International Comedy Festival slated for August in Busan's coastal district
The 13th Busan International Comedy Festival (BICF) is set to run for 10 days from Aug. 29 to Sept. 7 in Busan, South Korea. This year's festival promises an exciting lineup of performances, as comedians can now operate both online and offline, similar to musicians.
The festival will take place across multiple venues in Busan, including Ocean Hall inside Busan Bank and Busan Citizen's Hall. Highlights include a comedy showcase by comedian Eom Ji-yoon and the creators behind YouTube channel Shortbox at Ocean Hall on Aug. 30. The comedy troupe from "Gag Concert" will open the event with a live performance, and popular comedian Park Myung-soo is scheduled to emcee the opening ceremony.
Around 100 performers, including Korea's top comedians, international acts, and rising digital creators, will participate. Notable names include comedian Byun Ki-soo, who is scheduled to perform his own show during the festival and expressed excitement about the emergence of stand-up comedy as a new genre at the festival. Byun Ki-soo also expressed a desire for Korean stand-up comedians to have real-world exposure abroad as scholarship students.
Stand-up comedy is gaining traction across social media platforms, and the festival is embracing this trend in a bigger way. Digital fanbases are significantly boosting demand for live comedy shows, creating large, engaged audiences that comedians can directly connect with, sell tickets to, and promote tours for. This trend is reflected globally and can be expected to impact events like the BICF by increasing live attendance and engagement through the viral popularity and online presence of comedians.
Digital platforms such as Punchup Live provide comedians with the tools to share performances, engage directly with their fans, and manage ticket sales, thereby revolutionizing how demand for live comedy is generated and sustained. Comedians with strong digital followings often translate their online popularity into successful live shows. The Mandam Assemble comedy special featuring Kwak Beom and Lee Chang-ho, who gained popularity through YouTube and started doing live shows that sold out in about five minutes, will be performed at Busan Citizen's Hall during the festival, although the exact date is yet to be announced.
BICF aims to bridge the gap between online and offline stand-up comedy experiences. By leveraging the online popularity of participating comedians, the festival is poised to attract larger and more diverse live audiences, making it a must-attend event for comedy enthusiasts. For the full performance schedule and venue details, visit the festival's official homepage. Tickets for the 13th Busan International Comedy Festival are now available through the Nol Interpark website.
At the 13th Busan International Comedy Festival (BICF), attendees can expect performances from comedians on social media platforms, such as the creators behind YouTube channel Shortbox and comedians like Kwak Beom and Lee Chang-ho, who gained popularity through YouTube and are slated to perform. The festival aims to combine the worlds of movies-and-tv, entertainment, and social media, which is reflected in the digital fanbases that are boosting demand for live comedy shows.
