.4 million in Korea and drew strong foreign-press attention, but it did not advance past the submission stage.
Source ↗ - 8Concrete Utopia (2023) – Um Tae-hwa
A box-office hit chosen as South Korea’s 2023 submission, but it did not make the shortlist — another reminder that domestic success does not guarantee Academy attention.
Source ↗ - 912.12: The Day (2024) – Kim Sung-soo
Korea’s highest-grossing film of 2024 and a unanimous KOFIC selection, but it did not advance to the shortlist — the gap between domestic dominance and Academy recognition is stark.
Source ↗ - 10The Age of Shadows (2016) – Kim Jee-woon
Chosen over The Handmaiden and released by Warner Bros. Korea, it failed to make the shortlist — the selection itself remains one of the most debated in Korean Oscar history.
Source ↗
What DeepSeek noticed
South Korea has submitted 37 films and won exactly one International Feature Oscar — Parasite. The hit rate is 1 in 37, and only two submissions (Burning and Parasite) have ever made the shortlist.
Possible Love arrives with the strongest festival pedigree of any Korean submission since Parasite (Venice Grand Jury Prize) and a 93 Metacritic score, but the shortlist will be the real test — Burning had a 90 Metacritic and still missed the final five.
🇨🇳 Qwen10 places · 2 notes
The same question, answered by Qwen alone. The final list above combines all the AIs.
- 1Parasite (2019)
Erased the gap between arthouse prestige and Academy voters, becoming the first non-English Best Picture winner.
- 2Burning (2018)
Universally acclaimed by critics but halted at the shortlist, proving that slow-burn ambiguity rarely secures final votes.
- 3Decision to Leave (2022)
Its Cannes director prize and high critics' scores pushed it to the shortlist, bypassing the usual genre hurdles.
Source ↗ - 4Possible Love (2026)
Its Venice Silver Lion and perfect RT score aim to bridge the massive gap that has kept Korean dramas out of the final five.
Source ↗ - 5Pieta (2012)
A Golden Lion winner whose extreme narrative created an unbridgeable gap between festival juries and AMPAS sensibilities.
- 6Secret Sunshine (2007)
Jeon Do-yeon's Cannes win highlighted a massive gap, as the Academy historically ignores pure, untranslated grief.
Source ↗ - 7No Other Choice (2025)
Its shortlist placement proves that Park Chan-wook's established critical regard now clears the committee hurdle.
Source ↗ - 8Oasis (2002)
Its Venice prizes and 90% RT score were outweighed by its uncompromising subject matter, leaving it entirely unrewarded by AMPAS.
- 9Mother (2009)
A 96% RT Bong Joon Ho masterpiece that suffered the ultimate gap: brilliant at home, completely ignored by the Academy.
- 10A Taxi Driver (2017)
Its massive 12M domestic admissions highlight a stark gap: home audience favorites rarely translate to international Oscar votes.
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What Qwen noticed
Only 1 out of 38 South Korean submissions has won the Best International Feature Oscar (Parasite), while 4 others (Burning, Decision to Leave, No Other Choice) made the December shortlist.
Lee Chang-dong has had four films submitted (Oasis, Secret Sunshine, Burning, Possible Love), tying with Shin Sang-ok for the most submissions by a single Korean director, yet he has never received an Oscar nomination for directing or screenplay.