Bucheon Choice: Features

Best of Bucheon
Sorcery (Directed by Christopher Murray)

Best Director Choice
Superposition (Directed by Karoline Lyngbye)

Jury’s Choice
The Artifice Girl (Directed by Franklin Ritch)

Audience Award
The Artifice Girl (Directed by Franklin Ritch)

 

Bucheon Choice: Shorts

Best Short Film
Mermaid (Directed by Dasha Charusha)

Jury’s Choice for Short Film
The Hand That Feeds (Directed by Helen Hideko)

※Bucheon Choice: Shorts Jury’s Special Mention
Kafar (Directed by Mahdi Barzoki)

Audience Award for Short Film
Olga’s Eyes (Directed by Sarah Carlot Jaber)

 

Korean Fantastic: Features

Korean Fantastic Film
IRON MASK (Directed by Kim Sung Hwan)

Korean Fantastic Best Director
Risk Society (Directed by Kim Byung Jun)

Fantastic Actors (2 winners)
Jung E-seo – Her Hobby
Jang Seongbeom – Abroad

※Korean Fantastic Jury’s Special Mention
Unknown Narrative: Skyrocket Junipers Under the Crescent (Directed by Yang Gun-young)

Korean Fantastic Audience Award
Abroad (Directed by Giovanni Fumu)

Nonghyup Award
Her Hobby (Directed by Ha Myung-mi)

Watcha’s Pick
IRON MASK (Directed by Kim Sung Hwan)

 

Korean Fantastic: Shorts

Best Korean Short Film
Get Thee on the Dance Floor (Directed by Hyun Hahn)

※Korean Fantastic Short Jury’s Special Mention
MICROWAVE LOVE (Directed by Kwon Chan-young)

Audience Award for Korean Short Film
HOIST (Directed by Gukja)

Watcha’s Pick (2 winners)
Ghwa the Last Name (Directed by Yoo Jae-in)
Jeong-dong (Directed by Choi Woo Gene)

 

Méliès International Festivals Federation(MIFF) Award for Best Asian Film

Best Regards to All (Directed by Shimotsu Yuta)

 

NETPAC Award

Hungry Ghost Diner (Directed by Cho We Jun)

 

Odd Family Award

Battery Mommy (Directed by Jeon Seungbae)
Burger Song Challenge (Directed by Kim Min-ha)

 

Commentary

 

Bucheon Choice: Features

As a jury, we enjoyed taking this fantastic journey around the world through 10 inventive films, each offering a creative perspective that reminded us to "stay strange". The visions of the filmmakers and the skills of the casts and crews combined to make our decisions difficult. These films are thrilling, funny, scary, moving and provocative, sometimes all at the same time.

► Best of Bucheon : Sorcery (Directed by Christopher Murray)
Vividly taking the audience to an atmospheric place and time, this hushed Chilean thriller blends drama and mysticism to astutely depict a collision of colonial attitudes, local politics and indigenous magic. ► Best Director Choice : Superposition (Directed by Karoline Lyngbye)
Working from a twisted premise, director Karoline Lyngbye adeptly helps the viewer share the moral and ethical dilemmas faced by characters who must either forgive each other or try to erase their problems, perhaps creating new ones in the process.  ► Jury’s Choice : The Artifice Girl (Directed by Franklin Ritch) ► Audience Award : The Artifice Girl (Directed by Franklin Ritch)  

Bucheon Choice: Shorts

The jury discussion for Bucheon Choice: Shorts was only a tiny bit easier because we were able to award two prizes. But so many of the films amazed us with their ability to create a rich vision of an entire world in just a few minutes, it took a long time for us to come to a decision - though in the end we all agreed on on the winners. The huge span of themes, from aliens to religious predicaments, showed how genre films are constantly reimagining the styles and themes they work with. Much like in the Korean Shorts section, it was the youthful energy that made every screening a real joy, even if it was usually paired with a real sense of purpose about what the films wanted to express.

