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BIFF reveals six works to be shown in 2025's On Screen section

Published: 12 Aug. 2025, 11:12 Updated: 12 Aug. 2025, 18:13

LIM JEONG-WON
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A scene from ″As You Stood By″ [BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL]

The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) unveiled six titles for this year’s On Screen section on Tuesday, its showcase for high-profile drama series making their world premieres on the big screen.

Introduced in 2021, the On Screen section offers audiences a first look at yet-to-be-released works in a theatrical setting, highlighting the expanding reach and artistic potential of the series format. This year’s lineup includes three Korean and three international titles.

Among the Korean entries is “As You Stood By,” the latest from director Lee Jeong-lim, known for genre-bending works such as “VIP” (2019) and “Revenant” (2023). The suspense-driven drama stars Lee Yoo-mi of “Squid Game” (2021-) and Jeon So-nee as two women whose bond is tested and defined by loyalty, trust and peril.

“Dear X,” co-directed by Lee Eung-bok, the force behind hit works such as “Mr. Sunshine” (2018), “Sweet Home” (2020) and “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God” (2016-2017), and Park So-hyun, follows a masked woman bent on escaping hell and those she destroys along the way, with Kim You-jung and Kim Young-dae leading a cast that includes Kim Do-hoon and Lee Yul-eum.

A scene from ″Dear X″ [BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL]

The third Korean selection, “The Murky Stream,” is a period action drama set along the bustling Joseon-era (1392-1910) trading hub of Gyeonggang, where characters fight to upend a corrupt social order. Rowoon, Shin Ye-eun, Park Seo-ham and Park Ji-hwan star under the direction of Choo Chang-min.

The international slate opens with “Last Samurai Standing,” a Japanese action drama set in 1878 in which 292 warriors compete in a deadly survival game. Directed by Michihito Fujii, Kento Yamaguchi and Toru Yamamoto, it features a cast led by Junichi Okada and Yumi Fujisaki.

“Romantics Anonymous,” directed by Sho Tsukikawa, who made the sleeper hit 2017 film “Let Me Eat Your Pancreas,” stars Shun Oguri and Han Hyo-joo as two emotionally scarred individuals brought together by chocolate in a warm, bittersweet romance.

A scene from ″The Resurrected″ [BUSAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL]

Rounding out the lineup is the Chinese-language “The Resurrected,” a revenge thriller from directors Leste Chan and Chao-jen Hsu. Shu Qi and Lee Sinje play grieving mothers who resurrect a dead scammer to pursue justice, only to uncover unexpected truths.

The On Screen selections will premiere from Sept. 17 to 26 at venues across the Busan Cinema Center during the festival’s 30th edition. Audiences will be the first in the world to see these dramas before they reach streaming platforms or television screens.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]