[Edaily Starin Choi Hee-jae Reporter] Director Yeon Sang-ho’s new film, “Paradise Lost,” has been invited to the 51st Toronto International Film Festival. With its October release date now confirmed, anticipation for the film is building.

Director Yeon Sang-ho’s new film “Paradise Lost” has been officially invited to the Special Presentations section of the 51st Toronto International Film Festival, which will be held in Toronto, Canada, from September 10 to 20. Special Presentations is the flagship section of the Toronto International Film Festival, showcasing new works and highly anticipated films by the world’s leading directors.
With this invitation, Director Yeon Sang-ho has been selected by the Toronto International Film Festival for two consecutive years, following his previous invitation to the Special Presentations section for *Face* at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival. Furthermore, following the official invitation of *Gunchye* to the Midnight Screenings section of the 79th Cannes Film Festival in the first half of this year, *Paradise Lost* has now made its debut at Toronto in the second half of the year. This marks a significant achievement: having two commercial films screened back-to-back at the world’s two major international film festivals in both the first and second halves of the same year.
“Paradise Lost” is a psychological thriller that begins when Ryu Seon-woo, a son whom his mother Ryu So-young had believed to be dead after losing him in a camping school bus disappearance nine years ago, miraculously returns alive.
First, the international poster, unveiled alongside the invitation announcement, catches the eye. The poster features an old photograph of a child with the face torn out, a silhouette emerging from the darkness, and Ryu So-young (Kim Hyun-joo) standing with her head bowed in front of the photo—all captured in a single frame. The faceless silhouette hints at Seon-woo, the son who has returned after nine years looking completely different from how she remembers him, sparking curiosity about what will unfold between the two. The addition of the official invitation logo for the 51st Toronto International Film Festival further heightens anticipation ahead of the film’s release.
Director Yeon Sang-ho opens the trailer, which was released alongside the stills. Appearing personally in the opening commentary intro, the director said, “While working on *The King of Pigs*, *Cult*, and *Face*, I’ve been contemplating the dark side of human nature. *Lost Paradise* is the darkest story I’ve ever told—it’s a film about the harrowing struggle of a mother who finds herself plunged into a dark abyss, caught between a child brought back to life by AI and her real son who returns nine years later,” raising anticipation for the film.

The trailer begins with Ryu So-young sitting alone on the camping school bus where the children disappeared, asking, “Do you have any idea how terrible it was for me when you went missing?” It then moves through So-young’s daily life as she relies on her young son in the virtual reality world of “Children of Paradise,” before shifting to the unfamiliar appearance of Seon-woo, who has returned after nine years, accompanied by the caption “He’s Back.”
The line, “A miracle has happened to Seon-woo’s mother—the miracle I’ve always wished for,” is heard over suspenseful music, and the trailer concludes meaningfully with the words, “You’re my only son, Seon-woo.” In this way, Kim Hyun-joo’s trembling gaze as she faces her son again and Bae Hyun-sung’s inscrutable expression leave a powerful impression even in that brief moment.
In the film *Paradise Lost*, Kim Hyun-joo—who previously collaborated with director Yeon Sang-ho on the *Hell* series, *Jeong-i*, and *Seonsan*—reprises her role as Ryu So-young, while Bae Hyun-sung, making his debut as a leading actor in a film, plays Ryu Seon-woo, the unfamiliar son returning after nine years.
The production company Wow Point is a global content producer that has been actively making waves both domestically and internationally, having produced Director Yeon Sang-ho’s *Face*, *Military Body*, and *Gas Man*, as well as planning and producing *Project Y*, which was invited to the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.
Director Yeon Sang-ho’s new film *Collective*, which opened on May 21, has drawn 5.94 million viewers as of the 20th and is on the verge of surpassing 6 million.