Jafar PANAHI

Born in 1960, Jafar Panahi is a leading figure in Iran’s New Wave cinema and an internationally acclaimed screenwriter and director. He made a remarkable debut with White Balloon (1995), which won the Prix de la Camera d’Or, and built a reputation as a significant director in the Iranian film industry. Known for his bold depictions of Iranian society, Panahi has continued to make films despite being officially banned by the government. His accolades include the Golden Leopord at the Locarno Film Festival for The Mirror (1997), the Golden Lion at Venice for The Circle (2000), the Golden Bear in Berlin for Taxi (2015), and the Prix du scénario at Cannes for 3 FACES (2018), becoming the first Asian director to win the highest awards at all three of the most prestigious film festivals.

CHUNG Jiyoung

Born in Cheongju-si, Chungcheongbuk-do, director Chung Jiyoung began his film career as an assistant director under director Kim Soo-yong. He has brought Korean historical events to the screen, contributing to social change. His work has earned him numerous director and achievement awards both domestically and internationally, including the Order of Cultural Merit Hwa-gwan Medal, Blue Dragon Film Awards, Daejong Film Awards, Baeksang Arts Awards, Golden Cinema Film Festival, Korean Association of Film Critics Awards, and London East Asia Film Festival. The director is currently working on a new release My Name Is, concerning the Jeju April 3 Incident.

Sylvia CHANG

Since her debut in The Tattooed Dragon (1973), Sylvia Chang has appeared in more than 100 films, establishing herself as an actress who has inspired generations of filmmakers. In the 1980s, she expanded her artistic scope to directing and has since helmed 15 feature films — including 20 30 40 (2004), Murmur of the Hearts (2015), and Love Education (2017) — celebrated for their emotional depth and keen insight. In 1988, she founded the Gosh Foundation to support emerging filmmakers and has remained active as a producer, dedicated to nurturing new talent. In recognition of multifaceted contributions, Chang has received numerous honors, including the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Chevalier), the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Asian Film Awards, and the Golden Mulberry Lifetime Achievement Award at the Udine Far East Film Festival. She produced Measure in Love, directed by Kung Siu-Ping starring Hsu Kuang-Han and Angela Yuen, that is invited to Busan this.

Marco BELLOCCHIO

Born in Florence, Italy, in 1939, Marco Bellocchio is one of Italy’s most prominent filmmakers, whose career has spanned both the 20th and 21st centuries. His debut feature Fists In the Pocket (1965) was screened at the Locarno Film Festival, marking his emergence on the international film scene. With his second feature China Is Near (1967), directed in his twenties, he won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival and quickly rose to prominence as a new talent. Since then, through works such as Slap the Monster on Page One (1972), The Eyes, the Mouth (1982), and Good Morning, Night (2003), Bellocchio has built a distinct cinematic universe that incisively examines political realities and the human psyche. In particular, Good Morning, Night offered a bold reinterpretation of the Aldo Moro kidnapping, earning him wide critical acclaim. In 2011, he received the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Film Festival, solidifying his status as a master. To mark the 50th anniversary of his filmmaking career, major retrospectives were organized around the world, including at MoMA in New York, the La Rochelle Film Festival, and the BFI in London. His profound influence on cinema was further recognized at the Cannes Film Festival in 2021, where he was awarded the Honorary Palme d’Or. Continuing to work actively in recent years, Bellocchio has released the series Exterior Night (2022) and the features Kidnapped (2023) and If I May (2024), all of which reflect his sharp engagement with contemporary Italian society and history. Relentless in his exploration of both his era and the human condition, Marco Bellocchio stands as one of the greatest living masters of world cinema.

Gloaming in Luomu

Jury Comment The jury has unanimously selected Gloaming in Luomu, directed by Zhang Lu, as the winner of this year’s top prize. We found the film deeply engaging at every level. It advances the possibilities of cinema while remaining firmly grounded in the human experience—particularly in our longing to find meaning and connection in this world. It is both formally inventive and emotionally insightful. Simple and complex. Delicate and audacious. Ordinary and extraordinary. While offering a deep and specific sense of time and place, Gloaming in Luomu reminds us of cinema’s power to move across boundaries and resonate with all.

