# 25th Busan International Film Festival

The 25th Busan International Film Festival took place on October 21 to 30, 2020 at the Busan Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea. A total of 192 films from 68 countries were screened at the festival, the numbers reduced from the previous edition.
The festival was scheduled to be held on October 7–16, 2020, but was postponed due to concern over the spread of COVID-19 after Chuseok holidays. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the attendance of BIFF had been downsized and no international guests were invited to the festival. All outdoor events were also cancelled in order to prevent crowds. The screening limit capacity were only up to 50 people. The judging of all films took place online.
The most prestigious awards of the festival, New Currents, were handed to A Balance and Three.

## Juries
### New Currents

* Mira Nair, Indian-American director, Head Juror
* Thierry Jobin, Swiss film critic, Fribourg International Film Festival artistic director
* Haegue Yang, South Korean visual artist

### Kim Jiseok Award

* Zhao Tao, Chinese actress
* Jung Sung-il, South Korean film critic and director
* Mouly Surya, Indonesian director

### BIFF Mecenat Award

* Nick Deocampo, Filipino director
* Park Inho, South Korean film critic
* Chalida Uabumrungjit, Thai archive director

### Sonje Award

* Ifa Isfansyah, Indonesian director
* Kim Yi-seok, South Korean film professor
* Sharipa Urazbayeva, Uzbekistani director

### Actor and Actress of the Year

* Chu Sang-mi, South Korean actress and director
* Jung Jin-young, South Korean actor and director

### FIPRESCI Award

* Sanja Struna, Slovenian film critic
* Sung Il-kwon, South Korean film critic
* Alin Taciyan, FIPRESCI deputy secretary

### NETPAC Award

* Riccardo Gelli, Florence Korean Film Festival director
* Kim Kyoung-wook, South Korean film critic
* Hassan Muthalib, Malaysian writer, film critic, and film historian

### DGK Megabox Award

* Kim Ho-jun, South Korean director
* Lee Sang-cheol, South Korean director
* Cho Chang-ho, South Korean director

### KBS Independent Film Award

* Jeong Jae-eun, South Korean director
* Ju Sung-chul, South Korean film critic
* Kwak Sin-ae, South Korean film producer

### CGK&SamyangXEEN Award

* Nam Dong-keun, South Korean cinematographer
* Park Jung-hun, South Korean cinematographer
* Sung Seung-taek, South Korean cinematographer

## Official selection
### Opening and closing films

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Josee, the Tiger and the Fish (closing film) | ジョゼと虎と魚たち | Kotaro Tamura | Japan |
| Septet: The Story of Hong Kong (opening film) | 七人樂隊 | Ann Hui, Patrick Tam, Yuen Woo-ping, Johnnie To, Ringo Lam, Hark Tsui, Sammo Hung | Hong Kong, China |

### Gala Presentation

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| In the Mood for Love | 花樣年華 | Wong Kar-wai | Hong Kong, China |
| Love After Love | 第一爐香 | Ann Hui | China |
| Minari | Minari | Lee Isaac Chung | United States |
| True Mothers | 朝が来る | Naomi Kawase | Japan |
| Wife of a Spy | スパイの妻 | Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Japan |

### Icons

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| A Night in Haifa | Laila in Haifa | Amos Gitai | Israel, France |
| Another Round | Druk | Thomas Vinterberg | Denmark |
| City Hall | City Hall | Frederick Wiseman | United States |
| Days | 日子 | Tsai Ming-liang | Taiwan |
| Dear Comrades! | Дорогие товарищи | Andrei Konchalovsky | Russia |
| First Cow | First Cow | Kelly Reichardt | United States |
| Hopper/Welles | Hopper/Welles | Orson Welles | United States |
| Minamata Mandala | 水俣曼荼羅 | Kazuo Hara | Japan |
| New Order | Nuevo orden | Michel Franco | Mexico, France |
| Sun Children | خورشید | Majid Majidi | Iran |
| Swimming Out Till the Sea Turns Blue | 一直游到海水变蓝 | Jia Zhangke | China |
| The Salt of Tears | Le Sel des larmes | Philippe Garrel | France, Switzerland |
| The Woman Who Ran | 도망친 여자 | Hong Sang-soo | South Korea |
| Undine | Undine | Christian Petzold | Germany, France |

