Vietnam’s “Floating Lives” film directed by Nguyen Phan Quang Binh failed to win award at the 15th Pusan International Film Festival, which wrapped up yesterday although it has touched hears of the audiences during screening there.
Two South Korean productions won the major awards at the Asia’s top film festival Friday, lauded for their richly evocative reflections of modern Korean society.
Park Jung-Bum’s "The Journals of Musan" and Yoon Sung-Hyun’s "Bleak Night" took two leading prizes for the New Currents category, each worth US$30,000 in cash prize.
Park was a double winner, also picking up the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) award for his film, which follows the problems faced by a North Korean defector when he moves to the south.
"Independent films are always very personal so I am very happy that my film was able to find an audience here in Pusan," AFP quoted him as saying.
This year’s New Currents award attracted 13 entries, from South Korea, Hong Kong, China, the Philippines, Iraq, India, Vietnam and Thailand.
PIFF’s other main award is the Flash Forward prize of $20,000 and is open to non-Asian directors.
This year it was won by Swedish director Lisa Langseth’s gripping production "Pure", which follows the tale of a young woman whose life is changed forever after she witnesses a performance of Mozart’s "Requiem".
In all, a total of 306 films will have been screened over the festival’s 10 days, with 101 of them being world premieres. A total of 182,046 people visited the event, according to organizers.
The New Currents awards were to be officially presented at the festival's closing ceremony at the Haeundae Yachting Center on Friday night.
