BIFF gives Asian filmmaking award to Cambodian director

Celebrated Cambodian filmmaker Rithy Panh has been selected as the winner of Busan International Film Festival’s Asian Filmmaker of the Year Award.

The annual prize from BIFF is given to an Asian filmmaker “who has significantly contributed to the development of Asian cinema and culture.” Past winners include Iran’s Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Taiwan’s Hou Hsiao-hsien and Hong Kong’s Andy Lau.

The 49-year-old filmmaker’s works have been largely focused on the aftermath of the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime in his home country.

Panh lost almost all of his family to the genocide in the 1970s, including his parents, siblings and nephews. He escaped to Thailand in 1979 and eventually made his way to Paris, France, which he still uses as his home base.

His latest documentary “The Missing Picture,” about the Khmer Rouge regime, won the Un Certain Regard Prize at this year’s Cannes International Festival.

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)