The 31st BIFF Unveils

Jury Members for New Currents Award!

The 31st Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) has confirmed the three jurors for the New Currents Award, which has served as a springboard for emerging Asian directors.

Jury Members for New Currents Award,

Selecting Asia’s New Wave:

Rima DAS, SHAN Zuolong, and SHIM Eun-kyung

The award grants a cash prize of KRW 20 million to the winner, selected from debut feature films in the Competition or Vision sections.

Rima Das, an Indian director who has explored humanity’s relationship with nature, resilience, and dreams through personal and distinctive storytelling in films such as Village Rockstars (2017), Village Rockstars 2 (2024), and Not a Hero (2026), joins this year’s New Currents Award jury. Her works have been invited to major international film festivals and have received honors including the Kim Jiseok Award at BIFF and the Crystal Bear Special Mention in the Generation KPlus section at Berlin International Film Festival. Joined by Shan Zuolong, a producer who has established himself on the global stage through award-winning films at the Cannes Film Festival, Venice International Film Festival, and Berlin International Film Festival—including Love Is a Gun (LEE Hong-chi, 2023), and Botanist (JING Yi, 2025)—as well as Resurrection (BI Gan, 2025), winner of the Busan Award for Artistic Contribution in BIFF’s inaugural Competition section last year. Rounding out the jury is actor Shim Eun-kyung. Transcending borders and language, she swept Best Actress awards at some of Korea’s most prestigious ceremonies for Sunny (2011) and Miss Granny (2014), before expanding her career to Japan, where her performance in The Journalist (2019) and Two Seasons, Two Strangers (2025) earned her major honors including the Japan Academy Film Prize and the Kinema Junpo Award.

The 31st BIFF will run for 10 days from October 6 (Tue) to October 15 (Thu) at the Busan Cinema Center and throughout Busan.

■ Rima DAS | India | Director
Rima Das is a filmmaker from Assam, India, whose deeply personal and distinctive storytelling explores human relationships, resilience, and humanity's bond with nature. Her works have screened at over 150 festivals worldwide and earned more than 75 awards. Her filmography includes Village Rockstars (2017), Bulbul Can Sing (2018), Tora’s Husband (2022), Village Rockstars 2 (2024), and Not a Hero (2026), which have screened at Toronto, Berlin, and Busan, among others. Her debut film Village Rockstars (2017) won Best Feature Film at the National Film Awards in India and was selected as India’s official Academy Awards entry in 2018. Village Rockstars 2 (2024) received the Kim Jiseok Award at the 2024 Busan International Film Festival, and Not a Hero (2026) earned the Crystal Bear Special Mention in the Generation KPlus section at the 2026 Berlin International Film Festival. Das is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and has served on the juries of international film festivals.

■ SHAN Zuolong | China | Producer
Shan Zuolong's career as lead producer began with Kaili Blues (BI Gan, 2015), winner of Best Emerging Director at the Locarno Film festival, followed by Long Day's Journey Into Night (BI Gan, 2018), which screened in Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival. He later produced Love Is a Gun (LEE Hong-chi, 2023), winner of the Lion of the Future for Best Debut Film at the Venice International Film Festival, followed by The Botanist (JING Yi, 2025), winner of the Grand Prix in the Generation section at the Berlin International Film Festival, and Resurrection (BI Gan, 2025), winner of the Special Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. He joined the Producers Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2026.

■ SHIM Eun-kyung | Korea | Actor

Shim Eun-kyung has built an unrivalled and expansive career, winning Best Actress awards at Korea’s major ceremonies—including the Baeksang Arts Awards, the Chunsa International Film Festival, and the Buil Film Awards—for her performance in Miss Granny (2014). She subsequently expanded her reach, becoming the first Korean actor to win Best Actress at the Japan Academy Film Prize for The Journalist (2019). Her recent credit, Two Seasons, Two Strangers (2025), won the Golden Leopard at the Locarno International Film Festival, with Shim earning the Kinema Junpo Best Actress Award for her role—continuing her singular career across borders and languages.