Busan Film Festival to premiere Iranian ‘Blockage’

The New Current category at the 22nd edition of the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) in South Korea has set to premiere the Iranian film ‘Blockage’.

The organizers recently announced that the Iranian film will go on screen at Busan Cinema Center Cinema 1, CGV Centum City 7, and Lotte Cinema Centum City 10 on October 16, 18 and 20, respectively.

Directed by Mohsen Qaraei, ‘Blockage’ chronicles the devastating chaos that occurs to a ferocious, contemptible man who works as a street vendor control officer.

Notable among the other nine entries of the section, dedicated to promising Asian filmmakers, are ‘Somewhere beyond the Mist’ by King Wai Cheung from Hong Kong, ‘Ajji’ by Devashish Makhija and ‘Ashwatthama’ by Pushpendra Singh, both from India.

The section has also picked ‘End of Summer’ by Zhou Quan and ‘One Night on the Wharf’ by Han Dong China from China as well as ‘The Last Verse’ by Taiwanese director Tseng Ying-Ting.

‘Last Child’ by Shin Dongseok, ‘After My Death’ by Kim Uiseok and ‘How to Breathe Underwater’ by Ko Hyunseok, all from South Korea are the other contenders.

Iranian director Bahman Qobadi, French cinematographer Agnès Godard, Filipino director Lav Diaz and Korean director Jang Sun-woo are on the section’s jury panel headed by the US director Oliver Stone.

BIFF, held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan, South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia.

Launched in 1996 as the first international film festival in Korea, BIFF is introducing new films and first-time directors, especially those from Asian countries.

The 22nd edition of BIFF has been slated for October 12-21 in the South Korean city of Busan.

MG/MF