The 21st Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (Festival Director: CHOI Yongbae, hereafter BIFAN)'s industry program B.I.G (BIFAN Industry Gathering) had its closing ceremony on July 18th. The awards ceremony for the Network of Asian Fantastic Films (hereafter NAFF) also took place during the B.I.G closing ceremony.

Through B.I.G's four programs, film professionals from Korea and abroad were able to actively interact with one another. Opportunities for constructing infrastructure to boost the production of genre films were also created. B.I.G's main programs include: NAFF, which is currently in its 10th year; Made in Asia, which examines the ongoing trends in the mainstream Asian film industry and promotes networking between producers from different Asian countries; Korea Now, which aims for the balanced growth within the Korean film industry; and New Media, which introduces the new technology and media that are popping up in the film industry.

B.I.G was able to close out its programs and events successfully this year due to the great deal of interest shown for the industry program by domestic and foreign film professionals. Those within the film industry with a common interest in fantastic genre films have long since taken advantage of networking opportunities at BIFAN; the Made in Asia Open Forum and the Asia Co-production Forum have provided the foundation for active co-productions between different Asian countries. With the second edition of B.I.G this year, the program was able to maximize the satisfaction of the attending guests and raise the expectations for next year.

At the 10th edition of NAFF's genre film project market, a total of 24 projects - the 16 official It Projects, the four selections from Project Spotlight 2017: Vietnam, the three selections from the Nordic Genre Invasion, and the one selection from Blood window - were presented. A four-person jury made up of film experts from Korea and abroad chose the 10 projects to receive awards based on a strict judging process and individual interviews.

The jury members this year were comprised of Jeffrey CHAN 陈çµê© (Bona Film Group C.O.O, China), Mick GARRIS (genre film producer, USA), Sten-Kristian SALUVEER (Oree Films Partner, Storytek Creative Accelerator Founder & Creative Director, Estonia) and producer of Okja, Lewis KIM (Lewis Pictures and etc, Korea). The four jury members judged the projects based on the project's concept, marketability, artistic value, the project's possibility of going on to completion, and presentation skills.

The awards are divided into a total of ten categories, with six awards providing production support in the form of a cash award, three post-production support awards, and a SitgesPitchbox Award that invites the recipient of the award to be a guest project presenter at the SitgesPitchbox program. The cash awards are comprised of the Bucheon Award, NAFF Award, Signal Pictures Award, Aurora Producing Award, NAFF Korean Award, and the DHL Award. Post-production support awards include the Moneff Award, Wave Lab Award, and The Color Award.

The Bucheon Award - in the amount of 15 million KRW - went to The Twin directed by Taneli MUSTONEN. Introduced as one of the selections of the Nordic Genre Invasion, The Twin is a horror film about the trauma that a parent faces after suddenly losing one of their twin sons.

The NAFF Award - in the amount of 10 million KRW - was given to Eerie directed by Mikhail RED. The film is a horror mystery that puts a twist on a young girl's tender sensibilities. Eerie has also been attracting attention for being in the process of preparing for a co-production.

The Signal Pictures Award - in the amount of 10,000 USD - went to Man of Sin(ñª恶îÜÓÛËÀ) by Director BU Wei (ÜÔ维). The project was selected for the award due to its high potential despite the aftereffects of China's Hallyu ban. The Aurora Producing Award - in the amount of 10,000 USD was given to The Legend directed by LEE Seungwon. The Legend was given the award for it's high possibility of going on completion and for the project's potential of engaging in an international co-production. 

The NAFF Korean Award - an award in the amount of 6 million KRW given to a Korean film among the It Project selections - went to A Teacher directed by KIM Jaeyeon. Highly praised for its elaborate psychological depictions, the film is about a woman in her twilight years who has lived as a mother and a teacher, and her confrontation with despair, fear, and moral chaos.

Presented by DHL Korea, the DHL Award - in the amount of 5 million KRW - went to Femme Fatale, directed by MIYAKE Kyoko. The film is a witty black comedy that was inspired by a murder case involving an overweight seductress in Japan.
The SitgesPitchbox Award went to The Embalmer ~Face of the Dead~ by NISHIMURA Yoshihiro. The three post-production support awards were given to the following projects: the Moneff Award (editing support) to Man of Sin(ñª恶îÜÓÛËÀ), the Wave Lab Award (sound mixing support) and The Color Award (D.I. support) to Imaginable, directed by Chris MARTIN.

Meanwhile, the 21st Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival will be holding the festival's closing ceremony on July 21st, and will be bringing things to a close with encore screenings that will be showing until July 23rd.