Film archive, 2026

Earbug

귀벌레

Director KIM Hyomi

1Festival entries

★Avg. rating

Jeongyeon, a twenty-six-year-old aspiring novelist, tries to write her first novel, but struggles to make progress. It’s a story about an alien who comes to Earth in search of absolute, true love - and the reason she’s so thoroughly stuck is that she blames herself for not knowing what love is. Meanwhile, her old classmate Najeong, a painter, is having no such trouble preparing for her solo exhibition. Earbug, Kim Hyo-mi’s debut feature, showcases her fierce and idiosyncratic imagination in a spirited animation where feelings of failure and inferiority, jealousy and anxiety, self-doubt and a sense of grievance erupt with explosive force, propelling Jeongyeon toward a moment of inner transformation, metamorphosis, and liberation. The film’s music and sound - including Maurice Ravel’s Boléro - tease and unsettle Jeongyeon, connecting her to uncomfortable truths she has long turned away from, moments she would rather avoid, and an anxious world, ultimately becoming a catalyst for change. It is a distinctive fantasy brimming with unrestrained energy.

Stills5

Film details

Director: KIM Hyomi
Country/Region: Korea
Year: 2026
Length: 84min
Original language: Korean
Elsewhere: Letterboxd TMDB Douban

Director

KIM Hyomi

Kim Hyomi was born in Seoul in 1990. She studied animation at Sangmyung University and the Korean Academy of Film Arts. Her short film Tarantuner (2022) was screened in the Korean Competition section at the Busan International Short Film Festival and the Beautiful Hapcheon Independent Film Festival. Earbug is her first feature film.

From Busan International Film Festival 2026, No. 31

Credits

Director: KIM Hyomi
Assistant director: Yu-hyun CHUN, Jin-wook CHOI
Producer: Chan-heum YEON, KIM Hyomi
Cast: Ji-in JEONG, Do-ha BEOM, Dha-sol KIM, Kyoung-do LEE
Screenplay: KIM Hyomi
Cinematography: KIM Hyomi
Editing: KIM Hyomi
Music: Dong-wook KIM, Geon-ho LEE
Sound: Ju-suk LEE
Production company: Korean Academy of Film Arts
World sales: M-Line Distribution

Festival appearances1

Choose a festival entry to see its screenings, articles and audience reviews.

EarbugBusan International Film Festival 2026, No. 31Vision: Korea

Festival history1

釜山国际电影节, 2026Vision: Korea, Official selection

Film posters

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