BUSAN International Film Festival

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31st BUSAN International Film Festival

Honoring the Winners
and Award-Winning Films

Moments of Glory in The Ocean of Cinema

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31st BUSAN International Film Festival

2026 BIFF
Final Report

Key Figures, Achievements, and Festival Records

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News & Notices

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Competition

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Indonesia/Japan 2026 96min

Artistic Contribution, Best Actor

World Premiere

The First Taste of Loneliness

GU You

China 2026 135min

Best Actor

International Premiere

The Sea Speaks His Name

Yosep Anggi NOEN

Indonesia 2026 133min

Uzbekistan 2026 87min

2026 Official Selections

WHAT'S ON

BIFF Events

MASTER CLASS

Master Class: NA Hong-jin, A Genre of His Own

Oct 8 (Thu)

Culture Hall (9F), Shinsegae Centum City

MASTER CLASS

Master Class: The Cinematic Visions of Alfonso CUARÓN

Oct 8 (Thu)

Busan Cinema Center Cinema 1

ACTORS HOUSE

Actors’ House: KIM Goeun

Oct 8 (Thu)

Culture Hall(9F), Shinsegae Centum City

OPEN TALK

Open Talk

Oct 7 (Wed) ~ Oct 13 (Tue)

Busan Cinema Center Roof Theater

ACTORS HOUSE

Actors’ House: KIM Minha

Oct 8 (Thu)

Culture Hall(9F), Shinsegae Centum City

SPECIAL EVENT

Special Talk: The Cinematic Life of Ann Hui, Winner of the Camellia Award

Oct 8 (Thu)

Busan Cinema Center Cinema 2

MASTER CLASS

Master Class: Lav DIAZ - Time and Memory

Oct 9 (Fri)

Culture Hall (9F), Shinsegae Centum City

ACTORS HOUSE

Actors’ House: RYU Seung-ryong

Oct 9 (Fri)

Culture Hall(9F), Shinsegae Centum City

OUTDOOR STAGE GREETING

Outdoor Stage Greeting

Oct 7 (Wed) ~ Oct 11 (Sun)

Busan Cinema Center Roof Theater

ACTORS HOUSE

Actors’ House: JU Jihoon

10.09 (Fri)

Culture Hall(9F), Shinsegae Centum City

MASTER CLASS

Master Class: Bertrand MANDICO, A Magician of Wild Cinema

Oct 10 (Sat)

Culture Hall (9F), Shinsegae Centum City

MASTER CLASS

Master Class: Rintaro, a Living Legend of Japanese Animation

Oct 10 (Sat)

Culture Hall (9F), Shinsegae Centum City

ACTORS HOUSE

Actors’ House: SHIN Mina

Oct 10 (Sat)

Culture Hall(9F), Shinsegae Centum City

SPECIAL TALK

Special Talk

Oct 7 (Wed) ~ Oct 12 (Mon)

Varies by Event

TALK-TO-TALK

Talk-to-Talk-Scene Stealer: Actor KIM Kukhee

Oct 12 (Mon)

HANMAC SMOOOOOTH LOUNGE

TALK-TO-TALK

Talk-to-Talk-Scene Stealer: Actor KIM Jaechul

Oct 12 (Mon)

HANMAC SMOOOOOTH LOUNGE

TALK-TO-TALK

Talk-to-Talk-Scene Stealer: Actor GONG Minjeung

Oct 13 (Tue)

HANMAC SMOOOOOTH LOUNGE

TALK-TO-TALK

Talk-to-Talk-Scene Stealer: Actor PARK Jiyeon

Oct 13 (Tue)

HANMAC SMOOOOOTH LOUNGE

CINE CLASS

Cine Class

Oct 8 (Thu) ~ Oct 14 (Wed)

Varies by Event

TALK-TO-TALK

Talk-to-Talk-Scene Stealer: Actor IM Seongjae

Oct 14 (Wed)

HANMAC SMOOOOOTH LOUNGE

TALK-TO-TALK

Talk-to-Talk-Scene Stealer: Actor KIM Junhan

Oct 14 (Wed)

HANMAC SMOOOOOTH LOUNGE

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Media

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BIFF 2026

📽️ 𝐁𝐈𝐅𝐅 𝐍𝐎𝐖 | 𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝟏𝟎🎬

Audience & Critics

BIFF Story

All Stories

The Kinder Programmer

THE KINDER PROGRAMMER

[BIFF 2026] The Kinder Programmer - Karen PARK

The ocean of cinema brings a fresh wave of films every year. This edition of The Kinder Programmer covers a rich spectrum of cinema—ranging from highly anticipated works by visionary directors to star-studded casts, nuanced picks for cinephiles, and hidden gems that exceed all expectations.