Girl

Jury Comment We were all very moved by Shu Qi’s debut film, Girl. It’s a deeply felt film that is universal and at the same time, very particular and personal. Even though the subject of domestic violence and its impact on women and children has been explored in films, this one stands out because of the nuances and complexities it has depicted. The wife’s character is quite grey, making the audience question their own moral stand to define what a mother is ‘allowed’ to be. Even though it’s her first film, she has handled the characters and their arcs beautifully. The experience of watching the film was immersive. It created fear for the vulnerable characters, invoking empathy and understanding. All its cinematic aspects, like the performances, camera work, sound, and especially the editing, were remarkable. We look forward to Shu Qi’s next film and wish her the very best for the journey ahead.

Funky Freaky Freaks

Jury Comment The jury is proud to present the Special Jury Award to Funky Freaky Freaks, directed by Han Chang-lok. This film provokes and challenges us to understand a generation struggling to make sense of the absurdity and meaninglessness of their modern world. It does so by creating cinematic language that reflects this chaos and madness without losing touch with what it means to be human within it. The film announces a powerful new voice in cinema. We eagerly await Han Chang-lok’s next work.

LEE Jiwon | Korea

Jury Comment Her performance carries a maturity far beyond her years, making the school uniform seem almost ill-suited to her. It closely mirrors her character – a daughter of a single mother who has had to grow up too quickly. In the scene where she breaks down in tears, pleading with her mother to finally live her own life, her emotions pour out so vividly that it brought tears to my eyes. Throughout the film, her performance carries the film with remarkable poise, boldness, and subtlety – qualities hard to believe in someone so young. I wholeheartedly look forward to and support the path she will walk as an actress in the years ahead.

KITAMURA Takumi, AYANO Go, HAYASHI Yuta | Japan

Jury Comment Through the performances of these three actors, I witnessed the future of cinema. The performances of these three young actors, each with a distinct individuality yet in perfect harmony, go far beyond the delivery of dialogue. They vividly embody the inner lives of their characters, demonstrating a rare power that enables audiences to laugh, cry, and grow alongside them.

LIU Qiang, TU Nan (Production Designer) | China / France

Jury Comment The jury is honored to present the Artistic Contribution Award for the production design of Resurrection, directed by Bi Gan. This film is singular (in a class all of its own) and could be celebrated across many categories—cinematography, sound, lighting, costume—but it is the production design that stands out as profoundly stunning and layered, exemplifying the highest form of craftsmanship and artistry.

En Route To

Jury Comment Illuminated by wonderful performances, our winning film expertly balances serious and funny (often in the same scene) because nobody's life is just tragedy, and nobody's is just comedy. It builds to a touching celebration of female friendship – the kind that cannot fix you, but that can make you smile, or hold your hand, or if necessary, rob a funeral, while you work out how to fix yourself. The jury of the New Currents selection unanimously awards the Best First Film to En Route To directed by Yoo Jaein.

(Korea) Raining Dust

Jury Comment Raining Dust bears witness to the vanishing coal miners and their spaces, disappearing from Korean society with the closure of the mines. The filmmakers bring forth the miners’ arduous lives and history of resistance from the darkness of the tunnels, raising them into the light. Through their warm gaze and courage, they transform the history of the coalface into public memory, compelling us to confront questions of social and historical justice.

(Asia) Singing Wings

Jury Comment Singing Wings, a fascinating and endearing portrait of a Kurdish village and its relationship with the storks that nest there. Centered on Khadijeh — the unforgettable force of nature who anchors the story — filmmaker Hemen Khaledi adopts a strikingly creative and metaphorical approach. Through this fable-like gem, the film explores pressing issues of migration and depopulation with originality, warmth, and deep human resonance.

(Special Mention) Relay Race

Jury Comment The jury would also like to present a Special Mention to Relay Race, a deeply felt film that palpably captures the lasting trauma of the Sewol ferry tragedy of April 16, 2014 on Korean society by focusing on its painful reverberations over more than a decade on Kim Dongsoo, his wife, and their family.

