- P R E S S K I T -

A F I L M B Y

K I M S U N G - S O O

1

FILM INFORMATION 2

INTRODUCTION 5

FILM SYNOPSIS 7

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR 8

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT 9

INTERVIEW WITH DIRECTOR KIM SUNG-SOO 10~11

CHARACTER & CAST / INTERVIEW 12~19

- JUNG WOO-SUNG

- HWANG JUNG-MIN

- JU JI-HOON

- KWAK DO-WON

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION COMPANY 21

CREDITS 22

CONTACT INFO 23

C O N T E N T S

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ENGLISH TITLE ASURA: THE CITY OF MADNESS

ORIGINAL TITLE ASURA

GENRE Action Noir

COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION Republic of Korea

LANGUAGE Korean

DIRECTOR KIM Sung-soo

CAST JUNG Woo-sung, HWANG Jung-min, JU Ji-hoon, KWAK Do-won, JUNG Man-sik

PRESENTED & DISTRIBUTED BY CJ Entertainment

PRODUCTION Sanai Pictures

PRODUCTION YEAR 2016

RELEASE DATE Sept. 28, 2016

RUNNING TIME 136 min

SCREEN RATIO 1.85:1

SOUND 5.1ch

F I L M I N F O R M A T I O N

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I N T R O D U C T I O N

Imagine a city where everything has gone to hell. The mayor is not only boldly corrupt and fearless, but an outright dan-

ger to anyone who gets in his path. Among the cronies who help him maintain power are not only fixers and gangsters,

but also members of the police. The Prosecutor’s Office, which is determined to bring him down, tries first through

the courts and then through less legal means to bring him to justice. But in their own way, the prosecutors are just as

wicked and ruthless, and the higher up the chain of command you go, the worse they are. As tension and hatred grows,

and friendships turn into rivalries, there is only one possible outcome. A storm of violence is coming to Annam City.

KIM Sung-soo’s ASURA: THE CITY OF MADNESS is a whirlwind of action, cruelty, intrigue and black humor. It presents

a view of society that is both beyond the imagination, and yet disturbingly familiar. When values are trampled under-

foot, and everyone is only looking out for themselves, the end result is chaos, and more.

For the Korean film industry, this film is both a jolt in the arm and an exciting new take on the action noir genre. Director

KIM Sung-soo and actor JUNG Woo-sung have a history of redefining the Korean action film, from the hit films BEAT

and CITY OF THE RISING SUN, which captured the rebelliousness of youth, to the groundbreaking China-shot epic

MUSA: THE WARRIOR. Reuniting again after 15 years, they once again have created a new, hard-boiled aesthetic for

Korean cinema.

Asura 阿修羅D E M I G O D S T H A T A R E M I D W A Y B E T W E E N B E A S T A N D H U M A N . T H E Y W E R E O R I G I N A L L Y G O D S O F W A R , B U T A F T E R P L E D G I N G D E V O T I O N T O B U D D H A T H E Y B E C A M E B U D D H I S T D E I T I E S .

T H E Y H A V E T H R E E F A C E S A N D S I X H A N D S , A N D I T I S S A I D T H A T H U M A N S W H O L I K E T O Q U A R R E L A N D F I G H T M A Y H A V E L I V E D A P R E V I O U S L I F E A S A N A S U R A .

T H E W O R L D W H E R E A S U R A D E M I G O D S L I V E I S A P L A C E O F C O N F L I C T A N D S T R I F E .

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LOGLINE (39 words)

A corrupt police detective named Han plans to quit his job and work alongside a corrupt mayor. But when a

prosecutor starts putting pressure on him, Han convinces his idealistic young partner to take the job in his place.

