'Dora' Ando Sakura: "It's amazing that the glamorous and stylish Kim Do-yeon is 'Dora'." [Cannes★Interview] ①

*This content was translated by AI.

• Interview with Ando Sakura, director of the film 'Dora', invited to the 79th Cannes Film Festival Directors' Fortnight

Ando Sakura, the protagonist of the film 'Dora', shared her impressions of working alongside Kim Do-yeon.

On the afternoon of the 19th, Ando Sakura held an interview at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France, for 'Dora' (directed by Jung Ju-ri), an invited work of the 79th Cannes Film Festival Directors' Fortnight.

'Dora' tells the story of Dora (played by Kim Do-yeon), who suffers from an unknown skin disease, living with a couple named Nami (played by Ando Sakura) and Yeon-su (played by Song Se-byeok) in the countryside. There, she experiences feelings of happiness and love for the first time, causing their relationships and emotions to gradually become unsettled. The film depicts the process of two individuals wounded in body and mind being swept into a whirlpool of complex emotions, rendered through director Jung Ju-ri's signature delicate direction. It boldly and sensually portrays the primal desires residing within a woman's inner self and the confusion she experiences in the process.

On this day, director Jung Ju-ri explained the casting process for Kim Do-yeon as Dora, stating, "After a very long audition process, we finally made the selection. However, the image we initially had was completely different. Just by looking at her appearance, I thought only of someone who seemed weak, small, and outwardly vulnerable. Of course, there were good actors with that kind of feel, but during the audition process, I saw Kim Do-yeon's version of Dora after she recovered. She endured the entire process silently, and I felt she had a certain stubbornness. I thought she could express the firm image of Dora at the end," revealing her affection.

Ando Sakura, who worked alongside Kim Do-yeon, said, "I thought it was amazing. How could they adapt 'Dora' to fit the actor Kim Do-yeon? The director is truly remarkable. When I first received the image of Kim Do-yeon playing Dora, I was surprised. She has long hair, is glamorous, and stylish, so hearing that she is Dora was shocking." She added, "But as you have seen in the film, this 'Dora' of Do-yeon has been completed. The director who thought of Kim Do-yeon as 'Dora' is truly remarkable."

Continuing, Ando Sakura said, "I believe there is a very great vitality within Dora. Even in moments of extreme honesty or scenes where she is not, there is vitality. I think the hope we feel while watching 'Dora' is because Kim Do-yeon performed it." She further explained, "Although sexual desire appears in the work, because Do-yeon played the role of Dora, the sexual desire is read as vitality and a pursuit of love. It is remarkable that from such a stylish Do-yeon, we grasped a vitality that we might have missed or overlooked."

Following her feature debut 'Dohee-ya' (2014, Un Certain Regard) and her second feature 'Next Sohee' (2022, Critics' Week closing film), Jung Ju-ri has now had 'Dora' (2026, Directors' Fortnight) invited to the Cannes Film Festival, bringing all three of her feature films released over the past 12 years to Cannes. Director Jung Ju-ri is the first female director in Korean film history to have all three of her feature films selected for Cannes.

Meanwhile, 'Dora', which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, is scheduled for release in Korea in the second half of this year.

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*This content was translated by AI.