Busan International Film Festival appoints PARK Kwang-su as chairperson

Chairperson candidate Park Kwang-su has been officially appointed as the next Busan International Film Festival chairperson at the 2024 general meeting.

Park, who was a founding member of BIFF and the festival’s deputy director for three consecutive years from its first edition, contributed to establishing the foundations of the organization. He was also a forerunner in the industrialization of Korean and Asian films as a prominent figure in the inauguration of the Pusan Promotion Plan (currently the Asian Project Market) and the Asian Film Market (currently the Asian Contents & Film Market), as well as the founding director of the Busan Film Commission, and professor of the School of Film, TV & Multimedia at the Korea National University of Arts. Furthermore, Park led the Korean New Wave in cinema with his acute portrayal of the realities of Korean society through films such as Chil-Su and Man-Su (1988), Black Republic (1990), and A Single Spark (1995).

Chairperson Park Kwang-su’s 4-year term will begin as of Feb 2 (Fri), and can be extended for one additional term. Meanwhile, the open recruitment for the positions of festival director, Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM) director, board members, and auditors is open until Feb 13 (Tues). Busan International Film Festival will conduct an objective and thorough screening of the candidates with the Executive Recommendation Committee, and complete the selection of all executives within the general meeting, scheduled to be held in March. More details about the qualifications, submission documents, and screening process will be available on the official BIFF website (www.biff.kr/).

The 29th Busan International Film Festival, which is garnering much anticipation with the appointment of a new chairperson, will be held for 10 days from Oct 2 (Wed) to Oct 11 (Fri) in the vicinity of the Busan Cinema Center.