We Found This Year's Actor! The 8th Actor Project of the Seoul Independent Film Festival 2025 Concluded!

The 51st Seoul Independent Film Festival (11.27~12.05) announced the winners of the 8th ‘Actor Project – 60-Second Monologue Festival’ (hereafter referred to as Actor Project). This year, the Actor Project recorded the highest number of applicants in history with 7,757 participants in the preliminary round. The final stage was held on December 1 (Monday) at 5 PM in the CGV Cheongdam Cine City MCUBE theater in a free monologue performance format. This year, the Actor Project selected winners in two categories: ‘GRAND PRIZE’ and ‘JURY PRIZE’. Additionally, the directors of the films screened at the Seoul Independent Film Festival 2025 reviewed the preliminary videos of the 24 finalists in advance and determined the ‘Director’s Choice’ winner through online voting.

The ‘Actor Project’ is a program that started in 2018 at the suggestion of Actors Kwon Hae-hyo and Jo Yoon-hee, aimed at discovering new actors in the independent film sector and encouraging their activities. As of this year, the cumulative number of applicants has reached 23,490, proving that it is currently the hottest actor audition program. Many actors discovered through this program, such as Hong Kyung, Noh Jae-won, Ok Ja-yeon, Oh Kyung-hwa, Yoon Ga-i, and Hong Ui-jun, are actively working with the support of audiences.

Before the event, the host and judge, Actor Kwon Hae-hyo, stated, “Performing a monologue live on stage for one minute is really not an easy task. I ask for warm support and encouragement for the 24 actors who have come to this stage after overcoming the highest competition rate in history,” and added, “The reason we are gathered here today is called ‘judging’, but since the festival means celebration, I hope we can all enjoy it together.” He then introduced the judges, saying, “The judges joining us this year are directors who have done excellent work for a long time and actors who have shown great performances while maintaining their health for a long time.” This year’s final judges included Actors Kwon Hae-hyo and Jo Yoon-hee, Director Byeon Young-joo (who has participated as a judge for six years, directing 〈Hwa-cha〉 and 〈The Insect: The Killer's Outing〉), Actor Jang Hye-jin (who appeared in 〈Parasite〉, 〈The Master of the World〉, 〈I Was Fooled〉), Actor Jo Jae-yoon (who appeared in 〈Death to Snow White - Black Out〉, 〈Alchemy of Souls〉), and Director Lee Ran-hee (who directed 〈Vacation〉 and 〈3rd Year, 2nd Semester〉). Additionally, the directors of the films screened at the Seoul Independent Film Festival 2025 participated in the online judging for the ‘Director’s Choice’ category.

The GRAND PRIZE of the Actor Project at the Seoul Independent Film Festival 2025 was awarded to Actor Kwon Da-rim. Actor Jo Jae-yoon, who was in charge of the award announcement, said, “After watching the performances of the 24 actors today, I felt inspired to improve my acting,” and added, “If I get to work on a project next year, I definitely want to partner with Actor Kwon Da-rim on set.” Following this, Actor Jang Hye-jin, who presented the JURY PRIZE, said, “I was moved throughout the performances. I hope you all express what’s in your hearts through your acting.” This year, the JURY PRIZE was awarded to three actors: Lee Il-jin, Kang Min-ji, and Noh Seon-woo. Finally, the Director’s Choice, selected through online voting by the directors of the films screened at the Seoul Independent Film Festival 2025, was awarded to Actors Jung Jo-jun and Lee Il-jin, with Lee Il-jin winning two awards. The GRAND PRIZE comes with a cash prize of 2 million won, while the JURY PRIZE and Director’s Choice each receive 1 million won, totaling 7 million won in cash and trophies awarded.

The final event was graced by many industry professionals from the film sector. The live performances of the 24 finalists will be made available on the official YouTube channel of the Seoul Independent Film Festival. The Seoul Independent Film Festival 2025, which has continued to discover new actors and foster exchanges between creators and actors, will meet audiences until December 5 at CGV Apgujeong.