Karen PARK Deputy Director

2026/09/15

Selection Review

Satoko Always

OKITA Shuichi / Japan / 2026 / 138 min / Competition An omnibus narrative unfolds around three women named Satoko. Fifteen-year-old Satoko (Kashun Himeno) is preoccupied with a boy her age whom

2026/10/11 BY Kim Min-se

The Sea Speaks His Name

Busan competition premiere reunites director Yosep Anggi Noen with his ‘24 Hours With Gaspar’ star Reza Rahadian Dir: Yosep Anggi Noen. Indonesia. 2026. 133minsDictatorial rule, oppression and the pow

2026/10/13 BY Elizabeth KERR

Possible Love

Lee's fathomless, curious (in both senses) eighth feature delivers wit, soul, social insight and a scintillating central turn from his 'Secret Sunshine' star Jeon Do-yeon. One of the key moments from

2026/10/13 BY Jessica Kiang

The First Taste of Loneliness

Chinese director Gu You's conclusion to his 'Landscape' trilogy too often steps into maudlin territory, but rights itself whenever it focuses on everyday details in its portrait of three generations o

2026/10/13 BY Guy Lodge

Satoko Always

Kasumi Arimura, Hikari Ishida and young breakout Kashun Himeno play three women with the same name, who tap into their creative sides in this charming Busan competition entry. Three total strangers, w

2026/10/13 BY James Marsh

Hinotama: Ball of Fire

VERDICT: This precisely shot family drama has a hint of the mystical and mysterious as it creates a suffocating milieu of detachment that is strangely compelling.Ben NicholsonOctober 12th, 2026Takenos

2026/10/13 BY Ben Nicholson

The Day After Sunday

The writer/director’s follow-up to ‘Grown-ups’ and ‘Fly On’ premieres in Busan competition Dir: Takuya Kato. Japan/France. 2026. 82minsTakuya Kato’s third feature is an exploration of a relationship f

2026/10/13 BY Elizabeth KERR

Between Two Lovers

Tasuku Emoto and Shizuka Ishibashi also star in Nanako Hirose’s Busan competition title Dir/scr: Nanako Hirose. Japan. 2026. 128minsA free-spirited if slightly self-centred writer conspires to have he

2026/10/13 BY Elizabeth KERR

The First Taste of Loneliness

The Busan competition premiere follows ‘Dwelling In The Fuchan Mountains’ and ‘Dwelling By The West Lake’ Dir: Gu You. China/France. 2026 135minsThe concluding film in director Gu You’s ’Landscape’ (

2026/10/11 BY Allan HUNTER

The Table: Day and Night

Kim Jong-kwan’s follow-up to 2016’s ‘The Table’ stars Shim Eun-kyung and Han Sun-hwaDir: Kim Jong-kwan. South Korea. 2026. 80minsA chic neighbourhood café bears witness to the various romantic trial

2026/10/11 BY Elizabeth KERR

Satoko Always

The film has its international premiere in Busan competition after releasing in Japan last monthDir: Shuichi Okita. Japan. 2026. 138minsThe importance of self-fulfilment and life’s big and small conne

2026/10/11 BY Amber WILKINSON

Long Long Night

Youm Kyu-bock’s feature debut plays Busan competition following a Toronto premiere Dir: Youm Kyu-bock. South Korea. 2026. 99minsA lone White Boulder Rhinoceros raised by a herd of elephants in Africa

2026/10/11 BY Elizabeth KERR

Nothing Has Happened Yet

VERDICT: Korean director Shin Sun crafts a quietly inquisitive meditation on chance and uncertainty in 'Nothing Has Happened Yet', although its romantic preoccupations and later pacing narrow its hori

2026/11/09 BY Nemo Kim

Bua

VERDICT: A striking mixed-race girl must navigate the harsh realities of womanhood in 1970s Thailand in this serviceable but ceaselessly grim drama.Ben NicholsonOctober 11th, 2026“Life is song sung by

2026/10/13 BY Ben Nicholson

HOPE

VERDICT: Korean director Na Hong-jin's gonzo sci-fi action comedy is a wild rollercoaster ride loaded with just enough famous names, lowbrow jokes and blood-splattered thrills to excuse its thin plot

2026/10/09 BY Stephen Dalton

Long Long Night

VERDICT: Youm Kyu-bock lights up Busan’s top-tier competition with a crowd-pleasing, tear-jerking, excellently animated road movie about two animals’ search for a better place to live.Clarence TsuiOct