SHORT VERSION (81 words)

Detective Han (Jung Woo-sung), who for years has been secretly doing dirty work for the corrupt mayor Park

Sungbae (Hwang Jung-min), is now pressured by a ruthless prosecutor Kim Cha-in (Kwak Do-won) to cooperate

in an investigation against the mayor. Feeling trapped, Han persuades his young partner Sunmo (Ju Ji-hoon)

to take over his work for the mayor, but things start to get tangled in unpredictable ways. As things are getting

worse, only the most evil survives in this dog-eat-dog world.

LONG VERSION (289 words)

Park Sungbae (Hwang Jung-min), mayor of the regional city of Annam, has ambitious plans to launch a major

development project and line his pockets at the same time. When a corruption investigation by the prosecutor’s

office threatens to make him step down as mayor, he asks police detective Han (Jung Woo-sung) to kidnap and

threaten the prosecution’s key witness. Everything goes according to plan and the mayor is found innocent, but

Han runs into trouble when another police sergeant suspects him of doing the mayor’s dirty work, and tries to

blackmail him. A confrontation between them suddenly spins out of control.

Han’s original plan was to quit the police force and officially join the mayor as his right hand man. But soon an

ambitious and ruthless prosecutor named Kim Cha-in (Kwak Do-won) calls him in and starts putting pressure on

him, hoping to use Han to bring down the mayor. Feeling cornered, Han changes his plans and instead persuades

his idealistic young partner Sunmo (Ju Ji-hoon) to join the mayor’s team.

Sunmo is someone who has dreamed all his life of being a policeman, but his new job at the side of a powerful and

scheming politician transforms his outlook. Seduced by the power and wealth that now surrounds him, he tries

his best to meet the mayor’s expectations and demands. In the process he becomes more and more tied up in

dirty business himself.

Han meanwhile feels a growing sense of guilt and regret over sending Sunmo to the mayor’s side. At the same

time, as the prosecution continues to investigate, his own position becomes more and more precarious. Tensions

and suspicions grow between Han, Sunmo, and the mayor, setting everyone on edge, and at each other’s throats.

F I L M S Y N O P S I S

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A B O U T T H E D I R E C T O R

Director | KIM Sung-soo

Since the mid-1990s, director KIM Sung-soo has consistently been at the forefront of the major changes sweep-

ing through the Korean film industry. Born in 1961 in Seoul, he studied filmmaking at Dongguk University and

worked as an assistant director and co-screenwriter to leading Korean New Wave director PARK Kwang-su on the

films BLACK REPUBLIC (1990) and BERLIN REPORT (1991). After contributing to the screenplays of the critically

acclaimed THE BLUE IN YOU (1992) and OUT TO THE WORLD (1993), KIM made his feature directorial debut with

RUN AWAY (1995), starring LEE Byung-hun.

In his early career, KIM Sung-woo drew particular notice for turning the popular actor JUNG Woo-sung into a

youth icon in the hit films BEAT (1997) and CITY OF THE RISING SUN (1999), both of which featured a distinctive

new visual style for Korean cinema. His next feature MUSA: THE WARRIOR (2001), a historical epic shot in China,

was particularly groundbreaking for its ambition, scale and breathtaking cinematography. Two years later, he

contributed to the wave of comedies sweeping the industry by storm with the charismatic PLEASE TEACH ME

ENGLISH (2003), starring LEE Na-young and JANG Hyuk.

KIM was also quick to recognize the potential for collaboration between China and South Korea. Co-establishing

the production company NaBi Pictures in 2002, he produced the China-shot film THE RESTLESS in 2006 as well

as the Chinese film MY EX-WIFE’S WEDDING (2009). Throughout this decade he also kept busy directing a range

of short films, commercials, music videos, and the Korean Pavilion’s main theme show at the 2010 Shanghai

Expo.

In 2013, he returned to Korean big-budget filmmaking with FLU, a film about a dangerous pandemic that throws

the Seoul region into chaos. With the satiric and hard-hitting ASURA, he confirms his status as a director with a

gift for capturing the zeitgeist of Korean cinema, as well as Korean society at large.

