We present the list of winners of the 20th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival that took place from July 21st – 31st in Bucheon, South Korea.

Bucheon Choice – Features
Best of Bucheon

The Wailing by Na Hong-jin – South Korea | 2016 – 156 min.

An old stranger appears in a peaceful rural village. But no one knows when or why. As mysterious rumors begin to spread about this man, the villagers drop dead one by one. The village is swept by turmoil and the stranger is subjected to suspicion.

Trailer (Will open in a new window)

Jury’s Choice

Under the Shadow by Babak Anvari – UK, Jordan, Qatar | 2015 – 84 min.

Tehran, 1988: As the Iran-Iraq War rumbles into its eighth year, a mother and daughter are slowly torn apart by the bombing campaigns on the city coupled with the country’s bloody revolution. As they struggle to stay together, a mysterious evil stalks through their apartment.

Trailer (Will open in a new window)

Best Actress Choice

Karin Viard for her role in 21 Nights with Pattie by Arnaud Larrieu and Jean-Marie Larrieu
France | 2015 – 110 min.

Caroline arrives in a small village in southern France for funeral of her mother, she is greeted by Pattie, who likes telling anyone who will listen about her sexual adventures. As the whole valley is preparing for the annual ball, the body of the deceased mysteriously disappears.

Best Actor Choice

Deepak Sampat for his role in Autohead by Rohit Mittal – India | 2016 – 97 min.

A documentary crew follows a notorious auto rickshaw driver in the suburbs of Mumbai. As they dig deeper in his life they discover angst, sexual frustration and paranoia. This changes the course of their film. It also depicts the voyeurism of the crew in the process and leads to a terrible end.

NH Audience Award

The Wailing by Na Hong-jin – South Korea | 2016 – 156 min.

Bucheon Choice – Short
Best Short Film

Manoman by Simon Cartwright – UK | 2015 – 11 min.

Glen is barely a man. He attends a primal scream therapy session, but even surrounded by wailing men he cannot make a sound. Finally lets something out – a miniature version of himself which does whatever it wants, regardless of the consequences.

Jury’s Choice for Short Film

The Bathub by Tim Ellrich – Austria, Germany | 2015 – 13 min.

Three brothers are preparing an original present for their mother. But the idea to re-enact an old bathtub picture from their childhood is way too stupid for the oldest one. Little by little they are all and three brothers remain who have grown apart in the meanwhile.

Audience Award for Short Film

The Bathub by Tim Ellrich – Austria, Germany | 2015 – 13 min.

Korean Fantastic – Features
LG HiEntech Best Korean Fantastic Film

Karaoke Crazies by Kim Sang-chan – South Korea | 2016 – 106 min.

Addiction Karaoke is a quiet bar with almost no clients. To boost his business, the owner hires a singing helper, a strange girl who seldom speaks. And he hires a second helper. Meanwhile, a local officer stops in from time to time warning of the presence of a serial killer in the region.

Special Mention

Who Killed Kim Kwang-seok? by Lee Sangho – South Korea | 2016 – 81 min.

Kim Kwangseok is a very well known folk rock singer in South Korea. He is having committed suicide in 1996. There are still many theories concerning his death, but not one of them is definitive. This is a documentary that explores the truth that must not be left out of his life and music.

Korean Fantastic Best Actress

Bae So-eun for her role in Karaoke Crazies by Kim Sang-chan – South Korea | 2016 – 106 min.

Korean Fantastic Best Actor

Park Keun-hyung for his role in Grand Father by Lee Seo – South Korea | 2015 – 91 min.

A Vietnam War veteran, Ki Gwang is an old bus driver. One day, he faced that his son had committed suicide and met his granddaughter at the funeral. However, he founds that some friends of his son has been using as his granddaughter as their need, This was the beginning of his vengeance for the world…

Korean Fantastic Audience Award

The Phantom Detective by Ko Sung-hee – South Korea | 2016 – 125 min.

Private detective Hong Gil-dong is seeking revenge for his mother who was murdered. When he arrives at the Kim’s house, he finds only the man’s grandchildren who tell him that their grandfather was kidnapped. Now, Hong decides to face him once and for all.

Korean Fantastic – Shorts
Best Korean Short Film

How to Pick a Lock by Kim Kwangbin – South Korea | 2016 – 20 min.

A boy tries to learn how to pick a lock from his jobless uncle. The reason is to open the closet in the hideout of the village’s teenagers. What does this boy want to see? The coming-up-an-age comedy with the straight dialogues.

Audience Award for Korean Short Film

Cliché Resistance by Lee Won-geun – South Korea | 2016 – 18 min.

Youngsters gather at the haunted location studio to shoot the horror film. The ghost starts to play around during the rehearsal, but the director and the crews start to fight against the ghost breaking all Cliche of the horror film.

European Fantastic Film Festival Federeation (EFFF) Asian Award

Psycho Raman by Anurag Kashyap – India | 2016 – 128 min.

A serial killer Ramanna, inspired by a serial killer named Raman Raghav, feels a strange obsession with Raghavan, a young cop. Ramanna’s feeling grows as he closely follows Raghavan until both of them come face to face.

NETPAC Award

The Forest by Paul Spurrier – Thailand | 2015 – 108 min.

A new teacher finds that his student is being bullied. The girl retreats into a fantasy world, finding solace in the forest with a strange wild boy. The teacher struggles to bring her back. The worlds of fantasy and reality clash with tragic consequences.

Save Energy, Save Earth Film Award

Captain Fantastic by Matt Ross – US | 2016 – 118 min.

Deep in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, Ben lives in his own world bringing up 6 kids alone. However, the world persistently pressures him to come back to the city life leaving behind the freedom in the wild. At last, Ben and children come out of the woods and head to the civil society. The coming-of-age story about one family who gallops joyfully between the rigor of ‘Living as others’ and the loneliness of ‘Life that is different from others’ begins like that.

Trailer (will open in a new window)

BIFAN Children’s Jury Award

Hang in There, Kids! by Laha Mebow – Taiwan | 2016 – 90 min.

In a secluded indigenous tribe, three optimistic, energetic, and playful kids meet their handicapped teacher with a beautiful voice. One day, the three kids find a tape of their teacher’s recording and decide to bring their tape to Taipei.

To know more about the festival you can see the FESTIVAL PROFILE or go to the official website HERE.

AFF would like to remember readers that the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival is part of our partnership program (See all partners). We want to thank them for their support and wish you guys have a great edition.