2026/10/09 BY Clarence Tsui

Midday Meal

VERDICT: Iranian auteur Majid Majidi’s first film in six years, 'Midday Meal' is illuminated by Mohammad Rahimi’s dazzling performance as a morally conflicted schoolteacher.Clarence TsuiOctober 9th, 2

2026/10/10 BY Clarence Tsui

FULL MOON

VERDICT: Jeong Ji-hye’s tender second feature 'Full Moon' pairs an occasionally overexplained coming-of-age narrative with exceptional casting and beautifully judged performances.The Film VerdictOctob

2026/10/13 BY Nemo Kim

Beach Fictions

LIM Hayeon / Korea / 2026 / 144min / Competition A train passes by in the distance, after which, the camera pans, lingering inside a busy restaurant and its busy patrons excitedly engaged in thei

2026/10/11 BY Oggs Cruz Film Critic (Philippines)

Shaving

Kim Junghoon / South Korea / 2026 / 93min / Competition Three years after announcing her retirement from writing, horror novelist Suyeon (Roh Jeong-eui) reveals plans for a new book. Declaring th

2026/10/11 BY Jaehyun Jung

Satoko Always

OKITA Shuichi / Japan / 2026 / 138 min / Competition An omnibus narrative unfolds around three women named Satoko. Fifteen-year-old Satoko (Kashun Himeno) is preoccupied with a boy her age whom

2026/10/11 BY Kim Min-se

Between Two Lovers

HIROSE Nanako / Japan / 2026 / 128min / CompetitionUta(Masami Nagasawa), a successful children’s book author, appears to have a near-perfect marriage with her supportive husband Morio(Tasuku Emot

2026/10/13 BY Robert Daniels Film Critic (USA)

To Be Ordinary

LEE Yun Chan / Taiwan / 2026 / 112min / Competition At the center of To Be Ordinary is a seemingly unremarkable family of four: a married couple and their son and daughter. They seem neither abn

2026/10/13 BY Sunwoo Nam

The Day After Sunday

Kato Takuya / Japan / 2026 / 82min / CompetitionThe latest film from the young Japanese director Kato Takuya, The Day After Sunday, is one of constantly simmering tension. Set over around a week

2026/10/11 BY Kambole Campbell, Film Critic

Possible Love

Lee's fathomless, curious (in both senses) eighth feature delivers wit, soul, social insight and a scintillating central turn from his 'Secret Sunshine' star Jeon Do-yeon. One of the key moments from

2026/10/13 BY Jessica Kiang

Bedford Park

In Stephanie Ahn’s debut, a dual character study, the performances remain consistently measured, while the subplots and burdens each character carries occasionally overwhelm the narrative. As the “Roc

2026/10/13 BY Carlos Aguilar

Midday Meal

Veteran director Majid Majidi's latest film is anchored by a great performance from lead actor Mohammad Rahimi. “Midday Meal” isn’t necessarily about the art of cooking, but it is in part about the ri

2026/10/13 BY Kambole Campbell

Between Two Lovers

Masami Nagasawa is applaudably unlikable as an adulterous author with a resistance to motherhood, who invites her husband and girlfriend to conceive a child together in a tantalizing proposition that

2026/10/13 BY James Marsh

To Be Ordinary

Writer-director Lee Yun Chan's first feature in 16 years follows the sometimes surprising long-term trajectory of an already struggling family in the wake of a life-changing accident. A high-speed tra

2026/10/15 BY Guy Lodge

Beach Fictions

A highlight of Busan's main competition, Lim Hayeon's artful, confident debut follows a young woman through two versions of the same timeline, steered by tellers of stories and fortune. Fatalism, self

2026/10/15 BY Guy Lodge

홈 영역

News & Notices

Competition

BIFF Events

Media

BIFF Story

[BIFF 2026] The Kinder Programmer - Karen PARK

Satoko Always

The Sea Speaks His Name

Possible Love

The First Taste of Loneliness

Satoko Always

Hinotama: Ball of Fire

The Day After Sunday

Between Two Lovers

The First Taste of Loneliness

The Table: Day and Night

Satoko Always

Long Long Night

Nothing Has Happened Yet

Bua

HOPE

Long Long Night

Midday Meal

FULL MOON

Beach Fictions

Shaving

Satoko Always

Between Two Lovers

To Be Ordinary

The Day After Sunday

Possible Love

Bedford Park

Midday Meal

Between Two Lovers

To Be Ordinary

Beach Fictions

For latest BIFF news