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The 22nd Jecheon International Music & Film Festival has confirmed broadcaster Jang Do-yeon and actor Moon Sang-min as hosts of its opening ceremony, shaping the starting point of this year's festival. JIMFF will be held across Jecheon, North Chungcheong Province from September 3 to 8, 2026 KST, and major programs including "Talk To You," "Music Insight," a past poster exhibition and badge applications are being revealed in sequence. Taken together, this year's JIMFF appears to be preparing to preserve its identity as a festival of both film and music while widening its audience-participation programs and its role as a city cultural event.

The 22nd Jecheon International Music & Film Festival, or JIMFF, has announced its opening ceremony hosts and begun the full flow of this year's event. According to the festival and related reports, broadcaster Jang Do-yeon and actor Moon Sang-min will host the opening ceremony. The festival will be held for six days from September 3 to 8, 2026 KST across Jecheon, North Chungcheong Province.

The opening ceremony host is a role that determines a festival's first impression. It is not only a matter of moving through the ceremony order, but also a function that connects the festival's character with the audience's atmosphere. Jang Do-yeon is a broadcaster who has shown stable hosting ability across entertainment, current-affairs and cultural programs. In particular, she will host the opening ceremony for the second consecutive year after the 21st Jecheon International Music & Film Festival last year, continuing her connection with the festival.

Moon Sang-min newly joins as an opening ceremony host this year. He expanded his public recognition through the drama "Under the Queen's Umbrella" and won Best New Actor in the TV category at the 59th Baeksang Arts Awards. His Best New Actor win at the 46th Golden Cinematography Awards for the film "Pavane" was also mentioned in reports. Considering his growth as an actor and contact point with younger audiences, Moon's addition can be read as a choice that broadens the generational balance of the opening ceremony.

The pairing also connects with the character of the Jecheon International Music & Film Festival. This is not an event only for film industry professionals, but one where music, performance, popular culture and a local festival move together. When a host's approachability and an actor's on-site presence are placed together, the festival can meet a wider audience. This is why this year's festival, led by executive chair Jang Hang-jun, can be interpreted as considering both popular appeal and cinematic atmosphere from the opening stage.

This year's JIMFF cannot be explained only through the opening host announcement. Looking at the recently revealed programs together, the festival shows a flow of expanding from a screening-centered event into a participatory cultural festival. The reveal of "Talk To You" guests, the announcement of finalists for the film music competition section "Music Insight," the past poster exhibition at Jecheon City Library and badge application information all followed within a short span of time.

"Talk To You" is one of the programs likely to draw audience interest at this year's festival. According to related reports, the 22nd Jecheon International Music & Film Festival revealed profiler Kwon Il-yong, singer Kim Yuna, actor and director Ryu Hyun-kyung, director Bong Joon-ho, journalist Sohn Suk-hee, director Lee Myung-se and actor Jeon Mi-do as guests for "Talk To You." Even from the list of names alone, the range of fields is broad. Film directors, actors, musicians, a journalist and a criminal psychology expert are all included.

"Talk To You" was introduced as a program that combines film screenings and conversation. At a film festival, a talk program is a device that helps audiences understand the context of a work again after seeing it. Because JIMFF is an event that looks at cinema through music, the more varied the professional backgrounds of its guests are, the wider the routes through which audiences can interpret the works become. Kwon Il-yong's participation can create a chance to read characters and incidents in films from social and psychological perspectives. Kim Yuna can speak as a musician about how music participates in narrative and emotion. Ryu Hyun-kyung can explain the border between production and acting as a creator with both acting and directing experience. Bong Joon-ho and Lee Myung-se are names who can discuss Korean cinema's genre imagination and style, Sohn Suk-hee is known for interview and questioning methods, and Jeon Mi-do can explain points where music and acting meet through her work across stage and drama.

