BUSAN — The 31st Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) opened Tuesday for a 10-day run, bringing 316 films from 59 countries to Korea’s southeastern port city and ushering in an expanded edition with international prestige. The opening ceremony, hosted by actress Kim Min-ha, was set to take place at the Busan Cinema Center, officially kicking off Asia’s largest film festival. Following the opening ceremony, director Kim Jong-kwan’s "The Table: Day and Night" will have its world premiere as the opening film. The movie explores the intersecting lives of four couples visiting a cafe during the transition from summer to autumn. Launched in 1996 as the country’s first international film festival, BIFF has grown into Asia's premier film event, serving as a platform for discovering new Asian directors and films. Marking its largest scale since 2019, this year’s festival runs through through Oct. 15, presenting a diverse lineup across 31 screens in eight theaters in Busan, with 93 films making their world premieres. This year, the festival has formal recognition as an A-list festiv