Francis Galluppi’s crime thriller The Last Stop in Yuma County scooped both the top prize and audience award at the 28th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (Bifan) tonight (July 12) in South Korea.
The US feature won the Best of Bucheon award, which comes with a cash prize of $15,400 (KW20m), as well as the audience award.
Scroll down for full list of winners
The debut feature of US writer/director Galluppi received its Asian premiere at Bifan following its world premiere at Fantastic Fest last September and won best feature in the Orbita section of Sitges.
Richard Brake, Jim Cummings, and Jocelin Donahue star in the elevated genre feature about a traveling knife salesman stranded at an isolated rest stop who unwittingly walks into a violent hostage situation. The Bifan jury, led by Korean actor Park Joong-hoon (Nowhere To Hide), said the film was a “poignant portrayal that deeply resonated, providing an exceptionally remarkable and emotionally stirring experience”.
Fellow US filmmaker JT Mollner won the best director choice award and $3,600 (KW5m) for his serial killer thriller Strange Darling. Mollner is next writing the screenplay adaptation of Stephen King’s The Long Walk, to be directed by Francis Lawrence.
In the Korean Fantastic: Features competition, Esper’s Light by Jung Jae-hoon won best film and a cash prize of $15,400 (KW20m). The feature, which revolves around a group of teenagers and their fantastical imaginations, was selected for the Fantastic 7 showcase of genre films at this year’s Cannes Market.
Korean filmmaker Kim Min-ha won the best director and Watcha Pic prizes with sequel Idiot Girls And School Ghost: School Anniversary.
The awards ceremony, held in the main theatre of Bucheon City Hall, preceded the screening of closing film Twilight Of The Warriors: Walled In by Hong Kong martial arts master and director Soi Cheang. The film premiered at Cannes and has proved a box office hit in Hong Kong.
This edition of the festival saw the addition of the Bifan+ AI programme, a three-day conference that explored the use of artificial intelligence, led by AI experts across several panel discussions.
This year’s Bifan, which runs from July 4-14, has proved another lively edition despite continuous rain. Actress Soo Ye-jin alongside renowned directors Johnnie To and Mitani Koki were among its star guests.
A total of 253 films from 49 countries were screened at venues such as Bucheon City Hall, the Korea Manhwa Museum, and CGV Sopung, and were also streamed online through the OTT platform wavve.
BIFAN 2024 winners
Bucheon Choice: Features
Best of Bucheon (KW20m): The Last Stop In Yuma County, dir. Francis Galluppi
Best Director Choice (KW5m): Strange Darling, dir. JT Mollner
Jury’s Choice (KW5m): Suffocating Love, dir. Liao Ming Yi
Audience Award: The Last Stop In Yuma County, dir. Francis Galluppi
Korean Fantastic: Features
Best Korean Fantastic Film (KW20m): Esper’s Light, dir. JUNG Jae-hoon
Korean Fantastic Best Director (KW5m): Idiot Girls and School Ghost: School Anniversary, dir. Kim Min-ha
Korean Fantastic Actors: Kim Daegun, The Tenants; Park Ju-hyun, You Will Die In 6 Hours
Special mention: Pig That Survived Foot-and-Mouth Disease, dir. HUR Bum-wook
Korean Fantastic Audience Award: You Will Die In 6 Hours, dir. Lee Yun-seok
Nonghyup (distribution award with KW10m): Base Station, dirs. Park Syeyoung, Yeon Yeji
Watcha’s Pick for Korean Fantastic (KW3m): Idiot Girls And School Ghost: School Anniversary, dir. Kim Min-ha
Méliès International Festivals Federation (MIFF) Award for Best Asian Film: Steppenwolf, dir. Adіlkhan Yerzhanov
NETPAC Award: Who’ll Stop The Rain, dir. Su I-hsuan
Odd Family Award: Pigsy, dir. Chiu Li Wei
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