Parasite: How Bong Joon-ho’s life inspired the film

With four Oscars and a Palme d’or, a public and critical acclaim, Parasite, released in theaters in 2019, is a real phenomenon. But did you know that the film, broadcast last night on Arte, was partly inspired by the life of its director Bong Joon-ho?

When he was in his twenties, Bong Joon-ho, who was experiencing financial problems, was convinced by his girlfriend to accept a job as a math teacher for a well-to-do family in Seoul. If that means anything to you, that’s normal! As a reminder, Parasite tells the story of a modest unemployed family (the Kims) who works for another (the Parks) much richer, the son accepting a job as a teacher. English teacher, yes, but the inspiration is clearly there.

Bong Joon-ho, by accepting this post of math teacher, was very annoyed. “My girlfriend proposed me as a trustworthy friend, even though I was really bad at math”he admits at the microphone of The Hollywood Reporter. A situation similar to that of Parasite, where the Kims have no experience in the jobs for which they apply.

Bong Joon-ho was fired after two months, not really because he was a poor math student, but because he especially liked talking about his private life to his student. It is this relationship with his student that inspired him for Parasite. “When you work as a private teacher or as a governess, you are in the most private spaces, the two parties are united in a great intimacy”says the filmmaker. “I had no bad intentions, but that was the inspiration for the film.”

With Parasite, Bong Joon-ho wanted to describe the growing inequalities not only in Korean society but also in the whole world, where capitalism reigns supreme. Only employment allows different social classes to meet, “when one is engaged as a servant in the service of the other”notes the filmmaker.

“In today’s capitalist society, there are ranks and castes that are invisible to the naked eye”he continues. “We keep them out of our sight by seeing class hierarchies as relics of the past, when there are still impassable boundaries between social classes today. I think this film describes what happens when two classes brush against each other in this increasingly polarized society.”

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