Busan Film Festival Honors Chinese-Korean Director's Gloaming in Luomu as Best Film

The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) wrapped up its landmark 30th edition on September 26th, 2025. The closing ceremony at the Busan Cinema Center unveiled the winners of the festival's inaugural main competition section, the Busan Award, as well as its signature honors, the New Currents, BIFF Mecenat and Sonje Awards.

The newly launched Busan Award, BIFF's first-ever official competition, crowned veteran Chinese-Korean auteur Zhang Lu's drama Gloaming in Luomu as the best film. The movie, set in a remote borderland town, traces the lives of locals grappling with history's lingering shadows, blending Zhang's trademark lyricism with a stark social critique.

Taiwanese screen star-turned-first-time filmmaker Shu Qi took home the best director honors for her coming-of-age story Girl, which was deeply inspired by her own youth in 1980s Taipei. Korean director Han Chang-lok's darkly comic ensemble Funky Freaky Freaks received the special jury award.

The acting awards were split, with rising Korean star Lee Jiwon earning best actor for his breakout turn in En Route To, while Japanese talents Kitamura Takumi, Ayano Go and Hayashi Yuta shared the prize for their collective performance in Baka's Identity. The artistic contribution award went to Chinese production designers Tu Nan and Liu Qiang for their work on Bi Gan's arthouse stunner Resurrection.