(Korea) It Sounds Louder on Rainy Days

Jury Comment A film can be about anything, can talk about any subject. On the big screen of the cinema, countless spectacles are carefully orchestrated in front of our eyes to shock, to thrill, to excite us. Things we never see or experience in our real life. Yet despite the history of being an escapist medium, the films that truly stay with us are not necessarily the films that take us away from reality, but the films that make us confront the banality of life. A talented filmmaker could point a camera at something as simple as the sky, and it still makes us feel. We chose to celebrate the film that makes us contemplate our everyday lives through small interactions, subtle gestures, and intimate spaces. This film reminds us that ordinary life is always extraordinary. The Sonje Award for the Best Korean Short Film goes to It Sounds Louder on Rainy Days

(Asia) Delay

Jury Comment With restrained camerawork and visual language, the film captures the ordinary life and transforms the moments in a poetic way, allowing the audience to feel the profound yet ineffable bond between father and son.

(Special Mention) INTERFACE

Jury Comment The film reassures us that the possibilities of moving images are limitless. The filmmaker brilliantly plays with the medium as if it’s a toy that the audience is also invited to enjoy. And it’s such an exhilarating ride! The special mention goes to Interface.

On Your Lap

Malika

Jury Comment For the poetic language, striking delicacy, emotional impact and visual beauty in portraying the fragile age when a child senses the delicate nature of family bonds.

On Your Lap

Jury Comment On your Lap deals with the life of an Indonesian woman after the IMF crisis. It portrays the protagonist’s social and economic situation in a balanced way, without romanticizing poverty or reducing it to mere misery. Using a very traditional narrative style, the film stands out for its classical aesthetics and lyrical quality in depicting life’s hardships and hopes.

Kurak

Jury Comment This film confronts the reality faced by women in contemporary Kyrgyz society and amplifies their voices as they struggle to preserve their lives against structures of violence and oppression. Moving from news footage of protests to the intimate stories of two young women, it makes human rights not just a theme but an urgent lived reality. With depth and artistic sensitivity, we are proud to honor this remarkable work tonight.

On Your Lap

Jury Comment We were profoundly moved by On Your Lap. The film speaks with extraordinary clarity and emotional force about one of the most difficult periods in Kyrgyzstan’s history: the years following the collapse of the Soviet Union. During that time of deep economic crisis, it was women who bore the heaviest burden. They became traders, providers, and guardians, sustaining their families and, in many ways, the future of the country itself.
On Your Lap captures this struggle with both sensitivity and symbolic power. It is not only a story about survival, but also a tribute to the strength, sacrifice, and resilience of mothers who carried an entire generation through uncertainty. We felt that this film transcends national boundaries, offering a universal message about human endurance and the courage of women everywhere. For its artistic achievement and profound human resonance, we have chosen to award it this film.

On Your Lap

Jury Comment On Your Lap invites us to the cinematic and poetic experiences I hardly found these days. The film takes us on a journey of hard life with lack of true love, though it’s a beautiful moment of life that could be betrayed and hurt but still we have to move on living forward.

Tiger

Jury Comment For its heartfelt, nuanced portrayal of queer identity, family, and belonging, this film bravely explores one man’s search for connection amidst rejection. With emotional depth and integrity, it challenges prejudice while honoring the quiet strength of those on society’s margins.

If on a Winter′s Night

Jury Comment This film realistically portrays the daily hardships and uncertainties of life in an unfamiliar city, while delicately capturing the friendships, music, and small joys that emerge. For its sensitive depiction of warmth and solidarity within everyday realism, we are delighted to present this award today.

Black Rabbit, White Rabbit

Jury Comment The International Film Festival of India – Vision Asia Award goes to Black Rabbit White Rabbit, an indie drama that delves into themes of duality, fate, and moral choice. Through fragmented storytelling and shifting perspectives, it portrays two characters tied to symbolic rabbits, embodying light and darkness. Surreal imagery blends with emotional realism, creating a dreamlike tone that questions identity and balance. The film meditates on love, loss, hope, and despair, offering a layered reflection on the fragile nature of human decisions and their lasting consequences.

Shape of Momo

Jury Comment Through the small objects and relationships of everyday life, this film conveys both the weight and the beauty of existence. With its exquisite subtlety and sincerity, it represents a remarkable achievement. We offer our warmest congratulations and encouragement to the director.

Shape of Momo

Jury Comment Tribeny Rai's debut feature is unforgettable because it doesn't depict the traditional Indian village we imagine, and Bishnu doesn't represent the traditional Indian woman. The film centers around her, skillfully interweaving her older sister and the marriageable men and women. It concisely and powerfully depicts the challenges of patriarchal India and the submissiveness of women. The delicate interpretation and use of shadows and light highlight the subtle interpretation and captivating imagery of Rai's female director.

