Kingmaker

Story

Inside the house of cards: genre and history unite in this political thriller to make gripping fiction which explores the borders between political integrity and tactical success. South Korea, 1961. Seo Chang-dae is a provincial chemist. But he’s less interested in drugs and medicines than the election campaign of the local opposition politician Kim Woon-bum. To offer some resistance to the dictatorial governing party, Seo advises the politician and starts a very clever campaign which helps Kim become the strongest opposition candidate. Years later, the two men have reached the next level of power, where now their ideas of political strategy increasingly clash.

Director

BYUN SUNG-HYUN (*1980 in South Korea) studied at the Seoul Institute of Arts and achieved overnight fame in 2012 with his debut feature The Beat Goes On about three hip-hop artists. The Merciless was invited to be shown at Cannes in 2016.

Trailer