Zhang Yimou is running the show at Busan this October. The Chinese director, whose credits stretch from Red Sorghum to Full River Red, has been named Jury President for the main competition section of the Busan International Film Festival, which runs October 6 to 15.

He's not doing it alone. The jury has six other members: Chinese filmmaker Bi Gan, Korean actress-producer Moon Choi, Japanese director Kei Ishikawa, Korean filmmaker July Jung, Vietnamese producer Tran Thi Bich Ngoc and Kazakh actress Samal Yeslyamova. Between them they've picked up a Golden Bear, a Grand Prix at Cannes, a Cannes Best Actress trophy and enough Un Certain Regard selections to fill a shelf.

Zhang himself needs no introduction to festival circuits. Red Sorghum won Berlin's Golden Bear back in 1988. To Live took the Grand Prix at Cannes in 1994. And on the commercial side, Hero made roughly $177 million worldwide in 2002 while 2023's Full River Red pulled in $670 million globally. He's also got history with Busan specifically, his film Under the Hawthorn Tree opened the festival in 2010.

This panel will watch 13 competition features and hand out prizes across five categories: Best Film, Best Director, Special Jury Prize, Best Actor and Artistic Contribution. Total prize money runs to $80,000, or about KRW 110 million.

Here's what makes this year's Best Film award sharper than usual. Busan launched its competition section only last year, and its inaugural Best Film winner, Zhang Lu's Gloaming In Luomu, made history of a smaller sort. Following changes the Academy made to its Best International Feature criteria back in May, whichever film wins Busan's top prize this year gets automatically submitted for Oscar consideration in that category. So this jury isn't just picking a festival favourite. It's effectively shortlisting for the Academy.

Bi Gan, sitting on the panel this year, knows the drill from the other side. His 2025 film Resurrection won a Special Award at Cannes and then picked up Busan's Artistic Contribution honour at last year's inaugural competition. Moon Choi has her own connection too, her Sundance-winning Bedford Park is actually screening in this year's Busan lineup, on the other side of the jury table from where she's sitting.

Busan has rolled out juries for its other sections as well. The Vision — Asia strand gets NETPAC and FIPRESCI panels, and the documentary and Sonje award juries include India's Rintu Thomas and Anuparna Roy among their members.

The films in competition haven't been reviewed here, only selected. Screenings start October 6, with the Asian Contents & Film Market running October 10-13 alongside it. Winners get announced before the festival closes on the 15th.