‘The Wrestler’, ‘September 1923’ Win New Currents Awards As Busan International Film Festival Wraps Buzzy 28th Edition

Liz Shackleton
·5 min read
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The Wrestler, directed by Bangladeshi-Canadian filmmaker Iqbal H. Chowdhury, and September 1923, from Japan’s Tatsuya Mori, picked up the New Currents Awards as Busan International Film Festival wrapped a busy 28th edition on October 13.

Chowdhury’s film tells the story of an eccentric fisherman who learns a traditional form of wrestling to take on the village champion, while September 1923, the debut fiction film of documentary filmmaker Mori, revolves around the massacre that took place after the Great Kanto earthquake 100 years ago.

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The Kim Jiseok Award, presented to films in Busan’s Jiseok section, went to Sri Lankan director Prasanna Vithanage’s Paradise, about an Indian couple facing problems in their marriage during a trip to Sri Lanka, and Mirlan Abdykalykov’s Bride Kidnapping, about the widespread practice of forcing women into marriage in Kyrgyzstan.

Busan also launched two new awards, the LG OLED New Currents & Vision Awards, presented to films in the festival’s New Currents and Korean Cinema Today – Vision sections. Solids By The Seashore, directed by Thailand’s Patiparn Boontarig, won the LG OLED New Currents Award, while The Berefts, from Korea’s Jeong Beom and Hur Jang, took the LG OLED Vision Award. Both prizes came with a cash grant of KRW30M.

The Berefts was a multiple awards winner, as was Oh Jung-min’s House Of The Seasons, among the Korean independent films screening at the festival (see full list of award winners below). The first batch of awards were announced on October 12, with the New Currents and some other awards being presented at the festival’s closing ceremony on October 13. Chinese filmmaker Ning Hao’s The Movie Emperor, starring Andy Lau, played as the closing film.

Despite management turmoil and budget cuts over the past six months, the festival managed to pull off a buzzy edition with high participation from both local industry and international guests. Audience attendance hit 143,432 across the 10-day event, which was 13% down on last year, but then due to budget cuts, the festival only screened 209 films this year, compared to 242 in 2022. Seat occupancy increased from 74% to 82%.

High-profile talent attending the festival included Chow Yun-fat, Luc Besson, Fan Bingbing, Steven Yuen, John Cho, Justin Chon, Lee Isaac Chung, Hirokazu Kore-eda and Ryusuke Hamaguchi.

On the industry side, Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM) drew a record 2,479 attendees, filling a 30% larger exhibition space with 98 booths. European Film Promotion (EFP) and Unifrance hosted the European Pavilion, which was bustling throughout the four-day market (October 7-10). Busan Story Market, a section of the market dedicated to IP content sales, hosted a total of 1,826 meetings. However, conversations taking place on the side-lines of the market reinforced the reality that the traditional sales business remains challenged.

The Rising Films International Award, a new $750,000 investment programme from Taiwan’s Rising Films to support independent Korean films, went to Journey To Gyeongju, directed by Kim Mijo.

In the Asian Project Market (APM), Iraq-Canadian project Madness And Honey Days, to be directed by Ahmed Yassin Al Daradji, won the Busan Award. Among multiple award winners, Rafael Manuel’s Filipinana, a Singapore-UK-Philippines collaboration, won the TAICCA Award, the ArteKino International Award and the Kongchak Studio Award.

Chinese director Jiang Xiaoxuan’s To Kill A Mongolian Horse won the VIPO Award and Sorfond Award, while What’s Love Got To Do With It, from Japan’s Nanako Hirose, took the CJ ENM Award and ARRI Award. Watch It Burn, from Indonesia’s Makbul Mubarak, was presented with the One Cool Award.

BUSAN 2023 FULL LIST OF AWARDS:

New Currents Award:
The Wrestler (Bangladesh-Canada), dir: Iqbal H. Chowdhury
September 1923 (Japan), dir: Tatsuya Mori
 
Kim Jiseok Award:
Paradise (Sri Lanka-India), dir: Prasanna Vithanage
Bride Kidnapping (Kyrgyzstan), dir: Mirlan Abdykalykov
 
BIFF Mecenat Award:
The Voices Of The Silenced (Korea-Japan), dir: Park Soo-nam, Park Maeui
Republic (Singapore-China), dir: Jin Jiang
 
Sonje Award:
Mydear (Korea), dir: Jeon Dohee, Kim Sohee
21 Weeks Later (Iran), dir: Nasrin Mohammadpour
 
Special Mention: Everybody’s Gotta Love Sometimes (France-Myanmar-Indonesia), dir: Sein Lyan Tun
 
Actors of the Year:
Jang Sung-bum, Work To Do (Korea)
Oh Minae, Concerning My Daughter (Korea)
 
KB New Currents Audience Award: Heritage (Korea), dir: Lee Jong-su
 
Flash Forward Audience Award: The Dreamer (France), dir: Anais Tellenne
 
LG OLED New Currents Award: Solids By The Seashore (Thailand): dir: Patiparn Boontarig
 
LG OLED Vision Award: The Berefts (Korea), dirs: Jeong Beom, Hur Jang
 
FIPRESCI Award: That Summer′s Lie (Korea), dir: Sohn Hyun-lok
 
NETPAC Award: Solids By The Seashore (Thailand): dir: Patiparn Boontarig
 
DGK Plus M Award:
Work To Do (Korea), dir: Park Hong-jun
Isle Of Snakes (Korea), dir Eu-min Kim
 
CGV Award: Concerning My Daughter (Korea), dir: Lee Mirang
 
KBS Independent Film Award: House Of The Seasons (Korea), dir: Oh Jung-min
 
CGK Award: House Of The Seasons (Korea), cinematographer: Lee Jinkeun
 
Critic b Award: Last Summer (Korea), dir Choi Seung-woo
 
Aurora Media Award:
House Of The Seasons (Korea), dir: Oh Jung-min
FAQ (Korea), dir: Kim Da-min
 
Watcha Short Award:
Mydear (Korea), dir: Jeon Dohee, Kim Sohee
Karma (Korea), dir: Choi Soohyuk
 
Citizen Critics’ Award: The Berefts (Korea), dirs: Jeong Beom, Hur Jang
 
Busan Cinephile Award: Yellow Door: ′90s Lo-fi Film Club (Korea), dir: Lee Hyuk-rae
 

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