Korean pop culture, ranked by the numbers · 한류 랭킹
대종상 역대 최우수작품상
The Grand Bell Awards (대종상) have named a Best Film at 55 editions between 1962 and 2023. Im Kwon-taek leads with five wins, Shin Sang-ok has four, and Concrete Utopia is the latest winner.
Data as of
This is every Best Film (최우수작품상) winner at the Grand Bell Awards (대종상영화제), also called the Daejong Film Awards, presented since 1962 by the Motion Pictures Association of Korea, newest first.1 Together with the Blue Dragon Film Awards they are two of South Korea's most popular film awards.6
| Year | Edition | Film | Director |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 59th | Concrete Utopia콘크리트 유토피아 | Um Tae-hwa |
| 2022 | 58th | Decision to Leave헤어질 결심 | Park Chan-wook |
| 2019 | 56th | Parasite기생충 | Bong Joon-ho |
| 2018 | 55th | Burning버닝 | Lee Chang-dong |
| 2017 | 54th | A Taxi Driver택시운전사 | Jang Hoon |
| 2016 | 53rd | Inside Men내부자들 | Woo Min-ho |
| 2015 | 52nd | Ode to My Father국제시장 | Yoon Je-kyoon |
| 2014 | 51st | The Admiral: Roaring Currents명량 | Kim Han-min |
| 2013 | 50th | The Face Reader관상 | Han Jae-rim |
| 2012 | 49th | Masquerade광해, 왕이 된 남자 | Choo Chang-min |
| 2011 | 48th | The Front Line고지전 | Jang Hoon |
| 2010 | 47th | Poetry시 | Lee Chang-dong |
| 2009 | 46th | The Divine Weapon신기전 | Kim Yoo-jin |
| 2008 | 45th | The Chaser추격자 | Na Hong-jin |
| 2007 | 44th | Family Ties가족의 탄생 | Kim Tae-yong |
| 2006 | 43rd | King and the Clown왕의 남자 | Lee Joon-ik |
| 2005 | 42nd | Marathon말아톤 | Jeong Yoon-chul |
| 2004 | 41st | Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring봄 여름 가을 겨울 그리고 봄 | Kim Ki-duk |
| 2003 | 40th | Memories of Murder살인의 추억 | Bong Joon-ho |
| 2002 | 39th | The Way Home집으로... | Lee Jeong-hyang |
| 2001 | 38th | Joint Security Area공동경비구역 JSA | Park Chan-wook |
| 2000 | 37th | Peppermint Candy박하사탕 | Lee Chang-dong |
| 1999 | 36th | Spring in My Hometown아름다운 시절 | Lee Kwang-mo |
| 1997 | 35th | The Contact접속 | Chang Yoon-hyun |
| 1996 | 34th | Henequen애니깽 | Kim Ho-sun |
| 1995 | 33rd | The Eternal Empire영원한 제국 | Park Jong-won |
| 1994 | 32nd | The Story of Two Women두 여자 이야기 | Lee Jung-gook |
| 1993 | 31st | Sopyonje서편제 | Im Kwon-taek |
| 1992 | 30th | Fly High Run Far개벽 | Im Kwon-taek |
| 1991 | 29th | Passion Portrait젊은 날의 초상 | Kwak Ji-kyoon |
| 1990 | 28th | All That Falls Has Wings추락하는 것은 날개가 있다 | Chang Gil-soo |
| 1989 | 27th | Come Come Come Upward아제 아제 바라아제 | Im Kwon-taek |
| 1987 | 26th | Diary of King Yeonsan연산일기 | Im Kwon-taek |
| 1986 | 25th | Pillar of Mist안개 기둥 | Park Chul-soo |
| 1985 | 24th | The Mother에미 | Park Chul-soo |
| 1984 | 23rd | Adultery Tree자녀목 | Chong Jin-u |
| 1983 | 22nd | Mulleya Mulleya여인 잔혹사 물레야 물레야 | Lee Doo-yong |
| 1982 | 21st | Come Unto Down낮은 대로 임하소서 | Lee Jang-ho |
| 1981 | 20th | Invited People초대받은 사람들 | Choe Ha-won |
| 1980 | 19th | Son of Man사람의 아들 | Yu Hyun-mok |
| 1979 | 18th | The Hidden Hero깃발 없는 기수 | Im Kwon-taek |
| 1978 | 17th | Police Story경찰관 | Lee Doo-yong |
| 1977 | 16th | Diary of Korean-Japanese War난중일기 | Jang Il-ho |
| 1976 | 15th | Mother어머니 | Im Won-shik |
| 1975 | 14th | Flame불꽃 | Yu Hyun-mok |
