Record attendance but buyers cautious at Busan’s Asian Contents & Film Market

An all-time high visitor turnout has been recorded for the Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM), which celebrates its landmark 20th anniversary with the biggest edition to date.

While pre-registration was higher than last year, just the first day of on-site registration alone matched the total number from all four days last year, according to ACFM director Ellen YD Kim.

“What stands out is not just the return of familiar buyers, but also the presence of a wider range of professionals from different sectors, which is opening up fresh possibilities for new business models and collaborations,” she said.

Held in Busan, South Korea, from September 20-23, the market runs parallel with Busan International Film Festival.

Highlighting new programmes at ACFM, Kim said: “There has been great interest in The A Summit, where participants explored key issues shaping Asia’s film industry. The Doc Square WIP screenings were packed to the point that there weren’t enough seats, and even programmers from Sundance and the Berlinale Forum attended.”

Visitors feel the market is lively, with crowded meeting areas and a lot of active exchanges. South Korean sales agents are out in force with Showbox, K-Movie Entertainment, Contents Panda, Plus M Entertainment, Barunson E&A, Finecut, Lotte Entertainment, M-Line Distribution and Hive Filmworks taking some of the biggest booths among the local exhibitors.

Several companies reported full meeting schedules. However, they also bemoaned a lack of buyers, perhaps due to the market’s proximity to the recently concluded Toronto.

One seller claimed the ongoing struggles facing the Korean film industry, not least a severely reduced pipeline of upcoming film projects, was affecting the sales business. Notable by its absence is entertainment giant CJ ENM, which has executives present on the market floor but no booth. They were similarly absent from the Cannes market in May.

“There used to be competition between buyers for Korean films after Parasite’s Oscar win, but those days are over,” said one seller, who asked not to be named. “Korean films are no longer doing as well in some territories so buyers are being more cautious. Honestly, it will take a small miracle to turn things around.”

Date shift

In a rare shift, ACFM along with BIFF takes place two weeks earlier than their usual slot in early October due to Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving). 

With the placement of BIFF in late September, directly following Toronto and overlapping San Sebastian, one Japanese distributor said the calendar feels more compressed than usual and the market feels a little quieter than last year, with many buyers “browsing” to get their first look at films they may ultimately buy down the road at markets like AFM.

On the other hand, this source sees more faces from Japan, with Japanese producers increasingly interested in international co-productions. With its physical and cultural proximity, ACFM and BIFF presents a lower barrier to international entry than similar events in Europe.

On an upbeat note, Hong Kong’s Golden Network Asia is attending ACFM to present The Shadow’s Edge, which plays in the Open Cinema section at BIFF with director Larry Yang in attendance. The Jackie Chan-starrer recently topped the daily box office for 31 consecutive days in mainland China.

“The market atmosphere is positive, and we’ve received several new offers for the remaining territories of The Shadow’s Edge,” said managing director Carrie Wong. “Our next stop is AFM, where we will introduce a new Jackie Chan film.”

On the festival front, Japan-based Malaysian director Woo Ming Jin travelled to both Toronto and Busan - all within two weeks - for the world premiere and Asian premiere respectively of his film The Fox King.

He and his team are in Busan looking for an international sales agent as the film was completed just before Toronto. “The international market outside of Southeast Asia has always been the cream on top of the cake”, he said

Woo is a regular at Busan, where he has premiered seven titles since his 2005 debut Monday Morning Glory. “That year was the 10th anniversary of BIFF and now it’s the 30^th,” he adds. “I hope to be back for their 40^th.”

Ahead of the market, organisers said they expected to welcome around 1,000 companies from 50 countries and more than 2,900 registered participants. Booth sales exceeded last year’s record and total attendance, including festival badge holders who access the market events and exhibition halls, is projected to reach an all-time high of 30,000.

Michael Rosser and Matt Schley contributed to this report