The 34th Bu-il Film Awards will hold its ceremony on Sept. 18 (Thursday) at 5 p.m. at the Grand Ballroom of Signiel Busan in Haeundae District, Busan, along with the announcement of this year's nominees.
Established in 1958 and leading the golden age of Korean cinema in the 1960s, the Bu-il Film Awards, the first film awards in Korea, have continued for 18 years since their revival in 2008, maintaining the tradition and authority of the country's first film awards.
As a result, the final nominees for the Best Film, Best Director, Best Leading Actor and Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Actress, and Best Newcomer awards, selected through intense competition and consensus among the judges, are being unveiled, drawing attention to the voting for this year's Star Award.
Director Woo Min-ho's 'Harbin' has been nominated in the most institutional sectors, with seven nominations, while director Oh Jung-min's 'Jangson' and director Kim Sang-man and Park Chan-wook's 'Jeon,ran' lead the fierce competition with six nominations.
Meanwhile, the nominees for Best Picture include 'Harbin', 'Jeon,ran', along with 'Jangson', directed by Oh Jung-min, which has received rave reviews from audiences and has gained recognition at various domestic film festivals, and 'The Morning Sea Gull', directed by Lee Mi-rang, which has been invited and awarded at major domestic and international film festivals, sweeping the Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Performance Awards at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards. Among the five nominated films, the remarkable strides of high-quality independent and art films are drawing the interest of movie fans. The final nominees for the 16 announced institutional sectors are as follows.
The nominees for Best Picture are 'What Does that Nature Say to You', 'The Morning Sea Gull', 'Jangson', 'Jeon,ran', and 'Harbin', while the Best Director nominees include Lee Eun-hee ('Love Law of a Big City'), Jeong Yoon-cheol ('Sea Tiger'), Kim Hyung-joo ('Victory'), Hwang Byeong-guk ('YADANG: The Snitch'), and Woo Min-ho ('Harbin').
Best Leading Actor nominees include Lee Byung-hun ('Victory'), Yoon Joo-sang ('The Morning Sea Gull'), Hyun Bin ('Harbin'), Ahn Jae-hong ('Hi Five'), and Jo Jung-seok ('Country of Happiness'), while Best Leading Actress nominees are Kim Goeun ('Love Law of a Big City'), Shim Eun-kyung ('The Killers'), Oh Min-ae ('About My Daughter'), Han Ye-ri ('Spring Night'), and Lee Hya-young ('The Old Woman with the Knife').
Additionally, Best Supporting Actor nominees include Jung Haein ('Veteran 2'), Oh Man-seok ('Jangson'), Park Jeong-min ('Jeon,ran'), Jo Woo-jin ('Harbin'), and Yoo Jae-myung ('Country of Happiness'), while Best Supporting Actress nominees are Jeon Yeo-bin ('Dark Nuns'), Ha Yoon-kyung ('About My Daughter'), Soo-hyun ('Ordinary Family'), Yang Hee-gyeong ('The Morning Sea Gull'), and Chae Won-bin ('YADANG: The Snitch'). Best New Director nominees are Lee Mi-rang ('About My Daughter'), Kim Tae-yang ('The Old Woman with the Knife'), Lee Jong-soo ('Parents Fool'), Jang Byeong-ki ('When Summer Passes'), Oh Jung-min ('Jangson'), and Best New Male Actor nominees include Moon Woo-jin ('Dark Nuns'), Noh Sang-hyun ('Love Law of a Big City'), Choi Hyun-jin ('When Summer Passes'), Kang Seung-ho ('Jangson'), Jang Seong-beom ('What Needs to Be Done'), while Best New Female Actor nominees include Lee Myung-ha ('The Old Woman with the Knife'), Hong Ye-ji ('Ordinary Family'), Lee Hye-ri ('Victory'), Jo Ah-ram ('Victory'), and Roh Yoon-seo ('Ordinary Family').
Nominations for Best Screenplay include Park Yi-woong ('The Morning Sea Gull'), Oh Jung-min ('Jangson'), Shin Cheol, Park Chan-wook ('Jeon,ran'), Park Hong-jun ('What Needs to Be Done'), and Heo Joon-seok ('Country of Happiness'), while the Best Cinematographer nominations include Kim Jin-hyung ('The Old Woman with the Knife'), Lee Jin-geun ('Jangson'), Joo Sung-rim ('Jeon,ran'), Lee Jae-woo ('Harbin'), and Hong Kyung-pyo ('Harbin'). For Best Music, nominees include Primary ('Love Law of a Big City'), Jo Young-wook ('Jeon,ran'), Jo Young-wook ('Harbin'), Kim Joon-seok ('Hi Five'), and Kwon Hyun-jung ('Because I Hate Korea'). Nominations for Best Art & Technical include Hong Jang-pyo ('Firefighter/Special Effects'), Jung Eun-young ('Victory/Production Design'), Jo Sang-gyeong ('Jeon,ran/Costume'), Gwak Jeong-ae ('Harbin/Costume'), and Park Jeong-woo ('Harbin/Lighting'), raising interest in who will receive the awards.
Meanwhile, the Yu Hyun-mok Film Art Award, given to challenging and pioneering filmmakers in honor of the late director Yu Hyun-mok, who has won the Best Director award at the Bu-il Film Awards five times, will be decided through a professional committee of the Bu-il Film Awards.
Additionally, the voting for 'Star of the Year,' in which the winners are determined by combining votes from audiences and members of film organizations, begins today (24th). Voting for 'Star of the Year,' which features the leading actors from the nominated films, can be participated in through a link on the official Bu-il Film Awards website until July 31 (Thursday). One person can select one nominee from each gender category and can vote only once per day, while multiple participations are allowed within the voting period.
With a fierce competition expected for the nominees of the 2025 34th Bu-il Film Awards across 16 institutional sectors, the winners will be announced during the Bu-il Film Awards ceremony, which will be broadcast live on Naver TV and YouTube on Sept. 18 (Thursday) at 5 p.m.
[Photo] OSEN DB, 34th Bu-il Film Awards
[OSEN]