### A Window on Asian Cinema

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| 18 Kilohertz | 18 килогерц | Farkhat Sharipov | Kazakhstan |
| 200 Meters | ٢٠٠ متر | Ameen Nayfeh | Palestine, Jordan, Qatar, Italy, Sweden |
| A'hr | കയറ്റം | Sanal Kumar Sasidharan | India |
| All the Things We Never Said | 生きちゃった | Yuya Ishii | Japan |
| Bittersweet | बिटर स्वीट | Ananth Narayan Mahadevan | India |
| Captive | नजरबंद | Suman Mukhopadhyay | India |
| Cleaners | Cleaners | Glenn Barit | Philippines |
| Coalesce | Les affluents | Jessé Miceli | Cambodia, France |
| Death of Nintendo | Death of Nintendo | Raya Martin | Philippines, United States |
| Drowning in Holy Water † | مردن در آب مطهر | Navid Mahmoudi | Afghanistan, Iran |
| Everyday Is a Lullaby | Everyday Is a Lullaby | Putrama Tuta | Indonesia |
| Farida's 2000 Songs | Фариданинг икки минг қўшиғи | Yalkin Tuychiev | Uzbekistan |
| Happy Old Year | ฮาวทูทิ้ง..ทิ้งอย่างไรไม่ให้เหลือเธอ | Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit | Thailand |
| Killer Spider | عنکبوت | Ebrahim Irajzade | Iran |
| Little Big Women | 孤味 | Joseph Chen-Chieh Hsu | Taiwan |
| Living In Your Sky | 空に住む | Shinji Aoyama | Japan |
| Mama | 妈妈和七天的时间 | Li Dongmei | China, France |
| Matto's Bicycle | Matto Ki Saikal | M. Gani | India |
| Milestone | मील पत्थर - Milestone | Ivan Ayr | India |
| Ora, Ora Be Goin' Alone | おらおらでひとりいぐも | Shuichi Okita | Japan |
| Sister Sister | Chị Chị Em Em | Kathy Uyen | Vietnam |
| Soirée | ソワレ | Bunji Sotoyama | Japan |
| Striding Into the Wind | 野马分鬃 | Wei Shujun | China |
| The Disciple | The Disciple | Chaitanya Tamhane | India |
| The Paper Tigers | The Paper Tigers | Quoc Bao Tran | Vietnam |
| The Salt in Our Waters | নোনা জলের কাব্য | Rezwan Shahriar Sumit | Bangladesh, France |
| The Slaughterhouse † | کشتارگاه | Abbas Amini | Iran |
| There Is No Evil | شیطان وجود ندارد | Mohammad Rasoulof | Iran, Germany |
| Tiong Bahru Social Club | Tiong Bahru Social Club | Bee Thiam Tan | Singapore |
| Where Is Pinki? | Pinki Elli? | Prithvi Konanur | India |
| Wind | 随风飘散 | Dadren Wanggyal | China |
| Yellow Cat | Сары мысық | Adilkhan Yerzhanov | Kazakhstan |
| Your Eyes Tell | きみの瞳が問いかけている | Takahiro Miki | Japan |
    Highlighted titles and daggers (†) indicate Kim Joseok Award winners.

### New Currents

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| A Balance † | 由宇子の天秤 | Yujiro Harumoto | Japan |
| A Leave | 휴가 | Lee Ran-hee | South Korea |
| Bilesuvar | Bilesuvar | Elvin Adigozel | Azerbaijan, France |
| Butterfly on the Windowpane | ऐना झ्यालको पुतली | Sujit Bidari | Nepal |
| Chnchik | Chnchik | Aram Shahbazyan | Armenia, Germany, Netherlands |
| Harami | हरामी | Shyam Madiraju | India, United States |
| Money Has Four Legs | ခြေလေးချောင် | Maung Sun | Myanmar |
| Snowball # ↓ | 최선의 삶 | Lee Woo-jung | South Korea |
| Summer Blur ‡ | 汉南夏日 | Han Shuai | China |
| Three † | Tpu | Ruslan Pak | Kazakhstan, South Korea, Uzbekistan |
    Highlighted titles and daggers (†) indicate New Currents winners.
    Highlighted title and double-dagger (‡) indicate FIPRESCI Award winner.
    Hashtag (#) indicates KTH Award winner.
    Down-arrow (↓) indicates CGK&SamyangXEEN Award winner.

