Raising the curtain on autumn film festivals in Belgium

For cinephiles, the end of summer signals the beginning of the film season with a clutch of highly-anticipated festivals rolling out their red carpets around the country.

If Belgium boasts an all-year-round roster of cinema events, the autumn offering is the opportunity to catch national premières, major festival favourites and a generous serving of world cinema.

For an international flavour is the hallmark of all of these four festivals getting ready to screen movie gems and host live events for impassioned audiences.

Korean Film Weekend 26 to 28 September

Experience the distinctive cinematic landscape of Korean film in this three-day festival screening a diverse selection of recent releases.

The country’s cinema has caught the attention of audiences worldwide amid the global explosion of K-culture, yet Korean filmmakers have actually been honing their craft since the 1950s.

Staged by the Korean Cultural Center in Belgium & the EU, the programme offers a glimpse into Korean culture and society with thriller, horror and romantic comedy titles. Together, the three films showcase the blend of bold storytelling and artistry that characterise the country’s cinema.

The festival kicks off with the 2023 action drama The Point Men (pictured) by Yim Soon-rye, which is based on a true story about a Korean diplomat dispatched to Afghanistan after a group of South Korean tourists is taken hostage. In the tense negotiations that ensue, charismatic central performances by Kang Ki-young, Hyun Bin and Hwang Jung-min drive the compelling drama. 

Saturday evening’s entertainment takes a paranormal horror turn with Noise (2025) by Kim Soo-jin. Hearing-impaired Joo-young’s world is turned upside down when her sister disappears without a trace. When she asks neighbours about her sister, they all react hysterically. Soon, she finds herself haunted by inexplicable sounds.

The weekend concludes with the romantic drama Secret; Untold Melody (2025) by Seo Yoo-min. Gifted pianist Kim Yu-jun, whose career is cut short by injury, relocates to Korea to teach at a prestigious music school. He meets the enigmatic Yoo Jung-a, a fellow musician whose haunting melody and mysterious past draw him into a relationship that transcends time, forcing him to choose between love and reality.

Brussels: Palace Cinema, Cinéma Galeries

Brussels International Women’s Film Festival (Elles Tournent)  7 to 12 October

Formerly known as Elles Tournent, the Brussels International Women’s Film Festival (BIWFF) is an annual celebration of films directed by women and a rare opportunity to see films from around the world that would otherwise not be screened.

A largely volunteer team has viewed hundreds of submissions before selecting 11 feature films for this 17th edition, including five documentaries and a series of shorts.

Opening the programme is the Belgian premiere of Sima’s Song (pictured) by Afghan director Roya Sadat, the festival’s guest of honour. Recounting the moving story of a friendship between two young female students, the 2024 film is set against the backdrop of Afghanistan’s turbulent history in the late 1970s.

Also showing is The Long Road to the Director’s Chair (2025) by Norwegian director Vibeke Løkkeberg, co-hosted with Film Fest Gent. Drawing on archival footage filmed in 1973, it captures the beginnings of the feminist film movement at the First International Women’s Film Seminar — considered the very first feminist film festival — a confrontation with issues that remain relevant today.

A highlight in the short section is the Iran Session, composed of three films, while more than 20 further international shorts explore three themes: Long Live Feminism, Weaving Connections and On The Move.

Meanwhile, Graines de Cinéastes showcases aspiring female filmmakers, with a special evening dedicated to first and second works by young Belgian directors.

Brussels: Palace Cinema, Cinema Galeries, Cinematek

International Francophone Film Festival Namur (FIFF) 3 to 10 October

Wallonia’s leading film festival is celebrating its 40th birthday! The annual showcase of French-speaking cinema is focused on showing off the diversity of francophone films. Among new countries represented are Cambodia, Burkina Faso and Egypt, in addition to a generous dose of Belgian and French productions and the habitual cinematic gems from Quebec.

The bite of budgetary constraints means that the FIFF has shortened its programme. From 3 to 8 October, competing films will be shown in the presence of production crew and actors, with events and entertainment staged in a big tent in the city centre. The final two days are dedicated to screenings of the Bayard award-winning films.

Raising the curtain on proceedings with customary fanfare is Les Baronnes (pictured) by Mokhtaria Badaoui and Nabil Ben Yadir. Sixteen years after presenting Les Barons in Namur, the Belgian director returns to introduce his new Brussels comedy, co-created with his mother.

It centres on 65-year-old Fatima, who after discovering that her husband is leading a double life in Morocco, stages a production of Hamlet with a group of friends and fellow Molenbeek grandmothers.

In addition to film premieres, the programme focuses on works by first-time directors and emerging talents, in particular in the short section. Festival regulars, FIFF Campus for students and FIFF Pro – with a day dedicated to Belgian cinema – also return.

The festival’s closing film is Le Gang des Amazones by Melissa Drigeard, a French movie based on the real story of five young women who held up seven banks in the Avignon region in the 1990s.

For five days at least, the much-loved big top in Place d’Armes is the place to be for fans of the seventh art. It serves as the festival hub with a lively line-up of DJ sets, while food trucks will set up in the square to ensure festival-goers are well fuelled.

Namur: Caméo Cinéma, Le Delta cultural centre, Bourse stock exchange

Film Fest Gent 8 to 19 October

Belgium’s largest film festival is a showcase of international cinema with a spotlight on film music that delights film fans and hardened cinephiles. As the host of the World Soundtrack Awards, it also stages concerts and other musical events.

Some 119 feature films and 38 shorts are lined up for the 52nd edition, promising plenty of red carpet action as cast and production crew descend on Ghent to present their latest productions. The programme is far-reaching, from intimate family dramas and hyper-personal documentaries to visionary fiction and topical films.

Festival opener Julian is the feature debut by Belgian director Cato Kusters. Inspired by Fleur Pierets' book of the same name, it is a moving and powerful portrait of two women who fall in love after a surprise encounter and decide to marry in every country where the law allows same-sex marriage.

Another anticipated screening is Belgian director Laura Wandel’s second feature, Adam’s Sake (pictured). This follow-up to her award-winning Playground, swaps the school setting for a hospital paediatric ward, where nurse Lucy cares for four-year-old malnourished Adam. It’s another intense social drama, examining the welfare system as well as the role of healthcare workers.

Late visonary British filmmaker Nicolas Roeg is accorded a retrospective with three of his films showing in the event Fractured Visions. The festival also showcases two high-profile Flemish television series: This is not a murder mystery and the second season of Roomies.

The Ghent bonanza closes with the Belgian premiere of Urchin, the directorial debut of British actor Harris Dickinson (Triangle of Sadness, Babygirl). A tale about a young man sleeping rough on the streets of London, it’s another film selected that was previously shown at the Cannes festival this year.

Ghent: Kinepolis, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke, Sphinx Cinema, Studio Skoop and other locations 

Photos: (main image) ©Film Fest Gent; Les Baronnes ©10.18 Films