F I L M O G R A P H Y

Asura: The City of Madness (2016) director/screenwriter

Flu (2013) director/screenwriter

My Ex-Wife’s Wedding (2009) producer (China)

The Restless (2006) producer

Please Teach Me English (2003) director/screenwriter/producer

Musa: The Warrior (2001) director/screenwriter

City of the Rising Sun (1999) director/screenwriter

Beat (1997) director/screenwriter

Run Away (1995) director/screenwriter

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D I R E C T O R ’ S S T A T E M E N T

Countless numbers of villains are vanquished in films. I’ve always been curious about these figures for whom

one might feel pity, but not sympathy. How exhausting must it be, to live the life of a villain without receiving any

decent reward, only to face an unhappy end?

In such a wicked world as ours, to decide that one must be a villain to survive is not such a misplaced judgment.

But becoming a villain also involves a tremendous amount of risk. It requires the courage to commit evil deeds,

and the perseverance to keep up evil behavior over time. And dealing with the violent temper of an evil boss is no

easy thing either.

Sure enough, life is no picnic. In the end, villains too are nothing more than weaklings and fools. Regardless of

their intention, they get tossed off of life’s stage. Having lived their whole life cautiously peering behind their back,

they meet their end without once having gotten things right.

In recognition of this world without sympathy, I crafted ASURA as a “bloody battlefield.” In that hellish landscape,

one guy has lost his way. I’ve come this far by following his weary shadow.

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Where did you first get the idea for this film, and what attracted you to this topic?

I wanted to make an ordinary bad guy that you always see in action noir films into the hero. I wondered, what is

their fatal mistake that makes their power crumble in an instant, so that they disappear from the film without a

trace? Perhaps it’s just a trivial lapse of judgment, or exceptionally bad luck. When I first developed the story,

I began with the voice of a corrupt detective who always complains about life never going his way. Scraping

out a living by doing errands for an evil boss, he becomes fatigued and exhausted by life. In a world ruled by

villains, a weak villain can’t help but be crushed by a stronger villain. For this rotten fellow, even living the life

of a villain is not an easy thing.

You have a long history of working together with JUNG Woo-sung. Why did you think he was a good match for the character of Detective Han?

JUNG Woo-sung is the actor and partner who I trust the most. Before even thinking about which actors might

suit each character, I consulted with him about the film’s hero. Without any hesitation he said that he wanted

the role, so I began writing the screenplay with him in mind.

The character of the mayor, played by HWANG Jung-min, is one of the most memorable and interesting villains in recent years. What gave you the inspiration for this character?

I wanted to try depicting a genuine villain. Fortunately, if you just raise your eyes you see them everywhere.

Grabbing after power and money, with each passing day they become greedier. Politicians who cry out that

they must rule the world. Not bound by ethics or rules, they commit evil deeds with no restraint. You might call

them a special product of Korea.

It must have been exciting to work with such a talented cast. Can you say anything about the strengths and particular qualities of the actors HWANG Jung-min, KWAK Do-won, and JU Ji-hoon?

HWANG Jung-min has reached a tremendous level in his acting. Is there anything I need to say about his talent

and strengths? Everyone knows about it already! For a very long time I have held an earnest desire to work

with him. KWAK Do-won is currently the hottest actor in the Korean film industry. Having acted years in the

theater, his acting talent is without peer. In a word, he’s a genius! I think we will continue to see surprisingly

good acting from him long into the future. As for JU Ji-hoon, everyone on the set of ASURA referred to him as

a “surprising discovery.” For example, he has a very particular ability to simultaneously express good and evil,

cuteness and black-heartedness, warmth and coldness. His charm seems infinite. Getting him to play the role

of Sunmo was tremendous good fortune.

Annam City is a fictional place, but in the film it forms a very memorable setting. What are the particular qualities of this city, and how did you decide on locations for the shoot?

