SEOUL, May 25 (Xinhua) -- South Korean director Park Chan-wook won the jury prize, the third-highest honor, for his vampire thriller "Thirst (Bakjwi)" at the Cannes film festival, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported Monday, quoting the event's Website.

    Jurors of the Cannes International Film Fest decided to honor Park's film about a priest-turned-vampire struggling to fight against his sexual and physical desire, as well as British director Andrea Arnold's "Fish Tank," with the Jury Prize.

    "The joy of creating is my energy in making films. Filmmaking is a joy from the beginning to the end," Park told the audience at the awards ceremony.

    Park also named Song Gang-ho, who starred as the vampire in the film, as the one to he'd like to share the honor with.

    Park's recent prize marks the fourth time that a South Korean was awarded in the festival, after director Lim Kwon-taek's winning director's award for "Stroke of Fire" in 2002, Park himself receiving the Grand Jury Prize in 2004, and actress Jeon Do-yeon's best actress prize in 2007 for "Secret Sunshine."