Star-studded Busan International Film Festival opens amid industry woes

BUSAN, South Korea, Sept. 17 (UPI) — As South Korea’s domestic film industry struggles through its most challenging year since the pandemic, the 30th Busan International Film Festival struck a note of resilience Wednesday with a star-studded opening ceremony.

Asia’s largest film festival runs through Sep. 26 and features 241 official entries from 64 countries, including 90 world premieres.

Star power has been turned up this year, with top Korean actor Lee Byung-hun hosting the opening ceremony and auteur Park Chan-wook’s No Other Choice serving as the festival’s opening film. Park’s black comedy has been a standout on the festival circuit, winning plaudits at Venice and Toronto in recent weeks.

Wednesday night’s ceremony featured red carpet appearances by luminaries such as Guillermo del Toro, Blackpink’s Lisa and director Maggie Kang of KPop Demon Hunters fame. Iran’s Jafar Panahi, who won the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes, received the Asian Filmmaker of the Year award at the event.

The glittering guest list for the festival includes directors Bong Joon-ho, Jia Zhangke, Sean Baker and Michael Mann alongside performers Juliette Binoche, Milla Jovovich and Tony Leung.

While BIFF has traditionally focused on emerging talents, the 30th edition aims to enhance the festival’s global standing with a new full-fledged competition section. Fourteen Asian films will be presented across five categories, with South Korean filmmaker Na Hong-jin serving as the jury president.

Entries include Yoo Jae-in’s En Route To, Japanese director Sho Miyake’s Two Seasons, Two Strangers, Taiwanese actress and director Shu Qi’s Girl and Chinese director Zhang Lu’s Gloaming in Luomu.

A renewed emphasis on public-friendly events will bring a special sing-along screening of the blockbuster Netflix animated film KPop Demon Hunters, with director Maggie Kang in attendance.

BIFF’s director, Jung Han-seok, described this year’s lineup as “monumental, the largest and finest in the festival’s history” during a press conference for the festival on Aug. 26.

“One of our goals this year is overcoming the crisis in Korean cinema and taking another huge leap,” he said.

The South Korean film industry could certainly use a boost after suffering through one of its worst years at the box office in recent memory. According to the Korean Film Council, attendance was down by 32.5% over the first half of the year, as streaming platforms kept audiences at home and the number of theatrical releases dwindled.

The last few months have shown signs of life, however, buoyed by summer blockbusters such as the Korean comedy My Daughter is a Zombie. A slate of upcoming releases, including Park Chan-wook’s No Other Choice, is giving industry insiders a measured dose of optimism.

“The film industry is having a very tough time in Korea,” Park said during a press conference for his festival opening film on Wednesday. “But I don’t think we’ll be staying in this status quo forever. I hope my film will play a little role in the recovery.”

Other features during this year’s BIFF include its Special Program in Focus section, which brings retrospectives honoring Italian filmmaker Marco Bellocchio and French actress Juliette Binoche.

In the Korean Cinema Today section, highly anticipated films such as Audition 109 by Jung Woo and Oh Seong-ho, The Great Flood by Kim Byung-woo and Boss by Ra Hee-chan will be making their world premieres. The Vision section, which focuses on emerging filmmakers, has expanded to feature 12 works from Korea and 11 from across Asia.

Competition winners will be announced at the closing ceremony, hosted by actress Claudia Kim, on Sept. 26.