Busan Market Unveils Doc Square and Asia Impact Day

The Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM), the market of the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), will present Doc Square 2026 from Oct. 10-13, bringing together eight partner organizations from five countries to connect Asian documentary creators with industry professionals.

Launched last year, the program introduces documentary projects still in production across Asia and offers guidance on production support and distribution strategy.

Doc Square’s centerpiece, the Documentary WIP Showcase, runs through the Asian Cinema Fund’s Asian Network of Documentary (AND) Fund alongside partner organizations from Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines. Newstapa Foundation and Japan’s J-Docs Hub join as new partners this year, alongside returning partners Taiwan Docs, the Taiwan Creative Content Agency, the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute, Docs by the Sea and the Film Development Council of the Philippines. Sixteen works-in-progress documentaries will pitch to festival programmers, sales companies and distributors on Oct. 10 and 11, building networks toward completion and eventual release.

Two new prizes debut alongside the showcase. The Impact Asia Award will go to three projects, each receiving $5,000, while the Newstapa Award gives one project KRW10 million ($7,400) along with a chance for a 60-minute cut to stream on Newstapa Foundation’s website and YouTube channel. Winners will be named at the ACFM Awards Ceremony on Oct. 13.

Doc Square will also host Asia’s first Impact Day, a one-day program built around a question: what actually happens to a society after a documentary screens? Case studies from Korea, Taiwan and Japan will be compiled into an 80-page report available at the venue. The Korea study draws on roughly 2,800 works released between 1988 and 2025, alongside a survey of 88 creators and interviews with 19 industry professionals. The Taiwan study traces how “Small Talk” moved from theatrical release into education and public screening use, while the Japan study looks at how “What Should We Have Done?,” a documentary with unusually strong box-office results, built audience relationships through mini-theaters, festivals and independent screenings.

Additional Doc Square sessions cover co-production, festival strategy and funding. The Documentary Festival & Fund Talk on Oct. 10 brings together festival programmers and funders from around the world, while the Current State of Documentary Co-Production splits into an Asia-focused session on Oct. 10 and a Korea-focused session on Oct. 11. On the program’s final day, “AND Talk & Share” gives this year’s AND Fund recipients a private workshop to discuss the challenges of finishing their projects.

Elsewhere at the festival, actor Yim Siwan has been named sole host of the 31st BIFF closing ceremony, where the festival will present its Busan Awards, introduced last year to honor Competition winners. Yim debuted in 2012 with the series “Moon Embracing the Sun” and moved into film the following year with “The Attorney,” a role that pushed back against typecasting for idol-turned-actors. He built his reputation further as office worker Jang Geu-rae in “Misaeng” (2014), and later credits include “The Merciless” (2017), “Run On” (2020), “Boyhood” (2023) and “Unlocked” (2023). He joined “Squid Game” for Season 2 and Season 3, and appeared in the 2025 film “Mantis.” His honors include the Popularity Award at the 2014 Blue Dragon Film Awards, Best New Actor (TV) at the 2015 Baeksang Arts Awards, Best Supporting Actor at the 2022 Buil Film Awards, and Best Actor at the 2024 Blue Dragon Series Awards.

The 31st Busan International Film Festival will run Oct. 6-15, at the Busan Cinema Center and throughout Busan, with the 21st Asian Contents & Film Market held Oct. 10-13.