### Korean Cinema Today
#### Panorama

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Beasts Clawing at Straws | 지푸라기라도 잡고 싶은 짐승들 | Kim Yong-hoon | South Korea |
| CICADA | 매미소리 | Lee Chung-ryoul | South Korea |
| Days of Green | 청산, 유수 | Shin Dong-il | South Korea |
| Deliver Us from Evil | 다만 악에서 구하소서 | Hong Won-chan | South Korea |
| Empty Body | 인간증명 | Kim Ui-seok | South Korea |
| Everglow | 빛나는 순간 | So Joon-moon | South Korea |
| Me and Me | 사라진 시간 | Jung Jin-young | South Korea |
| More Than Family | 애비규환 | Choi Ha-na | South Korea |
| Peninsula | 반도 | Yeon Sang-ho | South Korea |
| Spring Song | 스프링 송 | Yoo Jun-sang | South Korea |
| Steel Rain 2: Summit | 강철비 2: 정상회담 | Yang Woo-suk | South Korea |
| The Man Standing Next | 남산의 부장들 | Woo Min-ho | South Korea |
| Three Sisters | 세자매 | Lee Seung-won | South Korea |
| Time to Hunt | 사냥의 시간 | Yoon Sung-hyun | South Korea |
| Vestige | 달이 지는 밤 | Kim Jong-hwan, Jang Kun-jae | South Korea |

#### Vision

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| And There Was Light | 온 세상이 하얗다 | Kim Ji-seok | South Korea |
| Beyond You | 그대 너머에 | Park Hong-min | South Korea |
| Fighter † | 파이터 | Jéro Yun | South Korea |
| Good Person ‡ § | 좋은 사람 | Jung Wook | South Korea |
| Limecrime ↑ | 라임크라임 | Lee Seung-hwan, Yoo Jae-wook | South Korea |
| Our Joyful Summer Days | 기쁜 우리 여름날 | Lee Yu-bin | South Korea |
| Our Midnight | 아워 미드나잇 | Lim Jung-eun | South Korea |
| Short Vacation | 종착역 | Kwon Min-pyo, Seo Han-sol | South Korea |
| The Slug | 태어나길 잘했어 | Choi Jin-young | South Korea |
| Young Adult Matters ‡ # | 어른들은 몰라요 | Lee Hwan | South Korea |
    Highlighted title and dagger (†) indicate NETPAC Award winner.
    Highlighted titles and double-daggers (‡) indicate DGK MEGABOX Award winners.
    Section sign (§) indicates CGV Arthouse Award winner.
    Hashtag (#) indicates KTH Award winner.
    Up-arrow (↑) indicates KBS Independent Film Award winner.

### World Cinema

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| All Hands on Deck | À l'abordage! | Guillaume Brac | France |
| Ammonite | Ammonite | Francis Lee | United Kingdom, Australia, United States |
| And Tomorrow the Entire World | Und morgen die ganze Welt | Julia von Heinz | Germany, France |
| Beginning | Დასაწყისი | Dea Kulumbegashvili | France, Georgia |
| Berlin Alexanderplatz | Berlin Alexanderplatz | Burhan Qurbani | Germany |
| Death Knell | Hil kanpaiak | Imanol Rayo | Spain |
| Digger | Digger | Georgis Grigorakis | Greece, France |
| Falling | Falling | Viggo Mortensen | Canada, United Kingdom, Denmark |
| Gagarine | Gagarine | Fanny Liatard, Jérémy Trouilh | France |
| I Carry You with Me | I Carry You with Me | Heidi Ewing | Mexico, United States |
| I Met a Girl | I Met a Girl | Luke Eve | Australia |
| I Never Cry | Jak najdalej stąd | Piotr Domalewski | Poland, Ireland |
| Ibrahim | Ibrahim | Samir Guesmi | France |
| In the Dusk | Sutemose | Šarūnas Bartas | Lithuania, France, Czech Republic, Serbia, Portugal, Latvia |
| La fortaleza | La fortaleza | Jorge Thielen Armand | Venezuela, France, Netherlands, Colombia |
| La Verónica | La Verónica | Leo Medel | Chile |
| Listen | Listen | Ana Rocha de Sousa | United Kingdom, Portugal |
| Love Affair(s) | Les choses qu'on dit, les choses qu'on fait | Emmanuel Mouret | France |
| Lowdown Dirty Criminals | Lowdown Dirty Criminals | Paul Murphy | New Zealand |
| Mandibles | Mandibules | Quentin Dupieux | France, Belgium |
| My Favorite War | Mans mīļākais karš | Ilze Burkovska-Jacobsen | Norway, Latvia |
| My Tender Matador | Tengo miedo torero | Rodrigo Sepúlveda | Chile, Argentina, Mexico |
| Night of the Kings | La Nuit des rois | Philippe Lacôte | Ivory Coast, France, Canada, Senegal |
| Nowhere Special | Nowhere Special | Uberto Pasolini | United Kingdom, Italy, Romania |
| Padrenostro | Padrenostro | Claudio Noce | Italy |
| Passion Simple | Passion Simple | Danielle Arbid | France, Belgium |
| Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time | Felkészülés meghatározatlan ideig tartó együttlétre | Lili Horvát | Hungary |
| Quo Vadis, Aida? | Quo Vadis, Aida? | Jasmila Žbanić | Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria, Romania, Netherlands, Germany, Poland, France, Norway, Turkey |
| Rascal | Vaurien | Peter Dourountzis | France |
| Red Soil | Rouge | Farid Bentoumi | France |
| Saint-Narcisse | Saint-Narcisse | Bruce LaBruce | Canada |
| She Dies Tomorrow | She Dies Tomorrow | Amy Seimetz | United States |
| Shorta | Shorta | Anders Ølholm, Frederik Louis Hviid | Denmark |
| Slalom | Slalom | Charlène Favier | France |
| Spring Blossom | Seize printemps | Suzanne Lindon | France |
| Teddy | Teddy | Ludovic Boukherma, Zoran Boukherma | France |
| The Best Families | Las mejores familias | Javier Fuentes-León | Peru, Colombia |
| The Death of Cinema and My Father Too | מותו של הקולנוע ושל אבא שלי גם | Dani Rosenberg | Israel |
| The Third War | La Troisième Guerre | Giovanni Aloi | France |
| The Works and Days (of Tayoko Shiojiri in the Shiotani Basin) | The Works and Days (of Tayoko Shiojiri in the Shiotani Basin) | C.W. Winter, Anders Edström | United States, Sweden, Japan, United Kingdom |
| Tragic Jungle | Selva Trágica | Yulene Olaizola | Mexico, France, Colombia |
| Zanka Contact | Zanka Contact | Ismaël el Iraki | France, Morocco, Belgium |

