Busan and Hong Kong Film Festival: North American Access Guide
You cannot stream BIFF. HKIFF already closed in April. Mid-August access is Colony in limited theaters August 28, then TIFF in September, then Busan itself October 6 to 15.
Last updated:
Review cadence: Recheck when BIFF posts the 2026 slate and ticket days.
The 31st Busan International Film Festival is in Haeundae, the beach district, from October 6 to 15. There is no public livestream. The market next door is for buyers.
You can still watch a lot of this year from here. Some of it is already playing.
The New York Asian Film Festival ran July 10 to 26. Montreal's Fantasia, the genre festival, ran into early August. Both showed Yeon Sang-ho's Colony after Cannes.
Well Go USA puts Colony in limited North American theaters on August 28. Check your city. The 4K Train to Busan reprint has been in some rooms since the 14th.
Hong Kong's spring festival already closed. Singaporean director Anthony Chen's We Are All Strangers opened the 50th Hong Kong International Film Festival in April. It shows up again at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.
Hong Kong director Philip Yung's closer, Cyclone, already had its New York look at NYAFF.
Two festivals in Hong Kong
HKIFF is the April one. One of Asia's longest-running, fifty this spring, 215 films. It sits next to FILMART, the trade market, the same way Busan sits next to its own market. Those titles do not land on your login in April.
The fall one is the Hong Kong Asian Film Festival, usually a month of Asian titles at Broadway Cinematheque, the art-house in Yau Ma Tei. The 2026 dates are not up.
The last couple of editions ran mid-October into November. Wait for this year's grid before you book.
When someone says a film played Hong Kong, ask which festival. Spring launch and fall art-house run send the movie here on different clocks.
What lands next
TIFF is September 10 to 20. If you can get to Toronto, that is the next week with actual seats. Tickets live on tiff.net.
We Are All Strangers has a North American premiere there. Yonfan's Intermission is the Hong Kong title already named.
Lee Chang-dong's Possible Love, his first feature since Burning, is a Special Presentation if you are already in town for the other two.
Vancouver's Taiwanese festival is September 4 and 5. Small, useful if you live there.
Hawaii's International Film Festival starts October 22, a week after Busan closes, then moves to other islands into mid-November.
Reel Asian's 30th is November 11 to 21 in Toronto, with a Canada-only online window November 16 to 29. Neither slate is out. Both usually pick up films that just walked Busan.
| When | Where | What is on |
|---|---|---|
| August 28 | Limited U.S. and Canada theaters | Colony, the NYAFF opener |
| September 10 to 20 | Toronto (TIFF) | We Are All Strangers, Intermission, plus the rest of TIFF's Asian row |
| October 6 to 15 | Busan Cinema Center | BIFF itself. Public tickets. No stream. |
| October 22 into November | Oahu, then neighbor islands | HIFF46. Program still TBA. |
| November 11 to 21 | Toronto; online Canada November 16 to 29 | Reel Asian. The online window is Canada-only. |
NYAFF and Fantasia are over. Their titles are either in theaters now or waiting on a streamer.
The North American festival calendar keeps the city dates in one place.
Busan in October
Opening night is October 6 at the Cinema Center outdoor theater. Kim Min-ha, from Pachinko, hosts.
Michelle Yeoh gets Asian Filmmaker of the Year, her first Busan carpet in fifteen years. She picked three films for a short program: Reign of Assassins, Everything Everywhere All at Once, and Sandiwara.
Sandiwara is the Sean Baker short she stars in, shot in Penang. Bai Xue's It's My Time, the Chinese-language film she leads, screens too.
Ann Hui, the Hong Kong director, gets the Camellia Award the same night.
The top competition prize is now on the Academy's International Feature qualifying list with Cannes and Venice. That is why the trades are louder this fall. The 99th submission window closes September 30, before this edition even starts.
The slate is not posted. Last year the grid landed in late August and tickets followed in early September. Watch biff.kr.
Do not buy an Asian Contents and Film Market badge thinking it is a festival pass. That trade show runs October 10 to 13 at BEXCO, the convention hall next door, for buyers.
If you fly
U.S. and Canadian passports do not need a Korean visa or a K-ETA, the online travel authorization, for a short trip through the end of 2026. You do need the free e-Arrival Card at e-arrivalcard.go.kr in the three days before you land.
Hong Kong is visa-free for 90 days on the same passports. That entry does not cover Shenzhen.
HKIFF is over. HKAFF has not published dates. Go for the city, or wait until the fall festival posts a calendar.
Gimhae is the Busan airport. Stay near Centum City or Haeundae if the Cinema Center is why you came. Opening-night seats at the outdoor theater usually go first.
After the prize
Most of what wins in Busan shows up here months later, if it shows up at all. Well Go USA is the theatrical lane you already saw this month. Netflix, MUBI, and Viki pick up some of the rest. Hulu still takes the occasional Hong Kong series, the way it did with The Season in June.
Set the alert on the film title. We add rows when a North American date locks.
Colony is the one with a ticket this month, if your city got a print. We Are All Strangers has a Toronto seat in September. Reel Asian and HIFF come after that.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I stream BIFF from the U.S. or Canada?
- No. The festival is in Busan, October 6 to 15. The online booths beside it belong to the Asian Contents and Film Market, which is for buyers. North American viewers catch titles later at TIFF, HIFF, Reel Asian, or on a streamer after a sale.
- Did I miss the Hong Kong film festival?
- The spring one, HKIFF, ran April 1 to 12. The fall one, HKAFF, has not posted 2026 dates. Some April titles are already here. Cyclone played NYAFF. We Are All Strangers plays TIFF in September.
- What should I do this month if I am not flying?
- See Colony on August 28 if a theater near you has it. If you can get to Toronto, TIFF is September 10 to 20. Then wait for the Busan grid and for HIFF and Reel Asian to name what they picked up.
