Documentary 'Persona: Sulli' on late actor to be released on Nov. 13

The documentary film was originally planned to be released on Netflix in 2019 as part of its five-part series “Persona,” which first featured singer, songwriter and actor IU, whose real name is Lee Ji-eun.

Poster of ″Persona: Sulli,″ featuring the late soloist [MYSTIC STORY]

“Persona: Sulli," a documentary about the late K-pop singer Sulli, will be released on Netflix on Nov. 13.

The documentary film was originally planned to be released on Netflix in 2019 as part of its five-part series “Persona,” which first featured singer-songwriter and actor IU, whose real name is Lee Ji-eun. The second film about Sulli was canceled after she took her own life in October the same year.

Regarding the film's release, critics argued that footage of the late Sulli may lead fans to relive the trauma of her suicide and pose emotional issues to artists currently active in the K-pop industry.

In response to the issue, director Jung Yoon-suk said, at a press conference before the first screening of the film at Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) on Oct. 7, that they "received legal advice from two human rights lawyers and also had the film reviewed by a psychiatrist specializing in adolescents."

The film consists of two parts: a short film titled “4: Clean Island,” and a feature-length documentary dubbed “Dear Jinri,” which has clips from Sulli’s last interview.

The short film “4: Clean Island,” directed by Hwang Soo-ah and Kim Ji-hye, was also pre-released on Sept. 27 at Laika Cinema in western Seoul. The film follows the story of the character “4” who immigrates to the Clean Island, the cleanest place in the world.

The late K-pop star and actor Sulli, whose real name was Choi Jin-ri, debuted as a child actor in 2005 and started her music career in 2009 as a member of girl group f(x) under SM Entertainment. She continued her acting career after leaving the group in 2015, and died by suicide at the age of 25 on Oct. 14, 2019.

BY KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]