Attending the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) is an opportunity to discover new films, but it also provides a snapshot of where the Korean film industry (and that of Asia) is and where it is heading. This is true of some of the other film festivals in Korea like Bucheon and Jeonju and yet there is something unique about Busan with its Asian Contents & Film Market running alongside it, and its ability to attract much of the industry in one place.

After celebrating its 30th edition, the festival has entered a new chapter. This was confirmed this year when it was recognized by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF) as an A-list festival, joining the ranks of festivals such as Cannes, Berlin and Venice. Also signifying its growing status was the announcement that the winner of the main competition at Busan will automatically qualify for submission to the Academy Awards, making it a potential launching pad for Oscar-nominated films. This means the main competition winner at this year’s festival Midday Meal (2026) by Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi will be submitted.

This year’s attendance exceeded 200,000, marking the highest number since 2015. Total attendance hit 277,027, marking an increase of 40,000 compared to last year, which is impressive given that the 2025 festival marked its 30th edition. It is a further encouraging sign that Korea’s film industry is beginning to turn a corner following a number of hits this year, including The King’s Warden (2026) , which sold 16.9 million tickets.

The King's Warden (2026)

Reconnecting with Audiences

Obtaining tickets, even for guests was challenging, events sold out and cinemas were packed. Busan emerged in the 1990s when there was a real hunger for cinema with film clubs opening up across the country. The building of Korea’s film industry came as there was a reconnection between audiences and film. That connection was lost in the 1970s and 1980s. Turning to the 2020s, the industry has had to seek ways to lure back audiences to the cinema following seismic shifts in viewing habits in the streaming era. This year there are indications this is happening with the success of both Korean and Hollywood films on the big screen as young people, especially, are returning to cinemas. Busan in many respects felt like a confirmation of some of what we have seen in the local industry over the past year or so. Interestingly reflecting a wider trend, local animated titles stood out among some of the Korean films screening at the festival this year.

Vision Awards, Local Discoveries & Themes

Screening in competition was Youm Kyu-bock’s enchanting and very touching Long Long Night (2026) about the life of a rhinoceros called Norden that will undoubtedly move viewers both young and old with its powerful story and 3D animation. While it didn’t win any awards, it should have a long run on the festival circuit and beyond after premiering in Toronto in September. It’s one of several animated titles to have screened at the festival this year, including Yun Tae-rang’s short TOE’S (2026), which won the Sonje Award, and Kim Si-jin’s The Flower (2026), which came home with the DGK Plus M Award.

Long Long Night (2026)

In Vision, Jeong Ji-hye’s FULL MOON (2026), which screened later on in the festival, won three prizes: the CGV Award, the K-MOVIE Award and the Songwon Vision Audience Award. Park Songyeol’s Beyond Love’s Horizon (2026) attracted interest with two accolades (KBS Independent Film Award, Critic b Award) and Oh Se-hyeon’s BALER (2026) also won two awards: the Jeong-in Award and the Citizen Critics’ Award. In the main competition, Lim Ha-yeon received the New Currents Award (Special Mention) for her well-received KAFA feature Beach Fictions (2026).

Social problems were again a prominent theme in this year’s Korean lineup, as seen with Beyond Love’s Horizon , which  follows a married couple struggling to raise a child. The topic of suicide and/or loss came up repeatedly in titles such as Some Detective (2026), The Birds (2026), Earbug (2026), Cosmic Trace (2026) and Things I Left at the Theater (2026).

In Korean Cinema Today, there were some compelling titles. Kim Sung-yoon’s The Sorry Generation (2026) is a highly amusing film centering on a family clan’s shamanistic ritual as it returns to what was once a common theme in Korean cinema: the conflict between tradition and more contemporary values.

In Hong Sung-min’s Sinner (2026), Jung Sung-il and Park Ji-hyun deliver excellent performances in what is a captivating film about the injustices of the death penalty – a rare theme in Korean cinema.

Lee Yong-jae turns to Korea’s college entrance exam, known as the Suneung, in the effective satire Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng (2026) but does so from a different perspective: the teachers and professors who write the questions in a secluded building.

The subject of the Japanese colonial period is the backdrop to Song Il-gon’s moving Still Shining (2026), which follows two best friends who are separated when one of them disappears. It stars Kim Hye-ja as an elderly woman in the 1990s struggling with guilt over the disappearance.

Established Korean filmmakers were also part of the programme, with Na Hong-jin’s Hope (2026), Yeon Sang-ho’s Paradise Lost (2026), July Jung’s Dora (2026), Hong Sangsoo’s Nowhere to Lay My Eyes (2026) and Lee Chang-dong’s award-winning Netflix feature Possible Love (2026) also screening at the festival.

Hope (2026)

In what was a sign of the times, Netflix’s presence at the festival was certainly felt with its event Creative Asia, whichincluded a masterclass with cinematographer Kim Ji-yong, who shot Possible Love. The festival also held a Na Hong-jin session titled “Na Hong-jin: A Genre of His Own” in which he talked about his career.

The festival concluded its latest edition on October 15, further cementing itself as one of the leading events for cinema in the region.

Written by Jason Bechervaise 
Edited by KOFIC