29th BIFF selects 12 world premiere films of emerging directors

29th Busan International Film Festival poster (BIFF)

The 29th Busan International Film Festival announced Thursday 12 selections for the “Korean Cinema Today -- Vision” section, which premieres indie films of up-and-coming independent film directors in Korea.

A world premiere in this section has been regarded as a stepping stone for garnering attention in the domestic and international film industries, as the films go through official release at cinemas here or receive invitations to prestigious international film festivals.

The selection includes director Hwang In-won's “Journey to Face Them,” a film that captures the psychological complexities of a character living in the aftermath of sexual violence. Also to be screened is director Jo Hee-young's “Merely Known as Something Else” – a story of a man who disappeared one day and the three women entangled with him for different reasons, presented with meticulous emotion and a unique format.

Others include director Kang Mi-ja's novel-based “Spring Night,” director Kim Hyo-eun's “Tango at Dawn” and director Lee Ran-hee’s coming-of-age film “The Final Semester.”

BIFF’s representative “New Currents” competition section, which focuses on the first or the second feature of emerging Asian filmmakers, has selected 10 films.

Of them, two are Korean films: “The Land of Morning Calm” by director Park Ri-woong (“The Girl on a Bulldozer”) which tells the story of a young fisher’s disappearance and an old captain mysteriously involved in this case, and “Waterdrop” by debuting director Choi Jong-yong. “Waterdrop” portrays the survival journey of a thirteen-year-old child left alone in the world, capturing a range of emotions and an intense, suspenseful narrative.

Other selections include “As the River Goes By” by Charles Hu, a post-production fund recipient from Asian Cinema Fund 2024, which shows a young man tracing the memory of his father who went missing 12 years ago. “Montages of a Modern Motherhood,” directed by Hong Kong director Oliver Siu Kuen Chan, portrays the struggles of a new mother, revealing the emotional waves she endures.

In the “Jiseok” section, which sheds light on veteran Asian directors, eight films have been selected.

The section was named after the late Kim Ji-seok, a senior programmer who devoted himself to developing Asian cinema.

Two of eight “Jiseok” selections feature Korean films – “I Am Love” by director Baek Seungbin and “So it Goes” by director Lee Haram. Two other films from Japan center on women-centric narratives, “Aimitagai” by Kusano Shogo and “Traveling Alone,” the third feature of Ishibashi Yuho who produced “When Morning Comes, I Feel Empty” (2022).

The 29th edition of the festival will be held from Oct. 2 to Oct. 11 at Busan Cinema Center.

By Kim Da-sol(ddd@heraldcorp.com)