### Flash Forward

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Beasts | La terre des hommes | Naël Marandin | France |
| Emptiness | Vacío | Paúl Venegas | Ecuador, Uruguay |
| Nadia, Butterfly | Nadia, Butterfly | Pascal Plante | Canada |
| Palmyra | Пальмира | Ivan Bolotnikov | Russia |
| Rival | Rivale | Marcus Lenz | Germany |
| The Art of Dying Far Away | A Arte de Morrer Longe | Júlio Alves | Portugal |
| The Macaluso Sisters | Le sorelle Macaluso | Emma Dante | Italy |
| The Predators | I predatori | Pietro Castellitto | Italy, France |
| Tigers † | Tigrar | Ronnie Sandahl | Sweden, Italy, Denmark |
| Trouble Will Find Us | Trouble Will Find Us | Alexander Milo Bischof | United Kingdom |
    Highlighted title and dagger (†) indicate Flash Forward winner.

### Wide Angle
#### Korean Short Film Competition

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Ava from My Class | 연극 수업 | Kang You-min | South Korea, United States |
| Georgia † | 조지아 | Jayil Pak | South Korea |
| HERO | 히로 | Jang Jun-young | South Korea |
| High Surf Expected | 울렁울렁 울렁대는 가슴안고 | Ahn Jae-hong | South Korea |
| House of Heeji | 희지의 세계 | Lee Hyo-jung | South Korea |
| Peace River | 화천 | Jang Min-joon | South Korea |
| Snail | 달팽이 | Kim Tae-yang | South Korea |
| The Migration-ship | 이주선 | Oh Yoo-bin | South Korea |
| Tree | 나무 | Cho Hyun-suh | South Korea |
| Where Does the Wind Come From? | 바람 어디서 부는지 | Kim Jee-hye | South Korea |
| Wolves | Wolves | Lee Seung-wan, Choi Rack-won, Kim Ju-hyeong | South Korea |
    Highlighted title and dagger (†) indicate Sonje Award winner.

#### Asian Short Film Competition

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| A Scarecrow | A Scarecrow | Rajesh Prasad Khatri | Nepal, France, Hong Kong, China |
| All the Time | هرگز، گاهی، همیشه | Shadi Karamroudi | Iran |
| Bình | Bình | Ostin Fam | Vietnam, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand |
| How to Die Young in Manila | How to Die Young in Manila | Petersen Vargas | Philippines |
| Kanya | கன்யா | Apoorva Satish | India, Czech Republic |
| Kids on Fire | Kids on Fire | Kyle Nieva | Philippines |
| Mountain Cat † | Shiluus | Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir | Mongolia, United Kingdom |
| Sunrise in My Mind | ថ្ងៃរះក្នុងចិត្ | Danech San | Cambodia |
| The Cloud Is Still There | 蓝蓝天空 | Mickey Lai | Malaysia |
| Transit | Transit | Ariq Anam Khan | Bangladesh, United Kingdom |
    Highlighted title and dagger (†) indicate Sonje Award winner.

