Kim Ok-bin Named Best Actress at Sitges Film Fest

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Actress Kim Ok-bin shared the award for Best Actress with Spain's Elena Anaya at the 42nd Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival, Spain.

The 23-year-old won the award, the festival announced Sunday, for her role in Park Chan-wook's "Thirst". Kim shared the award with Anaya for her role in "Hierro", a psychological thriller.

"Thirst", a thriller that won the jury prize at Cannes this year, is about a priest-turned-vampire (Song Kang-ho) struggling with his desire for blood and sex. Kim received critical acclaim for her portraying a femme fatale who seduces the bloodsucking priest.

In 2005, South Korea's Lee Young-ae won the award for "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance", also directed by Park.

Kim debuted through an online beauty contest hosted by Internet portal site Naver in 2004. Her filmography includes the comic period film "The Accidental Gangster and Mistaken Courtesan" and teen sex comedy "Dasepo Naughty Girls" ("Dasepo Girl" - 2006).

Founded in 1967, Sitges is the largest genre film festival in the world and takes place every October in the Catalonian coastal town, some 40 kilometers south of Barcelona.

British director Duncan Jones, who is known as the son of rock legend David Bowie, stole the limelight at this year's event with his feature debut. He takes home the award for Best Motion Picture for his sci-fi thriller "Moon", whose hero Sam Rockwell also won the Best Actor prize. The Best Director prize went to Filipino director Brillante Mendoza ("Kinatay").