SEOUL• The fantasy romance Goblin and the lesbian bodice-ripper The Handmaiden won the top prizes at the Baeksang Arts Awards on Wednesday, said reports.
Collecting the Grand Prize for The Handmaiden, a love story between a female pickpocket and an heiress adapted from Sarah Waters' novel Fingersmith, director Park Chan Wook made an appeal to his fellow South Koreans, who will elect a new president on Tuesday.
He was quoted as saying by The Korea Herald: "I would like to be able to create such a society where no one is discriminated against because of their gender, sexual identity and sexual orientation."
Screenwriter Kim Eun Sook received the night's other Grand Prize for Goblin, her tvN hit that followed hot on the heels of her 2016 KBS drama, Descendants Of The Sun.
Goblin also won Best Actor for Gong Yoo, 37, who tearfully apologised to his mother for being too busy filming to take care of her.
In the past year, he also starred in the cloak-and-dagger movie The Age Of Shadows and the horror film Train To Busan, which both took prizes on Wednesday.
The rest of the TV awards were distributed to other hits. The senior citizens' romance Dear My Friends won Best Drama and Best Screenplay for Noh Hee Kyung.
Yoo In Sik was honoured as Best Director for the medical drama Romantic Doctor, Teacher Kim, and Seo Hyun Jin, 32, as Best Actress for the romantic comedy Another Miss Oh.
The period romance Love In The Moonlight won popularity awards for its leading couple, Park Bo Gum and Kim You Jung.
Actress Kim Young Ae, who died from pancreatic cancer last month, not long after filming the weekend drama The Gentlemen Of Wolgyesu Tailor Shop, was given a lifetime achievement award.
The Baeksang Arts Awards, honouring TV and film, are South Korea's answer to the Golden Globes.
In movie categories, the supernatural thriller The Wailing was named Best Film.
The Age Of Shadows won Best Director for Kim Jee Woon and Best Actor for Song Kang Ho.
Son Ye Jin was named Best Actress for the melodrama The Last Princess. Train To Busan won Best New Director for Yeon Sang Ho and Best Supporting Actor for Kim Eui Sung.
