Kang Dong-won and Yoo Teo set to become new members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Yoo Teo and Kang Dong-won have been invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). On June 25, AMPAS released its list of 487 new invitees. The California-based professional honorary organization, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences which aims to advance the arts and sciences of motion pictures, will give them the right to vote for Oscars if they accept the invite.

Yoo Teo and Kang Dong-won are among some well-known individuals who have joined the ranks, which include Lily Gladstone, who was nominated for Best Actress in Killers of the Flower Moon, Sandra Hüller from Anatomy of a Fall, and Da’Vine Joy Randolph from The Holdovers. Oppenheimer character actor Jason Clarke was invited along with David Yates, the Harry Potter series director.

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Kang Dong-won and Yoo Teo invited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Kang Dong-won at Louis Vuitton : Photocall - Paris Fashion Week 2023 (Image via getty)

Kang Dong-won and Yoo Teo are expected to become members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Apart from the two, Korean-Canadian filmmaker Celine Song has been invited in both the directors and writers categories, while Greta Lee, who also starred in Past Lives, has been invited in the actors' category. Jo Yeong Wook, the music director of Decision to Leave, was also invited by the music section.

Following the film's Oscar sweep, the cast of Parasite, which included Choi Woo-sik, Jang Hye-jin, Jo Yeo-jung, Lee Jung-eun, and Park So-dam, was invited, resulting in a notable rise in South Korean membership in 2020. That year, actress Youn Yeo-jung also officially joined.

Since 2015, actors Lee Byung-hun, Bae Doo-na, Ha Jung-woo, Kim Min-hee, and Jo Jin-woong are among the well-known people included who have added their names to the list, as are filmmakers Bong Joon-ho, Im Kwon-taek, Hong Sang-soo, Park Chan-wook, Lee Chang-dong and Im Soon-rye from the Korean industry.

There will be 10,910 total members and 9,934 voting members if all of the invitees proceed with accepting the Academy membership. Furthermore, the academy has been trying to be more inclusive towards artists from outside the country. After considering the addition of the 2024 members, AMPAS will now have 35% female members, 20% members from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, and 20% members from nations or territories outside of the United States.

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Kang Dong-won and Yoo Teo have Netflix projects lined up

Kang Dong-won and Yoo Teo have both been important parts of the South Korean film industry. Dong-won began his career as a model before discovering his love for acting when he starred in Jo Sung Mo's music video for the song I Swear. Following that, he gained recognition for his roles in the movies Temptation of Wolves, Maundy Thursday, A Violent Prosecutor, Peninsula, and Hirokazu Kore-eda's film Broker. He will next be seen in the Netflix film Uprising, scheduled for release later this year.

Yoo Teo, also known as Kim Chi Hun, won the Blue Dragon Film Award for Best New Actor in 2021 for his performance as Viktor Tsoi in the 2018 musical Leto. He gained widespread recognition in 2023 for his role in Celine Song's romantic drama Past Lives. He was nominated for the Best Actor in a Leading Role BAFTA Award for the movie. He'll next be seen in season 2 of the Netflix spy-adventure series The Recruit.