Lee Min-ho stars in ‘Omniscient Reader: The Prophet,’ which airs at NYAFF on July 26.
The New York Asian Film Festival and Film at Lincoln Center has published the full list of films that make up its 24th edition. NYAFF 2025 will run from July 11 to 27 across four New York City venues and champions the idea of Cinema as Disruption.
“This completes our most ambitious program ever,” says Samuel Jamier, NYAFF Executive Director. “Eight breakthrough filmmakers competing for Uncaged, plus sidebars that reimagine what Asian cinema can be. This full-circle moment reminds us why NYAFF exists: to support bold artists before the world fully recognizes them—and to celebrate how far they’ve come.”
This year’s festival opens with one of its Korean selections, the world premiere of Informant, a Korean action-comedy that sets the tone for the lineup. Director Kim Seok will attend the premiere alongside actor Heo Sung-tae, known for his multiple appearances in films and dramas, including his memorable role in Squid Game.
The Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film Competition celebrates visionary filmmakers who challenge cinematic conventions. This year’s Uncaged Award nominees include one Korean film, Time To Be Strong by Namkoong Sun, which won the Jeonju Grand Prize in 2024.
The festival will also include North Korean Cool, an action-focused sidebar on how North Korean characters have become slick operatives, tragic heroes, and sharp-edged mirrors of South Korean fears, fantasies, and politics.
‘The Informant,” starring Her Sung-tae will open the festival,
The Korean films airing at the festival include several premieres as well as special screenings of some noteworthy older films that exemplify this year’s theme of Cinema as Disruption.
The selection includes Commitment, directed by Park Hong-soo (2013), Forbidden Fairytales, directed by Lee Jong-seok (2024), Fragment, directed by Kim Sung-yoon (2024), The Front Line, directed by Jang Hoon (2011), A Girl With Closed Eyes, directed by Chun Sun-young (2024), Hear Me: Our Summer, directed by Jo Seon-ho (2024), Hidden Face, directed by Kim Dae-woo ( 2024), Horoomon, directed by Lee Il-ha (2025) Informant (Opening Night Film) directed by Kim Seok (2024), Method Acting, directed by Lee Ki-hyuk (2024), The Old Woman With The Knife, directed by Min Kyu-dong (2024), Omniscient Reader: The Prophet, directed by Kim Byong-woo (2025), The Secret House, directed by Park Sang-min (2025), Somebody, directed by Lee Jung-chan, Kim Yeo-jung (2024), The Suspect, directed by Won Shin-yun (2013), Swing Kids, directed by Kang Hyeong-cheol (2018) and Time To Be Strong, directed by Namkoong Sun (2024).
NYAFF 2025 also features a selection of cinematic shorts by South Korean directors. The New York Asian Film Foundation Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the exhibition and appreciation of Asian film culture in all its forms, with year-round festivals and programs, and a view to building bridges between Asia and America.
