South Korean director KimKi-duk has opened shooting on his 12th feature film, a low-budget production tobe titled The Bow.

Following a highlysuccessful 2004 in which he won Best Director awards at Berlin and Venice for SamaritanGirl and 3-Iron respectively, Kim began shooting his latest workwith little fanfare on a remote island off the city of Incheon.

Budgeted at $950,000, thefilm tells the story of an elderly man who falls in love with a teenage girland plans to marry her when she turns seventeen. The project was an official selection in the 2001 edition ofproject market the Pusan Promotion Plan (PPP), where it won the $20,000 PusanAward.

The film features veteranactor Jeon Seong-hwan (Ogu) and Seo Min-jeong, who appeared in Kim's SamaritanGirl.

Roughly half of theproduction's budget has been supplied by Japan's Happinet Pictures, in exchangefor Japanese distribution rights, and international sales agent Cineclick Asiais already reporting strong interest from other territories. Kim is producing through his own productioncompany, Kim Ki-duk Films, and a domestic distributor has yet to be secured.

Known for shooting quickly,Kim intends to wrap up production by the end of the month. Cineclick will promote the film in Berlinand is planning for a market premiere at Cannes.

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