Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea / Coop Himmelb(l)au

Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea / Coop Himmelb(l)au Architect: Coop Himmelb(l)au Location: Busan, South Korea Text: Coop Himmelb(l)au Project Year: 2011 Photographs: ISOCHROM, Nathan Willock     The Cinema Center in Busan, South Korea, designed by Wolf D. Prix/COOP HIMMELB(L)AU, the new home of the Busan Film Festival (BIFF), was inaugurated with a grand opening on 29 September 2011 in the presence of the president of South Korea. The innovative building combines open space, cultural program, entertainment, technology and architecture in a novel way. Over 800 guests, among them the Mayor of Busan, the cultural minister, the sports minister as well as film celebrities attended the ceremony.     The president of South Korea Lee Myung-bak emphasized in his opening speech the architectural achievement accomplished with the special feature of the Busan Cinema Center – the worldwide largest cantilivered roof. “Since the Busan Cinema Center is the greatest and the most beautiful one for exclusive cinema use, the Busan International Film festival will be top 3 film festival in the world,” he added.