A comedy of improbable encounters and unlikely language lessons, A Traveler’s Needs marks the third collaboration between Hong and Isabelle Huppert (following 2012’s In Another Country and 2017’s Claire’s Camera). This time Huppert plays Iris, a woman who finds herself adrift in Seoul and without any means to make ends meet, turns to teaching French via a très peculiar method. Through a series of encounters, as we grow to know more about Iris and her situation, the mysteries of her circumstances only deepen.

A charming troupe of Hong regulars complete the cast, including Lee Hyeyoung as one of Huppert’s students and Kwon Haehyo as her flirty husband. A film about meaning and connection and the comfort of makgeolli, A Traveler’s Needs, offers a surprising take on inter-continental rendezvous and continues one of the most unique actor-director collaborations in contemporary cinema.

Programme note courtesy of Cinema Guild