Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.
INTERVIEW Director of Netflix's 'Glitch' calls series her turning point
Netflix's new series “Glitch” revolves around two friends hunting for clues in an alien mystery. Courtesy of Netflix
By Lee Gyu-lee
By Lee Gyu-lee
Director Roh Deok, who helmed Netflix's new genre-bending Korean original series “Glitch,” said that working on the series has led her to reach a turning point in her career.
Director Roh Deok of Netflix's original series “Glitch” / Courtesy of Netflix
“This project took up about two to three times the turnaround time of a film. And a lot has happened during the process, personally. I think the way I approach the actors and production staff has changed a lot,” the director said during an interview with The Korea Times at a cafe in Jongno District, central Seoul, Wednesday.
“In the past, my priority was focused on making a good project. But with this one, I also learned to be there for the staff and those working together and put faith in them, which I felt actually helped them. This series has become a turning point.”
Released last Friday, the series debut for the director, whose previous work includes the romance film, "Very Ordinary Couple," revolves around an ordinary woman in her 30s, Hong Ji-hyo (Jeon Yeo-been).
One day, her boyfriend, Lee Si-gook (Lee Dong-hwi), disappears. As she reunites with her former friend and UFO enthusiast, Heo Bo-ra (Im Jin-ah), to find the secret behind Si-gook's disappearance, she faces her ability to see aliens and her past that she has been trying to avoid.
It is scripted by Gin Han-sai, who wrote Netflix's hit series, "Extracurricular."
A scene from the Netflix series “Glitch” / Courtesy of Netflix
The director said she had been developing a similar story on her own years ago, so when she was offered the script for “Glitch,” she didn't hesitate to take it.
“I wanted to unfold a story about finding an identity but I couldn't finish the story. Then, I came across the 'Glitch' script that was similar to what I was developing five to six years ago,” she said.
“I felt I had to do it, because if I didn't take it, someone else would do it, and then the story that I was originally developing would just look like plagiarism. So it only felt right that I should direct it; not to have the project be on someone else's hand.”
The 10-part series sets a quirky tone flipping through genres from thriller and mystery to comedy with sci-fi elements of extraterrestrial beings.
Roh noted that the series challenges the stereotype of putting a story into categorized genres. “This is a new journey of deviating from the conventional genre story that we usually come across,” she said.
Director Roh Deok, left, talks with actors during a shooting of the series “Glitch.” Courtesy of Netflix
She added that the series tells a personal story beyond those genres.
“It touches on a diverse genre but does not delve deeper into each. The reason it jumps from one genre to another is that the focus (of the story) is the characters,” she said.
“I wanted to tell the story about a person going through a personal struggle, which I felt would give a sense of comfort to someone who is also going through a similar time. I hope the viewers could follow the story from the character's perspective, rather than putting the focus on the genre.”