i-dle's Shuhua Reaches Global Stage With Her First Movie

i-dle's Shuhua is stepping into film with a major international spotlight. Her first leading role, in the movie "Happy and Joyful Days" (Haengbokhago Jeulgeoun Naldeul), has been invited to one of North America's biggest film festivals.

The film has been selected for the Special Presentations section at the 51st Toronto International Film Festival, which runs September 10 through 20.

TIFF is one of the most influential film festivals in the world. Its Special Presentations section showcases buzzed-about new titles and fresh work from notable directors and actors. Past Korean films in the section include Bong Joon-ho's "Mother" (2009) and "Parasite" (2019), as well as Park Chan-wook's "The Handmaiden" (2016).

"When I heard the news, I really couldn't believe it," Shuhua said. "It's an honor to stand on the international stage with such a great team on my very first project. I hope viewers find empathy and comfort through Lin Jia-qi's story, and feel the sincerity we put into the film."

"Happy and Joyful Days" follows two sisters with very different personalities whose everyday lives shift when a stray cat wanders in. Shuhua plays Lin Jia-qi, the bright and innocent younger sister. After meeting the stray cat, Lin Jia-qi moves through a range of emotions in her family relationships and slowly changes along the way.

The movie marks Shuhua's first lead film role and signals a new chapter in her career as an actor. For a K-pop idol whose main stage has been music and performance, a TIFF invitation on her first outing is a rare kind of debut, one that lands her among the international titles the festival puts forward each year.