Another axis of the festival is "Music Insight," the film music competition section. JIMFF has revealed seven finalists for this year's "Music Insight." According to reports, the competition includes music directors Jung Yong-jin for "Plaza," Cho Young-wuk for "No Other Choice," Dalpalan for "The People Upstairs," Kim Sawol for "Iban Lee Jang Man-ok," Kim Tae-seong for "The King of Kings," Kim Jun-seok for "Hi-Five" and Lee Soo-bin for "3670." "Music Insight" was introduced as a competition section established last year to illuminate the achievements of Korean feature film music and the creative worlds of film musicians. Last year, music director Kim Tae-seong of "Exhuma" was selected as the first grand prize winner.

This year's candidates include Park Chan-wook's "No Other Choice," Ha Jung-woo's "The People Upstairs," Kang Hyoung-chul's "Hi-Five" and animation "The King of Kings." Because the genres and scales of the works differ from one another, this year's competition is expected to become a space for comparing how music is used across Korean films.

One point to note in this section is the evaluation method. According to reports, this year's preliminary judging was conducted through voting by graduates of the Jecheon Film Music Academy, or JIMFA. A total of 94 former graduates voted from April 28 to May 28, 2026 KST, covering Korean feature films produced since January 2025. Among the finalists, the film musician selected by an international jury will receive 15 million won (about USD 10,200) in prize money and a trophy. This method connects with the festival's identity. JIMFF has dealt not only with music film screenings, but also with film music creators and education programs. The fact that JIMFA graduates participated in the preliminary round has a different meaning from a simple audience vote. It can be read as a structure in which the festival's internal educational assets are connected to its competition section.

The past poster exhibition at Jecheon City Library also previews the mood of this year's festival. Jecheon City Library will hold a special exhibition of past JIMFF posters in "Gallery The Mapsi" in the lobby on the first floor of the main building. The exhibition period was reported as August 4 to September 30, 2026 KST. The setup allows visitors to look at JIMFF's visual changes through posters from the first festival through this year's edition.

A poster exhibition is a way of extending a festival's memory into city space. A festival poster visually compresses the direction and atmosphere of that year's event. In some years, musical rhythm is emphasized; in others, cinematic scenes and images of the city stand out. For audiences, posters can recall not only the festival's changes, but also their own viewing experiences over time. This year's 22nd poster was introduced as being based on the motif of confetti. Confetti refers to small pieces of paper scattered at festival sites. Reports described the image as expressing the festival moment where musical melody and scenes on screen intersect. Based on that explanation, this year's poster can be read as a design focused on the moment when film and music meet not as separate genres, but as one on-site experience.

Badge applications are another element that makes participation in the festival concrete. The 22nd Jecheon International Music & Film Festival began badge applications at 2 p.m. KST on July 22, 2026. The application period runs from July 22 to August 16, 2026 KST, while JIMFF Star group applications close on August 9, 2026 KST. Reports also noted that guest badge and student badge prices have been lowered this year. According to reports, the guest badge was adjusted from 80,000 won (about USD 54) to 60,000 won (about USD 41). The JIMFF Star badge was lowered from 60,000 won (about USD 41) to 30,000 won (about USD 20) for individuals, and from 50,000 won (about USD 34) to 25,000 won (about USD 17) for groups.

Badge types are divided into guest, press and JIMFF Star. On-site registration will not be operated, according to the notice, and press badges are free with advance registration while on-site press registration was reported at 40,000 won (about USD 27). Badge holders can use a badge-only online reservation page operated from one week before opening day through the festival's closing day. The reservation period was announced as 2 p.m. KST on August 27 through 30 minutes before the final screening on September 8, and badge holders can reserve up to four festival screenings per day. Benefits differ by badge, but reports mentioned 50% discounts for "One Summer Night with K-pop Season 2" and "JIMFF Special Choice" performances, guest packages, the guest lounge, discounts on festival goods, and participation in post-screening Q&A programs.

