Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) 2021 will begin by screening the South Korean film Heaven: To the Land of Happiness, starring Im Sang Soo, on October 6 at 6 pm KST. Masters of ceremony or the MCs of the opening day are Song Joong Ki and Park So Dam. Along with the hosts, around 1,200 people will attend the first-day event, which will be held at the Busan Cinema Center.
The 10-day-long event will feature more than 220 films from various parts of the world, and it will be attended by several Korean and overseas filmmakers and silver screen stars. The closing ceremony of the festival will be held on October 15. The screening of the Chinese film Anita by Longman Leung will be held on the same day. The winners in three categories -- New Currents Award, Kim Jiseok Award, and Citizen Critics' Award -- will be announced on the last day of the event.
Date and Time
The opening ceremony of the annual international film festival will begin at 6 pm KST on October 6 from the Busan Cinema Center. The closing ceremony will kickstart at the same time on October 15, and it will end with the screening of Anita at 8 pm KST at the same place.
Hosts
The opening ceremony will be hosted by Joong Ki and So Dam. The MCs of the closing ceremony is Lee Joon-hyuk and Lee Joo-young. All the MCs are hosting the event for the first time, but Joong Ki and So Dam has the experience of hosting live events. For Joon Hyuk and Joo Young, it will be a first-time experience as hosts.
Schedules
- October 6 - Opening ceremony and screening of South Korean film Heaven: To the Land of Happiness.
- October 7 - Special talk with Japanese filmmaker Ryusuke Hamaguchi and South Korean director Bong Joon Ho. Several national and international films will be screened on the same day, such as Riverside Mukolitta, Space Sweepers, Marx Can Wait, and Good Mother. Actors' House with Time to Hunt actor Lee Je Hoon and The Call actress Jun Jong Seo.
- October 8 - Actors' House with Minari actress Han Yeri. Screening of movies, like The Cave, Night in Paradise, Cop Secret, and Everything Went Fine.
- October 9 - Actors' House with Entourage actor Cho Jinwoong and Mr. Sunshine actor Byun Johan. Korean short film competition and screening of films, such as Sophie's World, The Conversation, Nobody's Lover, and Hold Me Tight.
- October 10 - Korean Short Film Competing and screening of movies, including Tokyo Revengers, Vortex, The Person in the World, Pedro, and Fire.
- October 11 - Asian Short Film Competition and screening of films, such as Bergman Island, Missing, Red Rocket, Deception, Moneyboys, and The Day I Became a Woman.
- October 12 - Screening of movies, including The French Dispatch, House of Time, Doom Doom, Walking Past the Future, A Night of Knowing Nothing, No Surprise, and Through My Midwinter.
- October 13 - Korean Short Film Competition and screening of films, like Cop Secret, Freaks Out, What She Likes, Crossing's End, Ripples of Life, and Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts.
- October 14 - Actors' House with Wonderful Nightmare actress Uhm Junghwa, a special screening of Guillaume Brac's film A L'abordage!, Asian Short Film Competition, and screening of movies, like I am More, The Contorted House, Reflection, and Last Film.
- October 15 - The winners of the New Currents Award, Kim Jiseok Award, and Citizen Critics' Award will be announced, and the closing ceremony will be held along with the screening of the Chinese film Anita by Longman Leung.
How to Watch
This year, Busan International Film Festival will be held offline, and a total of 1, 200 people are expected to attend the event. The screening of the films will be held in six selected theatres, and there will be no online screening, according to program director Huh Moon Young.
"BIFF intends to host a festival where people can meet others, enjoy movies and events and share their feeling person-to-person. But we will also keep up with the changing media trend, such as demand for online streaming services", he said in a statement.
