Busan enters the circuit of major festivals: the winner qualifies for the international Oscar

The most substantial change in the autumn festival calendar does not concern a film but a rule. Starting with its 31st edition, the Busan International Film Festival is included among the leading festivals of the international circuit, and the winner of the competition’s main prize — the Busan Award — obtains qualification for the Best International Feature Film Oscar nomination. The change rests on a May 2026 decision by the Academy, which opened the international award to non-English-language films awarded at festivals with qualifying recognitions.

The data come from the September 1, 2026 press conference, held at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Seoul, reported by Edaily, from statements by the Busan International Film Festival, and from the compilation of Yonhap agency dispatches gathered on Wikipedia.

The edition’s numbers

The festival runs from October 6 to 15, 2026, across three venues: the Busan Cinema Center, the CGV Centum City, and the Lotte Cinema Centum City. The program includes 316 films, of which 247 are official invitation titles from 59 countries. The opening film is ‘Nat-gwa bam-eun seoro-ege’ — ‘Day and Night for Each Other’ — by Kim Jong-kwan; the closing title has not yet been announced.

Present at the presentation conference were president Park Kwang-su, executive director Jung Han-seok, deputy director Park Ga-eon, and market president Kim Young-deok. The shift to a competitive festival, with a competition section, was introduced in the previous edition, the thirtieth, in 2025: the Oscar qualification thus arrives one year after the competition was built.

Michelle Yeoh has been named Asian Filmmaker of the Year 2026, with a special program of four films, three of which chosen by the actress. Invited to the Carte Blanche section are director Kim Jee-woon, actress Fan Bingbing, and cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo. Japan is the Country of the Year for the Producer Hub program.

Toronto: the market separates from the festival

Before Busan comes Toronto, from September 10 to 20, 2026. The organizational novelty of the 51st edition is the formal launch of a film market distinct from the public event, TIFF: The Market, from September 10 to 16 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre: it is the development of the Industry Selects program introduced in 2020. This is reported by IndieWire, Deadline, and Screen Daily based on the festival’s official announcements.

The opening film is ‘Being Heumann’ by Siân Heder, an Apple Original production, in world premiere on Thursday, September 10 at Roy Thomson Hall: it is the director’s next feature after ‘CODA’. Closing is ‘Villeneuve: The Rise of a Legend’ by Yan Lanouette Turgeon. In July the festival had announced 64 titles between Gala and Special Presentations, with 32 premieres.

The documentary section TIFF Docs counts 21 titles from 20 countries, of which 18 world premieres, and opens with ‘Rapinoe’ by Rebeca Huntt; more than two-thirds of the selection is directed by women, and Barbara Kopple returns with ‘Union Town’. Among the competition’s world premieres are ‘I Play Rocky’ by Peter Farrelly, ‘A Talent for Murder’ by Anton Corbijn, ‘Misty Green’ by Chris Rock, and ‘The Last Photograph’ by Zack Snyder, scheduled for September 13. On the same day, at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel, the eighth edition of the TIFF Tribute Awards gala takes place.

The two decisions — a separate market in Toronto, Oscar qualification in Busan — shift weight in different directions, one toward industry, the other toward competition. The first takes effect from September 10, the second on October 15, when the first Busan Award with qualifying value will be presented in Busan.