Female presence strong at Busan Film Fest

Female actors and directors are being spotlighted at the 22nd edition of the Busan International Film Festival this year.

For the first time in the festival’s history, both the opening and closing films -- Shin Su-won’s “Glass Garden” and Sylvia Chang’s “Love Education” -- have been helmed by female directors.

“Glass Garden” features actress Moon Geun-young as its lead, while “Love Education” tells the stories of Chinese women.

BIFF’s leader Kang Soo-youn, a veteran actress and the first female executive director of the festival, has announced she will step down after this edition.

Films featuring women’s stories have been highlighted in the festival’s categories. “In Korean mainstream cinema, female-centered films are rare. Most are stories about men. We wanted to show this year that there are many well-made pieces centering on women,” programmer Nam Dong-chul said.

President Moon Jae-in, in a surprise visit to Busan Saturday, viewed “Missing,” a film about the bond between two struggling women, motherhood and class distinctions.

“I think the title ‘Missing’ has a double meaning, implying that the women in our society are being marginalized,” Moon said after the screening. 

Female filmmakers and actresses from around Asia met in talk sessions throughout the festival.

On Friday, actress Moon So-ri, who directed, wrote and starred in her feature debut “The Running Actress” this year and Japanese actress Miho Nakayama who stars in “Love Letter,” screening at Gala Presentation, met to discuss women’s position in film at the Haeundae BIFF Village.

“While I was studying film, I learned that women’s roles are closely related to the political and economic situation. It’s not a simple issue,” actress Moon said.

A group of female Asian filmmakers gathered at in a talk session Monday at the Busan Cinema Center. 

Indonesian director Mouly Surya talked about society’s expectations on the role of mothers. “It’s not even about being a man or a woman, there’s a responsibility that comes with being a mother, which can be very constricting.”

But increasingly, with much effort from directors and producers, there are thriving film sets filled with women, said Filipino producer Bianca Balbuena.

“On our set, I would say about 90 percent of the people are female or gay,” she said.

By Rumy Doo (doo@heraldcorp.com)