Busan International Kids and Youth Film Festival opens Wednesday

A film festival celebrating screen culture for children and youth is set to open in Busan.

The city of Busan announced Tuesday that the 21st Busan International Kids and Youth Film Festival, known as BIKY, will run from Wednesday through July 14 across Haeundae-gu and the western Busan area.

Running for seven days under the slogan "Kids, Let's Go on a Field Trip," the festival this year expands its screening and event venues beyond Haeundae-gu into western Busan, allowing more residents to enjoy the festival closer to home.

A total of 179 films from 41 countries will be screened, featuring works centered on children's and youth creativity and growth as well as family themes. The lineup is divided into competition, invitation and special screening sections.

The competition section comprises 75 films across three categories — "Ready~Action!," a short-film competition for young creators; "New Starlight," a Korean short-film competition; and "Starlight of the Heart," a world feature-film competition. The invitation section presents 44 domestic and international titles for child, youth and family audiences, exploring themes of adventure, coming-of-age and diverse life stories.

The opening ceremony will be held Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Sky Theater of Busan Cinema Center. Broadcaster Oh Sang-jin and actor Seo Su-bin will serve as hosts, with gayageum performer Kim Hye-jin and AIKI with HOOK providing celebratory performances.

The opening film is "Goodbye Sisters," directed by Alexander Murphy, which follows two sisters living in Kathmandu, Nepal, as they journey into the high Himalayas to raise money for their studies abroad — a story of parting, growth and overcoming hardship.

The closing awards ceremony will take place July 14 at 2 p.m. at the Ensemble Theater of Nakdong Arts Center, featuring screenings of works from the "AI JAM" workshop, the competition awards presentation and a BIKIDS graduation ceremony.

BIKY Playground, the festival's signature outdoor venue, will operate Thursday through Sunday at Dureraum Plaza of Busan Cinema Center, in keeping with the festival's field-trip theme. The space will include a food zone, an art playground by the Hyundai Museum of Kids' Books (MOKA) and a performance stage, all free of charge.

Additional programs include an outdoor screening series called "Moonlight Theater," an academic forum called "BIKY Open Talk," and events at Lotte Cinema Busan Myeongji — "Uneasy Concert in BIKY" and "BIKY Mini Playground."