► Best Short Film : Mermaid (Directed by Dasha Charusha)

► Jury’s Choice for Short Film : The Hand That Feeds (Directed by Helen Hideko)

► Bucheon Choice: Shorts Jury’s Special Mention : Kafar (Directed by Mahdi Barzoki)

► Audience Award for Short Film : Olga’s Eyes (Directed by Sarah Carlot Jaber)  

Korean Fantastic: Features

The jury saw a diversity of themes explored through strong story and deliver important messages to the society. These stories touched upon important subjects, including peace between nations, family, social relationships, and gender equality. Also well-crafted film whose elements support each other well.
These works stood as a testament to the skills of these emerging talents, accompanied by their profound awareness of urgent social issues. (Rina Damayanti)

► Korean Fantastic Film : IRON MASK (Directed by Kim Sung Hwan)

► Korean Fantastic Best Director : Risk Society (Directed by Kim Byung Jun)

► Fantastic Actors : Jung E-seo – Her Hobby

► Fantastic Actors : Jang Seongbeom – Abroad

※ Korean Fantastic Jury’s Special Mention : Unknown Narrative: Skyrocket Junipers Under the Crescent (Directed by Yang Gun-young)

► Korean Fantastic Audience Award : Abroad (Directed by Giovanni Fumu )

► Nonghyup Award : Her Hobby (Directed by Ha Myung-mi)

► Watcha’s Pick : IRON MASK (Directed by Kim Sung Hwan)

 

Korean Fantastic: Shorts

On the day the jury assembled to discuss the films, we honestly did not know how to begin, since it was obviously going to be difficult to choose. The films in the Korean Fantastic: Short section presented a truly fantastic mix of themes facing all of us today - about aging, our relationship to technology, or economic precarity - wrapped in wonderfully creative and wild visions of fantasy and re-imagined genre films, including horror, Science Fiction, and quirky romance. They combined a sense of place - of issues specific to life in Korea - with a sense of the world language of cinema, and it was an incredibly exciting mix. Some were quirky, bizarre romances with their own eccentric style, and some were technically masterful demonstrations of efficient filmmaking. But all of the films truly made us excited about the future of Korean genre cinema.

► Best Korean Short Film : Get Thee on the Dance Floor (Directed by Hyun Hahn)

※Korean Fantastic Short Jury’s Special Mention : MICROWAVE LOVE (Directed by Kwon Chan-young)

► Audience Award for Korean Short Film : HOIST (Directed by Gukja)

► Watcha’s Pick (2 winners)
Ghwa the Last Name (Directed by Yoo Jae-in)
Jeong-dong (Directed by Choi Woo Gene)  

Méliès International Festivals Federation(MIFF) Award for Best Asian Film

Best Regards to All (Directed by Shimotsu Yuta)
Produced by Takashi Shimizu, this elegant, yet seemingly simple film delivers more horror and dark humor then many other films while at the same time tackling some bigger social issues as well. Can we fight the happiness that comes from tradition and should we give up our fortune and good luck, so that others can benefit as well?
Starring Kotone Furakawa, this directional debut of Shimotsu Yuta has that eerie, creepy atmosphere, that even a week later you still are thinking about the whole concept. Add to that a strong story, original idea, dark humor and the premise of country live and you have the perfect recipe for a an intelligent, bleak horror movie.
One thing is clear, good fortune can’t be found in cookies. (Josemi Beltran, Patrick Van Hauwaert)  

NETPAC Award

Hungry Ghost Diner (Directed by Cho We Jun)
For its humane message, enforcing family and society, unity, in difficult COVID times with cinema language, using Buddhist folklore and modern reality. (Gulnara Abikeyeva, Kim Young-woo, Angela Lee)  

Odd Family Award

Battery Mommy (Directed by Jeon Seungbae)
Burger Song Challenge (Directed by Kim Min-ha)