In 2006 , he directed his first feature film '' How the Lack of Love Affects Two Men '' , which follows a widower and his son who both fall for and fight over their new basement tenant ( played by Baek Yoon-sik , Bong Tae-gyu and Lee Hye-young ) . It was a critical and commercial failure , and it would take eight years before he could get his sophomore film funded . Kim said , " It was so embarrassing to realize that was all I could do . ... I had the firm resolve to give myself one more try before I die . " Inspired by Pedro Almodóvar 's '' Volver '' , Kim began writing a new screenplay in 2008 , finished its first draft in 2009 , and continued to edit it until 2013 when filming finally went underway . He cast Lee Sun-kyun as the antihero and Cho Jin-woong as his antagonist in a black comedy/thriller about a corrupt homicide detective who hides the body of a hit-and-run victim in his mother 's coffin only to find himself terrorized by a mysterious yet formidable blackmailer . '' A Hard Day '' ( the Korean title translates to " Take It to the End " ) premiered in the Directors ' Fortnight sidebar of the 2014 Cannes Film Festival where it drew unanimously positive reviews , with '' Variety '' praising Kim for " handling a taut yet elaborately plotted narrative with poise , control and near-faultless technical execution . " Domestically , '' A Hard Day '' had a lackluster opening but strong word of mouth propelled it to becoming a box office hit , with more than 3.4 million tickets sold . The film received numerous awards and nominations , and Kim won Best Director at the 51st Grand Bell Awards , the 1st Korean Film Producers Association Awards , the 6th KOFRA Film Awards , the 20th Chunsa Film Art Awards and 51st Baeksang Arts Awards , as well as Best Screenplay at the 15th Busan Film Critics Awards and 35th Blue Dragon Film Awards
2014 Cannes Film Festival
2014 Cannes Film Festival
Kim Seong-hun (filmmaker)