The looming threat of Typhoon Kong-Rey failed to cloud a glittering opening to the 23rd Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) Thursday, with a parade of the region’s brightest stars gracing the red carpet. South Korean K-pop singer-turned-actress Choi Soo-young was joined at the festival
The looming threat of Typhoon Kong-Rey failed to cloud a glittering opening to the 23rd Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) Thursday, with a parade of the region’s brightest stars gracing the red carpet.
South Korean K-pop singer-turned-actress Choi Soo-young was joined at the festival’s opening gala by the likes of Hong Kong actress Sammi Cheng, here with the drama “First Night Nerves”, and China’s Zhao Tao, who stars in the latest Jia Zhangke feature “Ash is Purest White”.
Veteran Japanese composer and pianist Ryuichi Sakamoto, in town to collect the Asian Filmmaker of the Year award, took to the stage to perform the theme song from his Oscar-winning score for “Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence”.
Sakamoto also scored the animated feature “My Tyrano: Together, Forever”, a Korean-Japanese-Chinese co-production having its world premiere in Busan.
The composer said he hoped its themes of peace and tolerance would resonate with recent political developments in the region.
“It seems finally that peace is coming to the Korean peninsula and as an Asian this fills me with immense joy,” said Sakamoto.
“Film helps connect people and this is also what this film festival does.”
Noted international filmmakers attending this year’s event include Hollywood producer Jason Blum (“Whiplash”, “Get Out”) and Indian hit-maker Rajkumar Harani (“3 Idiots”).
Festival organisers were bracing for the imminent arrival of Typhoon Kong-Rey on Saturday, as the stormfront was projected to close in on the South Korean coast over the next 48 hours.