The city of Annam is a typical film noir space, where a struggle over redevelopment rights has turned the city

into a playground for criminals, and it also resembles one of the aging, faded satellite cities of Seoul. I wanted

for it to come across as a somewhat gloomy place that will feel both familiar and strange to Korean viewers. So

I needed old, dark locations and sets that showed traces of the passage of time like mold. The production team

traveled the country in search of locations that were at least 40 years old. In piecing together Annam from all

of these spaces, the end result was a “world of darkness” where villains would look at home roaming the city.

I N T E R V I E W W I T H D I R E C T O R K I M S U N G - S O O

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The relationship between Han and Sunmo develops in interesting ways as the film progresses. What did you wish to express in this relationship?

I think for men, friendship and betrayal are two sides of the same coin. When friendship is at the forefront, two

people trust and rely on each other. But at the moment that self-interest is placed ahead of friendship, a sense

of betrayal spreads. So the more that friendship grows, the greater the implicit potential for betrayal. Sunmo is

like a mirror to Han. The simple-hearted Sunmo reflects Han’s past, while the Sunmo that grows steadily more

wicked is Han’s present. A villain can rationalize one’s condition, but I don’t think a villain can love himself. It’s

also true that when you become close to someone, you are more vulnerable to being hurt by them. And when

you step on your shadow, your shadow follows suit.

How did you decide on the title of the film?

At the time that I finished the screenplay, I had not come up with a title. My producer HAN Jae-duk suggested

the title “Hell”. Then, after HWANG Jung-min read the screenplay, his comment was that the story was “total

pandemonium” (in Korean, “asura-jang”). I liked that expression. So I began searching about the term Asura

on the internet. In ancient Buddhist texts, Asuras are beings that are wiser than humans, but more base. Three

times a day, they go out on the battlefield to fight and satisfy their basic blood lust. It was a perfect match for

the kind of human characters I was depicting.

The visual look of this film is quite distinctive. What sort of conversations did you have with your director of photography while shooting the film?

At first, I showed DoP LEE Mo-gae some reportage photos I had chosen that were taken at actual crime scenes.

What they all had in common were scenes where pitch darkness and faint sources of light appeared together.

And the enraged eyes of the rough guys captured in the scene stood out sharply. I explained that I wanted to

depict the bloody battlefield where the Asuras fight every day in this way. Before I even finished my sentence,

my DoP nodded and smiled in satisfaction. Afterwards, DoP LEE Mo-gae held a meeting with Production De-

signer JANG Geun-yeong and Gaffer LEE Sung-hwan to construct the world of ASURA, and after the start

of shooting I entrusted everything to my DoP. It’s been quite some time since the digital era took hold, but I

wanted to evoke memories of the strong contrast between light and dark that characterized old film noir. This

dream which resembled an old tune that I wanted to sing to myself, was brought to reality by LEE Mo-gae’s

camera. I bow my head to him in thanks.

What other films or filmmakers inspired you while developing and shooting ASURA?

The starting point for ASURA was my recollections of the many film noirs that made me into a film fan in my

youth, and my respect for the directors who made crime films. The far-off sound of gunshots and a piercing

scream. The rough glare of a man’s eyes lit up by a cigarette. The sudden cruel laugh of a villain who had been

speaking in whispers. I don’t know how many dark alleys and dim lanterns I passed by in films. But the greatest

influence on this film came from conversations with my producer HAN Jae-duk. He saw most clearly into the

essence of what I was trying to depict. The discussions I had with him eventually became the bones and flesh

of ASURA.

How would you introduce this film to viewers who were unfamiliar with it?

I’d tell them to give it a chance, and watch it. It’s a fun movie. That is, if you have the same taste as me.

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With a wife in the terminal stages of cancer, Detective Han has been doing the dirty work of Mayor Park Sung-

bae in order to cover hospital fees. Although he had originally planned to quit the police force and officially join

the mayor’s team, the prosecutor’s office starts to threaten him, demanding that he bring proof of the mayor’s

crimes that can be used in a court case. Unsure of which way to turn, he asks his younger partner Sunmo to join

the mayor’s team in his place.

