Considering that 2006 was a boom year for Korean film production, it should come as no surprise that there was sizeable Korean presence at this year’s prestigious Festival de Cannes, held in May in the French Riviera city. Two Korean films, “Breath” and “Secret Sunshine,” were in official competition, with a number of others screened throughout the 12-day festival. Although neither competing film won, Jeon Do-yeon did win the Best Actress Award for her work in “Secret Sunshine,” which surely sent the Korean film delegation home happy.

Jeon’s Best Actress nod is the first for a Korean actress at Cannes and is only the second time an actress from Korea has won an award at a major international film festival (Kang Soo-yeon was the first, winning at the 1987 Venice Film Festival for her role in “Surrogate Mother.”) Jeon has become one of Korea’s best-known actresses since her breakthrough role in 1997’s “The Contact.” Still, her victory came as quite a shock — at least to her. “It was like a miracle,” Jeon said at a Seoul press conference upon returning from Cannes. “Words cannot express what I feel. I still can’t believe it.”

Here’s a rundown on this year’s Korean-related films screened at the festival:

“Breath” (“Soom”)

Director: Kim Ki-duk

True to form, acclaimed director Kim Ki-duk’s latest film deals with the emotional stress of isolation and disenfranchisement. This time the setting is a prison, where a suicidal inmate on death row is randomly visited by a woman recently scarred from discovering her husband’s infidelity. An unexpected romance blossoms, but time is short, and both her husband’s and his cellmates’ involvement bring about a dramatic conclusion.

“Secret Sunshine” (“Mil-yang”)

Director: Lee Chang-dong

Blessed to be working with two of Korea’s finest actors, Lee Chang-dong’s fourth feature is his most accomplished film to date. Best Actress winner Jeon Do-yeon plays the complicated role of a woman beset by tragedy, with first, the loss of her husband, then her son. Her attempts to find solace, including within the local Korean Christian community, fail to give her an understanding of the hand fate has dealt her. Superstar actor Song Kang-ho offers some welcome comedic beats as an auto mechanic who befriends her.

“Munyurangabo” (“Liberation Day”)

“Breath” (“Soom”)

Director: Lee Isaac Chung

Newcomer Lee Isaac Chung is a Korean American filmmaker whose story about an orphan of the Rwandan genocide was screened as part of the prestigious “Un Certain Regard” section of Cannes’ programming, designed to showcase noteworthy films out of competition.

“My Dear Rosseta”

Director: Yang Hea-hoon

This 10-minute long film, which examines an encounter between a father and his daughter, was one of only three short films from Asia included in competition at this year’s festival.

“A Reunion”

Director: Hong Sung-hoon