Kurak

Jury Comment With its original cinematic language, this film weaves women’s lives and realities into a powerful narrative. By uniting diverse voices and fragmented experiences into a single tapestry, it achieves a remarkable accomplishment that expands the possibilities of cinema.

LEE Seung-yeon | Korea

Jury Comment All the nominated actors in the selected films delivered confident and convincing performances, making it truly difficult to choose just one emerging talent. Notably, The Gorals, which vividly portrays the friendship and coming-of-age of teenage girls stigmatized as troublemakers on the verge of their college entrance exams, showcased rising actors who each brought distinctive and memorable performances. While the jurors wished to recognize all of them, as only one recipient could be chosen, the award is presented to Lee Seung-yeon for her spirited performance and her creative interpretation of the role in every scene.

MOON Woo-jin | Korea

Jury Comment Actor Moon Woo-jin delicately unraveled the character Ji-soo through his natural, calm, and understated performance. His work conveyed a maturity and depth of insight far beyond his age, leaving a quiet yet profound resonance with its realism. He is an actor whose future growth is eagerly anticipated.

Coming of Age

JOURNEY THERE

BEAUTIFUL DREAMER

Jury Comment Lee Kwang-kuk’s BEAUTIFUL DREAMER does not ask “why” in the face of death, but instead quietly reflects on a mother and daughter wandering through the absence of a loved one. Moving beyond the director’s earlier structural experiments, the film portrays the boundary between reality and fantasy with newfound emotional depth. By steadfastly observing the anxiety and sorrow of those left behind, it delicately captures the anticipation of the serene slumber that will one day come. For these reasons, we are honored to present BEAUTIFUL DREAMER with this award.

JOURNEY THERE

Jury Comment Kim Jinyu’s JOURNEY THERE accomplishes the profound task of contemplating both a ‘good death’ and a ‘good life’ within a single film. The camera accompanies a protagonist in the final stages of life with quiet steadiness and compassion, while also reflecting on how those left behind might find the strength to continue their own journeys. In a time overshadowed by solitary deaths and the melancholy of loss, Kim’s thoughtful perspective offers audiences a solace both profoundly genuine and deeply moving. Congratulations on this award.

The Observer′s Journal

Jury Comment Though it outwardly adopts the concept of a ‘traveler’ in an unfamiliar city, the film unfolds with a fluid energy through its branching and proliferating narratives and characters. Evoking the movements of early cinema, its three-part structure traces circular patterns that create layered rhythms. As observers, we wander through its closed circuits and encounter unfamiliar landscapes. We eagerly anticipate the next journey of director Lim Junghwan, who will continue to write a new journal of observation.

The Accordion Door

Jury Comment The Accordion Door portrays the intense journey of a boy searching for his identity within a society steeped in meritocracy. Through the genre motif of a ‘parasitic’ condition, the film explores the boundary between the ordinary and the extraordinary. At times, it evokes tension and suspense, while at other times, it offers profound resonance through a journey of reflection. For these reasons, we are pleased to present this film with the CINE21 Award.

Coming of Age

Jury Comment Coming of Age addresses the particular issues arising from the Korean family structure with both humor and sincerity. By carefully considering the distinct characteristics of each generation, the film regards each individual as a subject with their own future. Its witty rhythm, enriched by music, reflects the spirited interplay across generations. Rather than offering an idealized conclusion, the film focuses on the characters colliding within this framework, inviting reflection on the pressing issues of the here and now.

I, Poppy

Jury Comment This film captures the dilemma between livelihood and justice with an objective and vivid perspective, portraying the protagonist’s struggle against the absurdity of an unjust society and a family attempting to compromise with it. The camera reveals moments of humor within the everyday lives of people, adding warmth and familiarity while dealing with a weighty subject. Although the story concludes in tragedy, the film conveys to its audience the unyielding vitality and resilience of life. More than a mere record, it aspires to drive societal change and foster educational impact, while shedding renewed light on issues to which society has grown indifferent. For these reasons, it has been selected as the winner.

Where We Stay for a While

Hana Korea