Busan International Comedy Festival kicks off 10-day run with captivating opening ceremony

The 12th Busan International Comedy Festival, one of the largest comedy events in Asia, kicked off on Friday evening in the port city of Haeundae.

The festival's opening ceremony, held at the Busan Cinema Center, attracted some 3,000 attendees. Among the attendees were popular comedians such as Danny Choi, Hong Yoon-hwa, and Kim Won-hyo, members of the BICF Organizing Committee, as well as Busan Mayor Park Heung-joon.

Hosted by popular comedians Yoo Se-yoon and Jang Dong-min, the opening ceremony kicked off with a performance by the singer group Koyote, who delivered their hit songs "Sad Dream" and "Pure Love."

Following the performance was the Comedy YouTube awards ceremony, which annually recognizes outstanding performances by comedians on YouTube. This year's nominees included popular comedy channels "High Fiction," "Ggondaehee," and "UV Bang."

Comedian Kim Dae-hee, who operates the "Ggondaehee" YouTube channel with 1.7 million subscribers and plays the titular character, was announced as the winner of the Comedy YouTube Award.

"I never anticipated (my channel) becoming this successful. We're living in an era where comedy programs are vanishing from TV, and younger comedians are progressively turning to YouTube as a platform to showcase their talent. I ask for your continued support," said Kim.

The opening ceremony wrapped up with gala performances by both local and international comedy acts. Highlights included a mini-concert by comedian Youn Sung-ho, also known as DJ Ven. New Jean, as well as comedy acts by Japanese comedian WES-P and performer Sam Wills (professionally known as Tape Face), a mime artist. The event also featured a performance titled "Bubbleshow in Space" by the Australian entertainers Dr. Bubble and Milkshake.

The 12th BICF will run from Friday through Sept. 1, featuring a variety of events including indoor and outdoor comedy performances, comedy film festivals, and comedy seminar at various locations across Busan. For more details, visit the festival's official website.