#### Documentary Competition

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| Children of the Night | Children of the Night | Behrouz Nouranipour | Iran |
| Fear(less) and Dear | 誠惶（不）誠恐，親愛的 | Anson Hoi Shan Mak | Hong Kong, China |
| Mishima: The Last Debate | 三島由紀夫vs東大全共闘 50年目の真実 | Keisuke Toyoshima | Japan |
| Sasang: The Town on Sand | 사상 | Park Bae-il | South Korea |
| School Town King | School Town King แร็ปทะลุฝ้า ราชาไม่หยุดฝัน | Wattanapume Laisuwanchai | Thailand |
| Self-portrait 2020 | 셀프-포트레이트 2020 | Lee Dong-woo | South Korea |
| Sewing Sisters | 미싱타는 여자들: 전태일의 누이들 | Kim Jung-young, Lee Hyuk-rae | South Korea |
| Sister J † | 재춘언니 | Lee Soo-jung | South Korea |
| Song Hae 1927 | 송해 1927 | Jéro Yun | South Korea |
| The Art of Living in Danger † | The Art of Living in Danger † | Mina Keshavarz | Iran, Germany |
| The Invisible Shore | 无尽的航程 | Zhao Qi | China |
| When a Hen Crows | 암탉이 울면 | Dabin | South Korea |
    Highlighted titles and daggers (†) indicate BIFF Mecenat Award winners.

#### Documentary Showcase

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| A Rifle and a Bag | A Rifle and a Bag | Cristina Haneș, Isabella Rinaldi, Arya Rothe | India, Romania, Italy, Qatar |
| Candlelight Revolution | 나의 촛불 | Kim Eui-sung, Joo Jin-woo | South Korea |
| City of Outlanders | 군산전기 | Moon Seung-wook, Yoo Ye-jin | South Korea |
| Good Light, Good Air | 좋은 빛, 좋은 공기 | Im Heung-soon | South Korea |
| Hong Kong Moments | Hong Kong Moments | Bing Zhou | China, Germany |
| Irradiated | Irradiés | Rithy Panh | France, Cambodia |
| My Body | Il mio corpo | Michele Pennetta | Switzerland, Italy |
| Notturno | Notturno | Gianfranco Rosi | Italy, France, Germany |
| Speed of Happiness | 행복의 속도 | Park Hyuck-jee | South Korea |
| The Fight | The Fight | Eli Despres, Josh Kriegman, Elyse Steinberg | United States |
| The Mole Agent | El agente topo | Maite Alberdi | Chile, United States, Germany, Netherlands, Spain |
| The Painter and the Thief | Kunstneren og tyven | Benjamin Ree | Norway |
| Your Face | 니얼굴 | Seo Dong-il | South Korea |

### Open Cinema

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production countrie(s) |
| DAEMUGA | 대무가: 한과 흥 | Lee Han-jong | South Korea |
| My Missing Valentine | 消失的情人節 | Chen Yu-hsun | Taiwan |
| Soul | Soul | Pete Docter, Kemp Powers | United States |
| Summer of 85 | Été 85 | François Ozon | France |
| The Asadas | 浅田家! | Ryōta Nakano | Japan |
| The Ties | Lacci | Daniele Luchetti | Italy |

## Awards

The following awards were presented at the 25th edition:
* New Currents Award
** A Balance by Yujiro Harumoto
** Three by Ruslan Pak
* Kim Jiseok Award
** Drowning in Holy Water by Navid Mahmoudi
** The Slaughterhouse by Abbas Amini
* BIFF Mecenat Award
** The Art of Living in Danger by Mina Keshavarz
** Sister J by Lee Soo-jung
* Sonje Award
** Georgia by Jayil Pak
** Mountain Cat by Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir
* Actor & Actress of the Year Award
** Actor of the Year: Ji Soo for Our Joyful Summer Days
** Actress of the Year: Lim Seong-mi for Fighter
* Flash Forward Award
** Tigers by Ronnie Sandahl
* FIPRESCI Award
** Summer Blur by Han Shuai
* NETPAC Award
** Fighter by Jéro Yun
* DGK MEGABOX Award
** Young Adult Matters by Lee Hwan
** Good Person by Jung Wook
* CGV Arthouse Award
** Good Person by Jung Wook
* KTH Award
** Snowball by Lee Woo-jung
** Young Adult Matters by Lee Hwan
* KBS Independent Film Award
** Limecrime by Lee Seung-hwan and Yoo Jae-wook
* CGK&SamyangXEEN Award
** Snowball – Cinematography by Lee Jae-u