Lee Chang-dong describes his creative process as one of utter despair. Almost all Lee's films have that of melodramatic element, except for "Burning" that bends the contours of the thriller with a tense, haunting multiple-character study. All his films are dark stories of innocence lost, suffering and alienation. His key themes have been consistently about psychological trauma. Rather than allowing his characters simply to wallow in their misery, Lee draws them into situations that make them search, often futilely, for the meaning of life. Memory has often been an important theme for Lee. His work can be defined by the tragedy genre and his stories almost always involve his characters experiencing some degree of suffering.