In films like BEAT and CITY OF THE RISING SUN, JUNG Woo-sung confirmed his status as the leading youth icon

of the 1990s and early 2000s. His memorable appearance in the historical epic MUSA: THE WARRIOR is one of

the iconic images of Korean cinema’s contemporary renaissance. Yet as he has grown older, he has not faded

from the scene. JUNG continues to be a powerful leading presence in hit films like THE GOOD THE BAD THE

WEIRD, COLD EYES and THE DIVINE MOVE. Not only that, but he has found considerable success in China with

international co-productions like DAISY, REIGN OF ASSASSINS and A GOOD RAIN KNOWS. In ASURA, he takes

on his darkest role yet as the low-ranking villain Han.

F I L M O G R A P H Y

2016 Remember You2014 Scarlet Innocence | The Divine Move2013 Cold Eyes2010 Reign of Assassins2009 A Good Rain Knows2008 The Good, The Bad, The Weird2006 The Restless | Daisy2005 Sad Movie2004 A Moment to Remember 2003 Mutt Dog2001 Musa: The Warrior1999 Love | Phantom the Submarine | City of the Rising Sun1997 Beat | Motel Cactus1996 Born to Kill1994 The Nine-Tailed Fox

C H A R A C T E R & C A S T

JUNG Woo-sung as Detective Han

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Interview with JUNG Woo-sung

Can you describe your character?He’s a villain who gets tangled up with a bigger villain, and then meets an even worse prosecutor. Like a shrimp

crushed between two whales, he flounders around trying to survive.

Why did you decide to take this role, and what were your impressions of the screenplay?

ASURA is a film that for Director KIM Sung-soo has a long history. He said he asked himself, what kind of film do

you want to make most of all? And he decided on this project. To me, he just said one thing: “Woo-sung, this time

I’m going to do a film that I’m really dying to make.” After hearing that, without even reading the screenplay, I

said, “You need to make it with me!” So that’s how we began.

What did Director KIM ask of you for this role?In my career as an actor, the rebellious image I had in my teens and twenties has been circulated pretty widely.

But Detective Han is a kind of middle-aged hoodlum. So for this role he wanted something different from anything

I had done before, in terms of my speech patterns, and the expression on my face, and so on.

What can you say about the action scenes?We aimed for something more realistic. So although they do have this kind of cinematic look, the violence in them

has a cruelty and unpredictable quality that feels like something from reality. There’s a frightening strength to

these scenes. Director KIM really wanted the action scenes to have that feeling, so we approached them with the

attitude, let’s not spare our bodies or be scared of getting hurt.

Was there a particularly memorable scene or moment during the shooting?All of it. From the beginning right through to the end. Before we started shooting I asked myself, “Can you really

do this? You need to do well...” And once we started, every scene was such an important challenge for me that all

of it was memorable. Even after we wrapped shooting, I couldn’t quite believe it was over.

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Park Sungbae is the popular mayor of Annam City who, beneath his smooth, smiling exterior, is a ruthless crim-

inal who will stop at nothing in his pursuit of power. Under investigation at the start of the film for election fraud,

he gets an acquittal after arranging to have the prosecution’s chief witness kidnapped. With his ultimate goal of

building the grandiose Annam Metropolis, and stealing a huge fortune in the process, he prepares to crush any-

one who will stand in his way.

In recent years top star HWANG Jung-min has gone on a box office tear that is unrivalled in Korean box office his-

tory. In ODE TO MY FATHER (14.3 million tickets), VETERAN (13.4 million), THE HIMALAYAS (7.8 million), A VIO-

LENT PROSECUTOR (9.7 million), and THE WAILING (6.9 million), his films have amassed a stunning total of over

50 million admissions in less than three years. Having portrayed a wide variety of characters, both good and evil,

over the course of his long and highly successful career, in ASURA he takes villainy to an unexpected new level.

