Busan Festival to open with North Korean drama 'Beautiful Days' (Lead, correcting intro)

Seoul : South Korean filmmaker Jero Yuns "Beautiful Days" has been announced as the opening title of the Busan International Film Festival, Koreas biggest film festival.

Starring Lee Na-young, "Beautiful Days" depicts the story of a woman who abandons her husband and child to escape North Korea for a better life abroad. Martial arts drama, "Master Z: The Ip Man Legacy," by Hong Kong's Yuen Woo-ping will close the festival, reports variety.com.

The festival will be from October 4-13.

"‘Beautiful Days' sees the dissolution and restoration of a family, and also that its subject is very timely," said festival director Jay Jeon.

For its twenty third edition, the Busan film festival has selected 323 films from 79 countries. That include 115 world premieres and 25 international premieres.

With a Midnight Passion screening of the rebooted "Halloween," producer Jason Blum is expected to attend the festival.

A new program named Busan Classic has been launched. The section is dedicated to films that are historically important.

South Korean filmmaker Kim Hong-joon ("Im Kwon taek's Moonlight") will head the jury of the festival's signature competition section New Currents.

Further details will be announced on Tuesday afternoon at a second press conference here.