The Netflix film Jeon, Ran starring actor Gang Dong-won has been selected as the opening film of the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) for the first time in the festival's history.
At the press conference for the 29th Busan International Film Festival held on the afternoon of the 3rd at the Seoul Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Park Do-shin, the Acting Chairman of the Executive Committee, explained why Jeon, Ran was chosen as the opening film. He stated, “We believe Jeon, Ran is the most popular opening film ever. We considered how much the audience would enjoy the film.”
Regarding the evaluation that the selection reflects the film festival’s direction towards a broader invitation of OTT films, Park Do-shin commented, “The decision to select an OTT film for the opening was not influenced by its OTT status. We did not exclude it from consideration because it is a Netflix film, nor will we in the future. The Korean film programmers and chief programmers believed that 'this film is really good' and 'the audience will like it.'”
Park emphasized that there is no meaningful distinction between theatrical films and OTT films, stating, “We have showcased OTT works in the 'On Screen' section. We consider OTT genres to be a part of cinema.”
Jeon, Ran is a historical drama about a young master (Park Jung-min) and his servant (Gang Dong-won) who face off with swords when a rebellion occurs among the household slaves. As a Netflix-invested and distributed film, it is the first OTT work to be selected as the opening film of the Busan International Film Festival.
The 29th Busan International Film Festival will open with Kim Sang-man's Jeon, Ran and close with Eric Khoo’s Soul Journey. This year, the festival will showcase 279 films from 63 countries.