Fall is just around the corner—and so is BIFF! 🍂

With BIFF back in October this year, excitement is building over one big question: What films will we discover in Busan this time? 🎬✨

In this issue, we’re taking a closer look at a wide range of films—from Midnight Passion, where the screen keeps glowing long into the night, to dazzling new works from world-renowned masters and fresh discoveries from across Asian cinema.

So, what will make it onto your BIFF watchlist? 👀

Extra, extra! 🗞️

Director Yeon Sang-ho’s new film PARADISE LOST has officially been invited to BIFF’s Gala Presentation. 💌

Gala Presentation showcases new works by internationally acclaimed filmmakers and some of the year’s most talked-about films, giving audiences the chance to meet the directors and leading cast members in person.

Starring Kim Hyun-joo and Bae Hyeon-seong, PARADISE LOST is a mystery thriller about a son who returns home nine years after disappearing—completely changed.

Caught between the virtual version of her son recreated through AI and the real son who has returned as a stranger, a mother is thrown into turmoil.

Still shrouded in mystery, PARADISE LOST will make its Asian Premiere in Busan, marking its first screening in Korea. 👀

A new mystery thriller from Yeon Sang-ho—catch PARADISE LOST at BIFF!

Sleep can wait—Midnight Passion is back! 🌙

Midnight Passion is a late-night section featuring new films that bring together cinematic quality and pure entertainment.

This year, nine films will screen across three nights—Thursday, Friday, and Saturday—with three films each night!

L’Autre

Alexandre FRANCHI

Sapiens
LEE Hu-bin

ⓒAndrea Miconi

The Spiral

Paolo STRIPPOLI

One of those nights is dedicated entirely to animation. ‘All-Night Animation’ brings together animated films from around the world for a full night at the movies.

All night + animation? Sounds like our kind of night. 🔥🍿🎬

ⓒDeep Sky Object

Welcome to Dolly's House

Seven YCH, Rady FU, Tree MUTA

ⓒMamoru Oshii/Yoshitaka Amano/Tokuma Shoten, Tokuma Japan Communications All Rights Reserved

Angel's Egg

OSHII Mamoru

This year, Icons brings together 35 films—an even bigger lineup than last year—featuring the latest works from some of the world’s most celebrated filmmakers.

Acclaimed festival titles and long-awaited new works by masters of cinema are all coming together in Busan.

Here’s a number that caught our eye: 15 of this year’s Icons selections either won awards at or screened at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival! ✨

From Cristian Mungiu’s Fjord, winner of the Palme d’Or, to a host of Competition titles, some of the films that made waves at Cannes this year are now headed to BIFF.

ⓒTudor Panduru

Fjord

Cristian MUNGIU

*Palme d’Or

ⓒAgata Grzybowska

Fatherland

Paweł PAWLIKOWSKI

*Best Director

Bitter Christmas

Pedro ALMODÓVAR

ⓒJac Martinez - TMIL Inc

The Man I Love

Ira SACHS

ⓒAlineBoyen_theReunion

Coward

Lukas DHONT

ⓒCaroleBethuel

Parallel Tales

Asghar FARHADI

ⓒLeolo_VictorPujebet

Orange-Flavoured Wedding

Christophe HONORÉ

Red Rocks

Bruno DUMONT

Meanwhile, the Venice International Film Festival is now underway in Italy, with several Icons selections competing for honors there as well.

Which films will arrive in Busan with a Venice prize in hand? We’ll soon find out! ✨

Among them is Lee Chang-dong’s much-anticipated Possible Love, his first new film in eight years and South Korea’s official submission for Best International Feature Film at the 99th Academy Awards. New works from masters including Nanni Moretti and Martin McDonagh are also waiting to be discovered at BIFF.

ⓒNetflix

Possible Love

LEE Chang-dong

*South Korea’s official submission for Best International Feature Film at the 99th Academy Awards

ⓒIndigo Film Versus

The Echo Chamber

Andrea PALLAORO

ⓒ2026 Searchlight Pictures. All Rights Reserved.

Wild Horse Nine

Martin MCDONAGH

The accolades don’t stop there.

