"This year's Busan International Film Festival: A sea of people beyond expectations, astonishing audience quality" [Interview] [BIFF Wrap-up ①]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

As the 31st Busan International Film Festival has once again gathered a large number of audiences this year, the festival organizers expressed confidence in the audience enthusiasm and participation that surpassed the achievements of last year's 30th anniversary.

The 31st Busan International Film Festival, which opened on October 6, is approaching its closing two days later. As of the 10th, the fifth day since the opening, the number of audiences who attended program events, ranging from open talks, outdoor stage greetings, and "Aju Damdam" held at the Cinema Hall's outdoor event venue to indoor events such as Cine Class and Actors' House, has surpassed 50,000.

This already exceeded last year's final audience count for program events in just five days. While expanding viewing opportunities through a Tuesday opening introduced for the first time this year and five daily screenings from Thursday to Sunday centered on large screens, audiences continued to flock not only to the screening halls but also to the Cinema Hall's outdoor event venue day after day, heating up the atmosphere of the festival's first week.

Jung Han-seok, Executive Director of the Busan International Film Festival, stated regarding the early atmosphere of this year's festival, "The most overwhelming and impressive scene from after the opening until the weekend was the sea of people filling the area around the Cinema Hall's outdoor event venue."

He continued, "We prepared for the festival with some expectations, but the scale that actually materialized was astonishing even to us," adding, "Because we have been running the festival for several years, we can immediately feel it. Seeing festival guests, media, and general audiences all talking about the same point made us realize more certainly that this is a fact being widely shared."

He explained, "If we include so-called 'floating population' who stay briefly in the vicinity to enjoy and then leave, I expect the number to be several times higher."

The most satisfactory achievements of this year's festival were cited as favorable reviews for the competition section, improvements in audience convenience, and the attendance of world-renowned film figures.

Jeong (Chairman) said, "It is very satisfying that the works in the competition section are receiving good evaluations not only from film experts and enthusiasts but also from general audiences."

He also attributed significance to the operational methods newly attempted this year. He stated, "This year, we tried changes to improve audience convenience, such as changing the opening day to Tuesday and conducting five screenings centered on large screens from Thursday to Sunday," adding, "It is satisfying that these attempts are actually working positively. I judge it to be one of the important factors that created the sea of people mentioned earlier."

The visit of world-renowned directors and actors to Busan was also evaluated as contributing to expanding audience participation. Jeong (Chairman) said, "I have seen the expression 'Guest invitations, top-tier again this year' many times," adding, "We judge that our best efforts in inviting world-class directors and actors are linked to the rise in audience participation and popular expandability."

He particularly emphasized that the success of last year's 30th Busan International Film Festival was not merely a temporary effect due to an anniversary edition.

Jeong (Chairman) stated, "It is true that I thought some special circumstances might have worked for the great success because last year was the commemorative 30th anniversary," adding, "However, looking at several indicators this year that surpass last year, it has been proven to be a sustainable positive result due to system refinement and program strengthening, which is the most satisfying part."

He also conveyed the enthusiasm of Busan audiences directly felt by overseas film figures. The director said, "Last night, I had dinner with major French film figures including directors and actors, and they all said they were deeply moved by the hospitality, attitude, and level of questions shown by Busan International Film Festival audiences."

He then introduced an anecdote about Majid Majidi, the Iranian director who directed "Bread and Books" in the competition section. He said, "Director Majidi said he was very happy and grateful to meet an audience member who told him they shed tears of emotion until the next day after watching his film," adding, "Hearing that made me think once again that the power of the Busan International Film Festival lies with its audiences."

Despite the hot box office success, there were clear tasks that needed improvement. The waiting line reservation system introduced for the first time this year was cited as a representative area for supplementation.

Jeong (Chairman) stated, "Since it is the first introduction, we proceeded with the most conservative and principled conditions above all else to ensure the safety and stability of the reservation system," adding, "We plan to continue attempts to refine it more precisely by thoroughly analyzing and discussing this year's opinions and results as data."

He said that on-site spaces and convenience facilities would also be improved to match the crowd that exceeded expectations. He stated, "While looking around the Cinema Hall's outdoor event venue, I began to think about creating space and providing convenience to accommodate the increased number of people."

He continued, "We installed an 'Aju Damdam Lounge' in the plaza for talk programs, but we found details such as direct sunlight shining on the event space that could cause some discomfort for audiences. We plan to fix this next year."

The Busan International Film Festival will continue its heat until the 15th. The director cited Open Cinema, held every night at the Cinema Hall's outdoor theater, as a notable program in the latter half of the festival.

He particularly recommended the French family comedy "Just an Illusion," which will be screened on the 14th, saying, "The weather in Busan has become quite cool these days, so watching Open Cinema at the Cinema Hall's outdoor screening hall would make for a pleasant memory."

In addition, he recommended Isabelle Huppert's open talk, "Aju Damdam" featuring Kim Guk-hee, Kim Jae-cheol, Gong Min-jung, Park Ji-yeon, Lim Seong-jae, and Kim Jun-han, and Cine Class for film enthusiasts.

Finally, the director stated, "The festival is sailing smoothly amid such hot interest," adding, "I hope this atmosphere will lead to good results until the very end."

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original