F I L M O G R A P H Y

2016 The Wailing | A Violent Prosecutor2015 The Himalayas | Veteran2014 Ode to My Father | Man in Love2013 Fist of Legend | New World2012 Dancing Queen | Moby Dick2010 The Unjust Blades of Blood2009 Private Eye2008 A Man Who Was Superman2007 Happiness | Black House2006 Bloody Tie2005 All for Love | You Are My Sunshine | A Bittersweet Life | This Charming Girl2004 The Last Wolf2003 A Good Lawyer’s Wife2002 Roadmovie | YMCA Baseball Team2001 Waikiki Brothers

C H A R A C T E R & C A S T

HWANG Jung-minas Mayor Park Sungbae

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Interview with HWANG Jung-min

What kind of film is ASURA?Much like its title, ASURA is a kind of chaos where humans who don’t seem at all human gather together and pre-

tend to act human. It’s a place where you have to destroy others or be destroyed yourself.

What were your impressions of the screenplay, and how did you come to join this film?The biggest motivation for me to shoot this film was Director KIM Sung-soo. It was a real honor for me to work

with him, after watching his films in my youth. Not only that, this film gave me the opportunity to act with JUNG

Woo-sung as well as KWAK Do-won, JU Ji-hoon, and JUNG Man-sik, who are such amazing colleagues. Read-

ing the screenplay inspired me in many ways. This character has no humanity at all, he scrapes the bottom of

mankind’s instinctual nature. Expressing all that, showing humans in such a base and animalistic light, it was a

thought-provoking challenge as an actor.

What was it like to play such an evil character?Even if you search for elements of humanity in him, you can’t find anything. So I had to think a lot about how to

portray him. Surely he carries some kind of vague quality that connects with the public. As a politician and a may-

or there is a side that he shows to the public, and then on the inside there is a very manipulative, resourceful side

to his personality as well. Expressing this side of his character was the biggest challenge for me.

What was it like working with Director KIM Sung-soo?He’s very stubborn, and pays very close attention to detail. We used to joke that he was like a real-life Park

Sungbae , but from an actor’s perspective, working together with him was a great opportunity. We got into deep

conversations about my character, and that really gave me a lot of energy that went into my acting.

This is the first action noir you’ve shot in a while.The character of Park Sungbae is really a creep, but it’s part of the whole mood of the film. I’m so curious to watch

this movie. From a viewer’s perspective, I haven’t seen it yet, but I really want to know what audiences think of it,

and I’m so, so curious to see the final film!

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Hardworking and honest, Sunmo has wanted to be a detective ever since he was a boy. He has always looked up

to his partner Han like a brother, so when Han recommends that he quit the police force and start working for the

mayor, he reluctantly agrees. In his new job, he comes into contact with an entire new world of power and money

that steadily pulls him deeper into the mayor’s plans.

Having been active in both films and TV dramas since his debut in 2005, JU Ji-hoon was originally typecast in

romantic roles that play off of his fresh, youthful image. However in recent years he has widened the spectrum of

his acting, taking on darker roles in films like CONFESSION and now ASURA. With his strong performances he is

distinguishing himself as a leading member of the new generation of Korean actors.

F I L M O G R A P H Y

2015 The Treacherous2014 Confession2013 Marriage Blu | Criminal of Love (China)2012 I am the King2009 Kitchen2008 Antique

C H A R A C T E R & C A S T

JU Ji-hoon as Moon Sunmo

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Interview with JU Ji-hoon

What role do you play in this film?I play Detective Han’s partner, the detective Moon Sunmo. Because Han is prevented from going to join Mayor

Park, he sends me instead. I go without knowing anything, and trouble ensues...

