The 31st Busan International Film Festival is set to open on October 6, running through October 15, and it arrives with a fresh twist: a fully fledged competition section introduced just two years ago. At the centre of this new challenge stands legendary Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou who has been appointed jury president for the main competition. His seasoned eye will guide a diverse seven-person panel as they assess the thirteen films selected for this year’s showdown.
Zhang’s résumé reads like a roll call of cinema’s most prestigious accolades. He broke onto the global stage with Red Sorghum which captured the Golden Bear at Berlin in 1988. He followed that triumph with two Golden Lions in Venice for The Story of Qiu Ju (1992) and Not One Less (1999), and earned Cannes’ Grand Prix for To Live in 1994. Commercially, he has proven equally formidable: the wuxia spectacle Hero (2002) grossed roughly $177 million worldwide, while his 2023 historical epic Full River Red topped $670 million. His relationship with Busan runs deep, having opened the 2010 edition with the romantic drama Under the Hawthorn Tree.
The seven-member jury: a cross-continental roster
Joining Zhang are six distinguished peers, each representing a different facet of Asian cinema. Bi Gan the Chinese auteur whose 2025 feature Resurrection earned a Cannes special award, returns after winning Busan’s Artistic Contribution Award during the competition’s inaugural edition. South Korean talent Moon Choi brings both acting chops and production experience, known for the Sundance-winning Bedford Park as well as the Korean dramas Anarchist From Colony and Our Body. From Japan, Kei Ishikawa contributes a résumé that includes the eight-time Japan Academy Film Prize winner A Man and the Cannes Un Certain Regard selection A Pale View of Hills.
The remaining seats are filled by Korean director July Jung whose three features—A Girl at My DoorNext Sohee and this year’s Dora—have all screened at Cannes. Vietnamese producer Tran Thi Bich Ngoc adds three decades of regional experience, with credits such as Big Father, Small Father and Other StoriesThe Third Wife and Glorious Ashes. Finally, Kazakh actress Samal Yeslyamova rounds out the panel; she captured the Cannes Best Actress prize for Sergei Dvortsevoy’s Ayka in 2018 and previously served on Busan’s New Currents jury.
Competition structure and the awards at stake
The competition section, launched in 2025, showcases 13 feature films selected from a broad Asian pool. This year’s jury will hand out the Busan Awards across five categories: Best Film, Best Director, Special Jury Prize, Best Actor, and Artistic Contribution. Together, the prizes carry a cash pool of $80,000 (KRW 110 million). Notably, a recent change to the Academy Awards eligibility rules means the winner of the Busan Best Film Award will automatically be submitted for the Oscars’ Best International Feature category, raising the stakes for all participants.
In parallel with the screenings, the festival will host the Asian Contents & Film Market from October 10 to 13, offering a bustling hub for producers, distributors, and buyers across the continent. The coexistence of market activities and the competition underscores Busan’s ambition to become both a cultural showcase and a commercial engine for Asian cinema.
Why Zhang Yimou’s presence matters
Choosing Zhang Yimou as jury president signals Busan’s intent to blend artistic credibility with worldwide recognition. His track record of navigating both auteur-driven festivals and blockbuster box-office success provides a rare bridge between independent cinema and mainstream appeal. Moreover, his familiarity with Busan’s history—having opened the festival in 2010—offers a symbolic continuity that ties the new competition format to the event’s roots.
For the filmmakers in contention, a nod from Zhang and his eclectic colleagues could open doors far beyond the Korean peninsula. Past winners have leveraged the Busan platform to secure distribution deals, attract festival invitations, and, as mentioned, earn Oscar consideration. As the curtain rises on the 31st edition, the industry will be watching closely to see which of the 13 contenders earns the seal of approval from this star-studded jury.
