Busan global Film Festival kicks off

Fans donned plastic jackets and braved the final remnants of Typhoon Dujuan as they took up positions in the stands along the red carpet laid outside the Busan Cinema Centre in the South Korean port city.

Festival co-director Kang Soo-Yeon paid tribute to the resilience of those who had gathered, both inside and out.

But festival organizers believe the real reason was their refusal past year to pull the premiere of “The Truth Will Not Sink With Sewol” (original title “Diving Bell”), a documentary that was highly critical of the government’s handling of the 2014 sinking of the Sewol ferry in which more than 300 people died.

BIFF has been credited with nurturing the careers of numerous Asian filmmakers and a few of them will be on hand for the 20th anniversary event, including Chinese directors Jia Zhangke and Feng Xiaogang, and Taiwanese auteur Tsai Ming-liang.

What’s surprising is that the festival’s opening piece is a debut film by Indian director Mozez Singh.

What makes this festival visit truly one to remember, is that, this is the first time in the history of the biggest film festival in Asia, that an Indian film has been selected to open the festival. “Feeling thrilled and blessed”, Singh said in a statement.

Veteran South Korean actor Song Kang-ho, the star of “Snowpiercer”, and Afghani actress Marina Golbarhari, who returned to Busan for the first time since her 2003 role in “Osama”, shared the spotlight on stage.

Although much of the festival’s fare is from China, South Korea and Japan, works from south and central Asia are also featured, with BIFF’s New Currents section premiering eight films from across the continent.

“This is a super platform for any filmmaker and I wish all of us luck and the opening of many exciting new cinematic doors”, he said. The festival’s closer on October. 10 is “Mountain Cry”, a Chinese film about a death in a rural community.

While BIFF has struggled with funding issues over the past year, Asia’s film industry as a whole is booming.