Busan’s Asian Project Market Selects 30 Films for 2026, Sees Record Submissions

Busan's Asian Project Market (APM) has announced its 30 feature selections for 2026, drawn from a record-breaking submission pool that underscores the festival's rising profile within independent cinema across the region.

According to Variety, APM received 604 submissions from 48 countries this year, marking the third consecutive record. This represents a 149-submission increase from 2025's 455 entries across 44 countries. The prior two years saw 441 submissions in 2024 and 399 in 2023. Asian submissions alone reached 423, up 82 from the previous year, whilst Korean submissions surged to 137, a rise of 58.

Diverse Slate Spanning Emerging and Established Voices

The selected 30 projects represent 20 countries and span multiple genres: courtroom drama, coming-of-age narratives, family drama, crime thriller, queer romantic comedy, black comedy and mystery thriller. Variety noted the slate weaves together debuts from emerging filmmakers alongside new works from directors with established festival pedigrees, touching on social realities, personal identity and ethical tensions.

Three Japanese projects feature prominently. Mori Tatsuya, who won Busan's New Currents prize in 2023 for "September 1923", brings "13". Hirose Nanako presents "Wings of Return" (working title), whilst Igarashi Kohei contributes "Yours".

Central and South Asian representation is substantial. Kyrgyzstan's Dastan Zhapar Ryskeldi returns to APM for a third time with "Bosogo", whilst Sri Lanka's Prasanna Vithanage presents "Islands", building on his 2023 Jiseok prize win at Busan for "Paradise". India's slate includes Dominic Sangma's "Veil of Dust", Tribeny Rai's "A Chronicle of Minor Things" (her second project), Payal Sethi's "Babak" and Stenzin Tankyong's feature debut "Idiot (Kakthet)". Pakistan's Eshah Shakeel makes her directorial debut with "Dancers".

China, Hong Kong and Taiwan contributed four selections. Kangdrun, a Tibetan director, presents "Orlo in the House", Wang Zhiyi brings feature debut "Unripe", Hong Kong's So Chak Long enters with "Whisper of the Silence" and Taiwan's Yen Hao-hsuan makes his first feature with "Uncle".

Southeast and West Asian Entries Signal Regional Growth

Southeast Asia and West Asia are equally represented. Aditya Ahmad makes his feature directorial debut with "Goldfish"; he previously won Venice's Horizons short-film prize in 2018. Reza Rahadian Matulessy follows his debut feature "On Your Lap", which claimed three prizes in Busan's Vision–Asia sidebar in 2025, with his second feature "Casparina". Cambodia's Chheangkea has his first feature, "Little Phnom Penh", selected, whilst the Philippines' E Del Mundo brings "Once Upon a Time in the Philippines" and Iran's Mehrnoush Alia presents "Bon Voyage".

Singapore's Alvin Lee offers black comedy "Talk To Me When You Are Dead", and Malaysia's Tan Seng Kiat presents "One Fine Day", which won the APM Next prize at TCCF 2025. Thailand's Panu Aree contributes "Fátimah" and Indonesia's Mouly Surya brings "The Wife Who Can See Dead People (Or Jinn)".

Korea's seven selections include Lee Sangcheol, whose films "Jesus Hospital", "The Snob" and "Blesser" have screened at Busan, presenting "PARK Deul-bi". Choi Hyunyoung, whose "Memories of a Dead End" played in Korean Cinema Today–Panorama, brings "All's Well That Ends Well". Lee Hanju, whose debut "The Waves of Winter" screened in Korean Cinema Today–Vision, presents "The Family Table". The remaining Korean selections are Park Syeyoung's "Satellite of Love", Park Joonho's "Kuroshio", actor-director Ryu Hyunkyung's "Dog Fight" and novelist-filmmaker Kim Jinyeong's "Red Hunger"; Kim previously directed "The Other Child".

Market Performance and Industry Momentum

APM is the official market of the Busan International Film Festival, held annually in October. The 2025 edition, its 20th, drew 3,024 industry professionals from 55 countries alongside 1,222 registered companies. On-site attendance reached 30,006, and the Sales Market generated 8,438 business meetings with an estimated $71.1 million in transactions.

The 31st Busan International Film Festival runs from 6–15 October, with the 21st ACFM held 10–13 October.