This year’s Icons lineup also features İlker Çatak’s Yellow Letters, winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival, and Hong Sangsoo’s Nowhere to Lay My Eyes, which took home three honors at the Locarno Film Festival.

Together with new works from filmmakers known for their singular cinematic worlds, these acclaimed titles complete a rich and wide-ranging Icons lineup.

zi

Kogonada

ⓒ2026 Nagi Notes Partners (Star SandsHassaku LabsWonderstruck)  Survivance  Momo Film Co.

Nagi Notes

FUKADA Koji

ⓒHomegreen Films

Dust

TSAI Ming-liang

Ray Gunn

Brad BIRD

Let Us Through, Dear Ancestors

Lav DIAZ

My Wife Cries

Angela SCHANELEC

ⓒEllaKnorz_ifProductions_Alamode Film

Yellow Letters

İlker ÇATAK

*Berlin International Film Festival — Golden Bear

Where is Asian cinema headed? 💭

A Window on Asian Cinema offers a glimpse into the distinctive perspectives and styles of both established and emerging filmmakers from across Asia. 🙌

Some of the names in this year’s lineup may already feel familiar to longtime BIFF audiences.

The section brings back filmmakers BIFF has discovered and stayed connected with over the years—and some films will even be shown for the first time right here in Busan. Keep your eyes peeled! 👀

First up, Phuttiphong Aroonpheng and Abinash Bikram Shah, both alumni of BIFF’s Asian Film Academy (BAFA), return to Busan with new works.

Shah’s Elephants in the Fog was selected for the Asian Project Market (APM) in 2021 before going on to screen in Un Certain Regard at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

9 Temples to Heaven also has a long connection with Busan. Selected for APM in 2021 while still in development, the completed film was invited to Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes this year.

Another APM success story is Rafael Manuel’s Filipiñana. After winning three awards at APM in 2023, the completed film went on to win the World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Creative Vision at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, followed by screenings in Berlin, Udine, and at the New York Asian Film Festival.

In Winter *WP

Yerlan NURMUKHAMBETOV,
Nursultan NUSKABEKOV

Dhara *WP

Anuruddha JAYASINGHA

ⓒDiversion2026

The Burning Giants

Phuttiphong AROONPHENG

About an Intimate Matter *WP

Sandeep Kumar PAUL

The Soul Whisperer *WP

Leo THADDEUS

ⓒFlying River Films

Not a Hero

Rima DAS

ⓒ2026 E&W Films, Stær Film, Deuxième Ligne Films

Hearing

LÊ Bảo

9 Temples to Heaven

Sompot CHIDGASORNPONGSE

ⓒPotocol, Ossian International, Epicmedia, Easy Riders, Idle Eye

Filipiñana

Rafael MANUEL

*WP: World Premiere; IP: International Premiere

But those BIFF connections are only part of the story.

A Window on Asian Cinema also brings together festival standouts and fresh new works expanding the horizons of Asian cinema.

Alongside A Girl Unknown, winner of the FIPRESCI Prize at Cannes Critics’ Week, the lineup includes Happily Ever After, featuring i-dle’s Shuhua, as well as the Vietnamese historical fantasy Spirit Guardians: The Last Secret Of The First Emperor.

From acclaimed festival discoveries to star-powered titles and bold genre films, there’s plenty to explore in this year’s A Window on Asian Cinema. 😍

Big Little Things

Michelle ZHOU

Head to Head

Ghasideh GOLMAKANI

Lovers in the Blue Night

Anuparna ROY

ⓒ2026 In My Father’s Room Film Partners

In My Father's Room

HARADA Maha

ⓒSplash Pictures, Inc

Happily Ever After

Feng-I Fiona ROAN

- 31st BUSAN International Film Festival - 

The 31st Busan International Film Festival Ticket Reservation

September 11 (Fri), 17:00 KST

Screening Schedule Announcement

September 17 (Thu), 14:00 KST

Opening/Closing Ceremony / Open Cinema / Midnight Passion / Actors’ House / Community BIFF

September 21 (Mon), 14:00 KST

General Screenings / Master Class / Cine Class