The badge price reduction connects with the issue of festival accessibility. A film festival's character becomes clearer when audiences experience multiple screenings and programs in sequence. Some viewers participate only with individual screening tickets, but badges are better suited to audiences who want to follow the overall flow of the festival. This year's price adjustment may help students and general viewers spend more time at the festival.

What stands out in this year's JIMFF is the direction of the program announcements. Announcing the opening ceremony hosts defines the face of the event, while "Talk To You" creates time for audiences and guests to meet directly. "Music Insight" is a competition section that places film music creators at the front, and the poster exhibition moves the festival's history into a local public space. Badge applications explain how audiences can participate in the festival. Each notice is close to an individual announcement on its own, but placed together, they become material showing how the festival intends to meet its audience.

Among Korean film festivals, the Jecheon International Music & Film Festival has built music as its central axis. This does not simply mean screening many music films. It is closer to an event that deals with how music in film moves the emotions and rhythm of scenes, what position musicians hold in the filmmaking process, and how audiences remember films through music afterward. This is also why the "Music Insight" competition section and the dialogue-based "Talk To You" program are placed together.

Its character as a local festival is also important. Jecheon is not a city densely packed with large multiplexes and film industry centers, but it has created a cultural schedule between summer and early autumn through the unique brand of a music film festival. The poster exhibition at the city library means that the festival is not staying only inside screening venues, but is extending into the city's public spaces. Not only festival visitors, but also local residents can see the changes in JIMFF through the poster exhibition.

Based only on the information revealed so far, the 22nd Jecheon International Music & Film Festival is focusing on widening the range of participation. The opening ceremony will be hosted by Jang Do-yeon and Moon Sang-min, while the audience conversation program brings together figures from film, music, journalism and criminal psychology. The film music competition section separately illuminates the musical achievements of Korean feature films. The poster exhibition shows 22 years of visual records, and the badge system supports repeated viewing and program participation.

This year's key point for the 22nd JIMFF is how it reconnects film and music. The festival's name already contains both genres, but the way they connect changes each year. This year, the host lineup, dialogue programs, film music competition, archival exhibition and badge operation are being presented together, designing not only how audiences watch films, but also how they experience the festival.

Jang Do-yeon and Moon Sang-min's opening ceremony hosting is the starting point. An opening ceremony that brings together Jang's stable hosting and Moon's current presence as an actor will become the first scene JIMFF offers to audiences this year. After that, the festival will continue screenings, performances, conversations and exhibitions across Jecheon. What can be confirmed now is that the 22nd JIMFF is maintaining its long-standing axis of film and music while preparing a broader festival structure in which audiences can stay, move and participate.

Detailed program, ticketing and badge application information for the 22nd Jecheon International Music & Film Festival can be checked on the official website: https://www.jimff.org/.

Summary Points

• The 22nd Jecheon International Music & Film Festival will be held across Jecheon, North Chungcheong Province from September 3 to 8, 2026 KST.
• This year's opening ceremony will be hosted by broadcaster Jang Do-yeon and actor Moon Sang-min. Jang returns as host for the second consecutive year, while Moon joins for the first time.
• "Talk To You" guests include Kwon Il-yong, Kim Yuna, Ryu Hyun-kyung, Bong Joon-ho, Sohn Suk-hee, Lee Myung-se and Jeon Mi-do. Detailed schedules for each session should be checked through additional notices.
• Finalists for the film music competition section "Music Insight" include the music directors of "Plaza," "No Other Choice," "The People Upstairs," "Iban Lee Jang Man-ok," "The King of Kings," "Hi-Five" and "3670."
• Jecheon City Library will hold an exhibition of past JIMFF posters at "Gallery The Mapsi" on the first floor of the main building from August 4 to September 30, 2026 KST.
• Badge applications opened at 2 p.m. KST on July 22, 2026. General applications close on August 16, 2026 KST, while JIMFF Star group applications close on August 9, 2026 KST.