What was it like working with Director KIM Sung-soo?He was very detail-focused, but we spent a lot of time exchanging ideas, so that made me feel comfortable. Even

the very difficult scenes to shoot didn’t feel that difficult because we all formed a team and focused quite intently

on the shoot.

What distinguishes this film from other recent works?The characters in this film are all villains. But except for a couple exceptions, they are all are trying to protect

what’s precious to them. As they do that, they start to cause harm to other people, and eventually they become

villains. I hope that subtlety is expressed well in the film.

Were there any particularly difficult moments on the set?The other actors might laugh if they heard me saying this now, but appearing in a film with these great actors that

I’ve been watching since childhood, and with such a great director, at first I felt really intimidated and froze up.

Luckily the actors and crewmembers all tried really hard to make me feel comfortable, so things worked out fine.

Do you have any message for the audience?This is an action noir film, so there are some action scenes and also a really tight story with some great actors. It’s

somewhat dense compared to other recent movies, and it has the feel of a work from the film era. I think viewers

will be able to sense that when they watch it.

15

A special prosecutor for the Suwon District, Kim Cha-in carries a strong pride in his profession and his status. But

he has staked his reputation on putting the corrupt mayor Park Sungbae behind bars, and he sees an opportunity

in Detective Han. Targeting Han’s weakest and most vulnerable points, he manages to get the detective to follow

his orders, but a conflict looms between the desperately ambitious prosecutor and the detective who is feeling

trapped.

After a long career in the theater, in recent years KWAK Do-won has become one of the most talked-about sup-

porting actors in the Korean film industry. His highly memorable performances in THE YELLOW SEA, NAMELESS

GANGSTER: RULES OF THE TIME and THE ATTORNEY set viewers buzzing. However his key breakthrough came

in his first leading performance as a policeman in a rural town in NA Hong-jin’s acclaimed THE WAILING. With

ASURA, he takes his considerable momentum and turns in another striking performance that will be remembered

long into the future.

S E L E C T E D F I L M O G R A P H Y

2016 The Wailing 2015 The Magician | The Shameless

2014 Tazza: The Hidden Card | Mad Sad Bad | Man in Love

2013 The Attorney | The Ethics of Anger | The Berlin File

2012 Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time | Love Fiction | Ghost Sweepers A Company Man2010 The Yellow Sea | Midnight FM

C H A R A C T E R & C A S T

KWAK Do-wonas Prosecutor Kim Cha-in

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Interview with KWAK Do-won

What motivated you to take part in this film?Before anything else it would have to be the screenplay. There are certain books that you end up reading through

in one sitting, and for me the screenplay to ASURA had that quality to it.

What distinguishes this film from other recent works?The society shown in this film is one where competition is unavoidable. In that sense, ASURA is a reflection of a

bigger reality that we all face. The film is quite realistic in that sense, but it’s also beautifully shot from a cinematic

point of view. At times it’s really intense, at times it’s rough and at other times it’s just fun to watch.

How was the experience of working with Director KIM Sung-soo?There are a lot of directors working in Korea these days, but some among them are like teachers. Director KIM

actually taught filmmaking at a university, but also the younger crewmembers he worked with on BEAT and CITY

OF THE RISING SUN have gone on to become directors themselves. He’s a tremendously respected figure in

the Korean film industry, so it was a great honor to work with him. I learned a lot from the passion and effort he

showed while making this film.

What was it like working with JUNG Woo-sung?I tormented his character quite a bit in this film. In terms of his acting, expressiveness, and emotions he is show-

ing something in ASURA that we haven’t seen in his previous films, or if we saw it, then it is more fully expressed

here. He worked really hard for this role and I really think he turned in an outstanding performance.

Do you have any message for the audience?This film ASURA is truly pandemonium. As we live our lives, all of us experience days that are really hard, and

there are times when you just want to shout out, “Hey, do I really have to live like this?” I hope that when people

watch this film, they can get a little solace from the thought that, “Wow, some people really have it much worse

than me. Some people have a really hard time.”

