Busan: Director Na Hong-jin of “The Chaser” and “The Wailing” on Thursday shared the pressure and responsibility he was feeling as the jury chair for the inaugural competition section of the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF). “I was so burdened that I really didn’t want to do it,” the acclaimed director said at a press conference at the Busan Cinema Center. He admitted even appearing on stage at the opening ceremony the previous night “made me panic,” drawing laughter from the conference’s attendees.
According to Yonhap News Agency, marking its 30th anniversary, BIFF introduced the Busan Awards to uphold its vision of discovering and promoting outstanding Asian cinema. Awards will be presented in five categories: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor/Actress, the Special Jury Award and the Artistic Contribution Award. The winner of Best Film will have the honor of closing the 30th edition of the festival.
Na heads a distinguished seven-member jury that includes Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Ka-fai, Indian director and actor Nandita Das, Iranian director Marziyeh Meshkiny, American director Kogonada, Indonesian producer Yulia Evina Bhara and South Korean actress Han Hyo-joo. Together, they will select the winners from 14 Asian films. The 14 films are Isabelle Kalandar’s “Another Birth,” Koto Nagata’s “BAKA’s Identity,” Lee Jea-han’s “By Another Name,” Yoo Jae-in’s “En Route To,” Han Chang-rok’s “Funky Freaky Freaks,” Shu Qi’s “Girl,” Zhang Lu’s “Gloaming in Luomu,” Daisuke Shigaya’s “Leave the Cat Alone,” Shih-Ching Tsou’s “Left-handed Girl,” Gan Bi’s “Resurrection,” Lim Sun-ae’s “Seven O’Clock Breakfast Club for the Brokenhearted,” Vimukthi Jayasundara’s “Spying Stars,” Sho Miyake’s “Two Seasons, Two Strangers” and Hassan Nazer’s “Without Permission.”
“While I didn’t participate in the process of selecting films for the competition section, I could indirectly sense a clear direction,” Na said. “I felt we need to create opportunities that serve as a foundation and stepping stone for artists. I will do my best to produce results that match the festival’s reputation,” Na added. “There are so many diverse elements that make up a single work, so I will thoroughly examine each film.”
The jury members stressed their goal to reach a “unanimous decision” through “long discussions and conversations.” Kogonada, one of the directors of Apple TV+ series “Pachinko,” highlighted the collaborative nature of the process. “For some people, film is all about the acting, for others it’s about the design, and for others, it’s about the emotion,” he said. “So that is the wonderful thing about being on a jury; you enter that conversation, and hopefully you find a balance to see the film that, as a group, you truly value.”