| 1974 | 13th | The Land토지 | Kim Soo-yong |
| 1973 | 12th | The General in Red Robes홍의 장군 | Lee Doo-yong |
| 1972 | 11th | Patriotic Martyr An Jung-gun의사 안중근 | Joo Dong-jin |
| 1968 | 7th | Prince Daewon대원군 | Shin Sang-ok |
| 1967 | 6th | Coming Back귀로 | Lee Man-hee |
| 1966 | 5th | The Sea Village갯마을 | Kim Soo-yong |
| 1965 | 4th | Deaf Sam-yong벙어리 삼룡 | Shin Sang-ok |
| 1964 | 3rd | Kinship혈맥 | Kim Soo-yong |
| 1963 | 2nd | The Memorial Gate for Virtuous Women열녀문 | Shin Sang-ok |
| 1962 | 1st | Prince Yeonsan연산군 | Shin Sang-ok |
Year and edition follow Wikipedia's Best Film list, which names no winner for the 8th to 10th editions (1969–71) or the 57th (2020–21); the awards were suspended for a few years from 1969 and revived in 1972.1 The year is the list's own, so it can differ from the ceremony's: the 56th edition, listed under 2019, was held on June 3, 2020.13 Film titles in Hangul follow Korean Wikipedia's list of winners, which agrees with the English list on every winning film.2 The organiser's own site couldn't be opened, so the list rests on Wikipedia; no 60th edition appears in it as of October 24, 2026.1 Director names are as the English list gives them, with Park Chul-soo's two entries (1985, 1986) written one way. Wins per director are counted from this table.
Im Kwon-taek (임권택) directed five Best Film winners, the most of any director: The Hidden Hero (깃발 없는 기수, 1979), Diary of King Yeonsan (연산일기, 1987), Come Come Come Upward (아제 아제 바라아제, 1989), Fly High Run Far (개벽, 1992) and Seopyeonje (서편제, 1993).12 His last three came within five years, and the 1992 and 1993 wins were back to back.1 He also has four Best Film wins at the Blue Dragon Film Awards, the other major Korean film awards, which DabPop covers in its own archive.6
The first Grand Bell Awards ceremony in 1962 named Prince Yeonsan (연산군) Best Film, directed by Shin Sang-ok (신상옥).7 He won again for The Memorial Gate for Virtuous Women (열녀문, 1963), Deaf Sam-yong (벙어리 삼룡, 1965) and Prince Daewon (대원군, 1968), four of the first seven Best Film awards.12 Kim Soo-yong (김수용) followed with three of his own, in 1964, 1966 and 1974.1
Lee Chang-dong (이창동) won three Best Film awards across 18 years: Peppermint Candy (박하사탕, 2000), Poetry (시, 2010) and Burning (버닝, 2018).12 His latest film, Possible Love, is covered on its own page.
Bong Joon-ho (봉준호) won for Memories of Murder (살인의 추억, 2003) and Parasite (기생충), the 56th edition, which the English list files under 2019 and which was held on June 3, 2020.123 Park Chan-wook (박찬욱) won for Joint Security Area (공동경비구역 JSA, 2001) and Decision to Leave (헤어질 결심), the 58th edition, held on December 9, 2022.124
Concrete Utopia (콘크리트 유토피아), directed by Um Tae-hwa (엄태화), is the latest Best Film winner on the list;5 the 59th ceremony took place on November 15, 2023, and was co-hosted for the first time by the Gyeonggi Arts Center.1 The English list ends there: the host federation was declared bankrupt by the Seoul Bankruptcy Court in December 2023, and in 2025 the awards' trademark and operating rights passed to the Korea Film Planning Producers Association.1