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A B O U T T H E P R O D U C T I O N C O M P A N Y

SANAI PICTURES

Founded in 2012, Sanai Pictures has established itself as a production house that excels in action, noir and other

hard-boiled genre films. CEO and founder HAN Jae-duk has a long history of success in the Korean film industry,

dating from his participation as a producer on PARK Chan-wook’s acclaimed OLDBOY (2003). He also has a long-

standing collaboration with Director RYOO Seung-wan on such classics as CRYING FIST (2005), THE UNJUST

(2010), and THE BERLIN FILE (2013); and with Director YOON Jong-bin on the smash hit NAMELESS GANGSTER:

RULES OF THE TIME (2012) and KUNDO: AGE OF THE RAMPANT (2014).

Since launching in 2012, Sanai Pictures has produced six features, including the smash hits NEW WORLD and

A VIOLENT PROSECUTOR, and the acclaimed THE SHAMELESS which screened in the Un Certain Regard sec-

tion of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. Upcoming works include the co-production BO-AN-GWAN (“The Sheriff”),

which opened shooting in mid-2016.

F I L M O G R A P H Y

2016 Asura: The City of Madness A Violent Prosecutor – co-producer

2015 The Tiger: An Old Hunter’s Tale The Shameless2014 Man in Love2013 New World

Address: Jaeil Building 504 ho, Daesagwan-ro 72, Yongsan-gu, Seoul 04402, South Korea

Telephone: +82 2 796 8204

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CJ Entertainment Presents

A Sanai Pictures Production

A KIM Sung-soo Fi lm

DIRECTED BY KIM Sung-soo

STARRING JUNG Woo-sung

HWANG Jung-min

JU Ji-hoon

KWAK Do-won

JUNG Man-sik

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER JEONG Tae-sung

WRITTEN BY KIM Sung-soo

PRODUCER HAN Jae-duk

ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS KANG Hyun, KIM Jong-min

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY LEE Mo-gae

PRODUCTION DESIGNER JANG Geun-yeong

EDITED BY KIM Sang-bum, KIM Jae-bum

MUSIC BY LEE Jae-jin

COSTUME DESIGNER CHO Sang-kyung

GAFFER LEE Sung-hwan

MAKE UP & HAIR DESIGNER KIM Hyun-jung

SPECIAL MAKE UP HWANG Hyo-kyun, KWAK Tae-yong

SPECIAL EFFECTS BY Demolition

STUNTS BY HEO Myeong-haeng, CHOI Bong-rok

VISUAL EFFECTS BY CHOI Jae-cheon

SOUND DESIGN BY KIM Chang-sub

SOUND RECORDING YOON Sung-ki

DIGITAL INTERMEDIATE KIM Hyung-seok

C R E D I T S

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C O N T A C T I N F O

17th Fl., CJ E&M Center, 66 Sangamsan-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, 121-904 Korea

Website: http://lineup.cjenm.com/films Email: filmsales@cj.net

INTERNATIONAL SALES & DISTRIBUTION TEAM

JAY KIMEVP, Head of Int’l Sales & Distribution

INTERNATIONAL SALES

YOONHEE CHOI | SVP, Intl. Sales

Email: yoonhee.choi@cj.net

JUSTIN KIM | Director, Int’l Sales

(Asia·France·UK·Germany)

Email: justinhw.kim@cj.net

EUNJI KIM | Director, Int’l Sales

(Americas·Europe·Oceania·Japan·CIS·MENA)

Email: eunji.kim3@cj.net

INTERNATIONAL MARKETING

HAWON KIM | SVP, Int’l Marketing & Festivals

Email: hawon.kim@cj.net

JAMES SEO | Director, Int’l Marketing

Email: james.seo@cj.net

HANBIT CHO | Int’l Marketing & Festivals

Email: hanbit.cho@cj.net