South Korea all set for film festival: 02-10-2008
Travellers in South Korea will be able to enjoy the 13th Pusan International Film Festival over the next week.
The festival will honour the top Asian film-makers of this year and will open with Rustem Abrashev's 'The Gift to Stalin'.
Visitors will be able to see the Asian Film-maker of the Year Award being presented to Kazakhstan's Gulnara Sarsenova while having the choice of watching some 316 movies from 60 countries.
The event is growing every year and this year it is set to play host to no fewer than 84 world premiers - a fact that is sure to draw the crowds in even greater numbers than last year.
Despite the Asian film market experiencing something of a rough patch, with imported movies making up seven of the top ten box office smashes in the first half of this year, the festival organisers have managed to raise around £3 million to stage the event.
Hopes are even bigger for 2009's event, when organisers hope to have established a permanent base for the festival.
Talk of a £6 million base harbouring three buildings and an outdoor stage are reported to be at an advanced stage and travellers heading to South Korea next year could be enjoying the country's return to the film industry big time, should the plans go ahead.
The festival will run until October 10th this year.