Chapter 52: Countdown (2)

Translator: Dreamscribe

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Term Changes: Eoulrim Film Company → Harmony Film Company

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The 200 or so reporters at the ‘Profiler Hanryang’ production announcement press conference moved their fingers like mad. Because of the bold declaration just made by Writer Park Eun-mi.

“That actor will become an unprecedented scene-stealer. Because he will deliver an acting performance that no other actor can come close to.”

-Tapapapapak!

-Tapapapapapak!

Half of the reporters took pictures and the other half typed on their laptops.

The atmosphere became heated. The reporters’ eyes all sparkled like hyenas. At that moment, PD Song Man-woo who sat at the very first desk and groomed up his goatee today, nudged Writer Park Eun-mi’s shoulder sitting next to him.

“We didn’t agree on such a comment, did we?”

Writer Park Eun-mi, who tied up her long permed hair, quietly replied while looking at the reporters.

“I don’t know. I just went with the flow and it turned out like this.”

“Come on- You did that on purpose, didn’t you? To bait the reporters? Throwing them a bone and hoping for clickbait.”

“Well, I thought I’d give it a try if that question comes up. I didn’t know they’d actually ask it.”

“Haha, Anyway, it seems to have worked, right? Look at those hyenas’ eyes. They seem ready to pounce on any piece of information, true or not.”

Park Eun-mi shrugged her shoulders.

“Do you think they care about the truth? Obviously, they will take what I said, add their own sauce to it, and blow it up several times over. But it doesn’t matter how much they exaggerate the ‘Park Dae-ri’ stuff, right?”

PD Song Man-woo’s smile deepened, as if to agree.

“That’s right. No matter how big the clickbait is, it doesn’t matter as long as it’s about ‘Park Dae-ri’. It’s bound to exceed expectations. I should probably buy that reporter who asked about Park Dae-ri a meal, right?”

“Now that we’re talking about it, let’s bait more firmly. You’re an expert at stirring the pot, aren’t you, PD Song?”

“I’m a pro at that.”

Soon, PD Song Man-woo quietly spoke to actors Ryu Jung-min, Hong Hye-yeon, and others. The actors, who were already familiar with such situations, understood the situation at once. Particularly, Hong Hye-yeon, who was stylishly dressed in a long shirt today, her eyes sparkled.

Then, PD Song Man-woo suddenly addresses the 200 reporters.

“Hahaha, but please write gently about our hidden scene-stealing actor, okay? Gently. It’s too much pressure on the actor even before the lid is opened.”

It was obviously a scripted line. And it worked.

“Do you also regard that scene-stealing actor as unprecedented, PD?!”

“What are your thoughts, PD?!”

The reporters throw PD Song Man-woo with dozens of questions. After some silence, PD Song Man-woo gave a moderate answer.

“I don’t know about the rest, but the acting is definitely unprecedented. For the first time, I swore watching an actor act in my directing career. Isn’t that right?”

PD Song Man-woo turned his head to the left and sought agreement from the actors. Actors such as Ryu Jung-min and Hong Hye-yeon casually smiled or nodded. The hundreds of reporters gasp slightly.

“Woah- Did PD Song really say that?”

The deliberately created hype was growing.

The reporters, who are glancing around and checking each other’s reactions, can sense it. They then proceed to ask similar questions to other actors.

“Jung-min, how was it during the whole shooting?! Did you have any scene with that scene-stealing actor??”

“Yes. I had many scenes with that actor. Hmm- For your information, watching that actor’s acting, I felt inspired to work even harder. They served as a catalyst for me.”

“A catalyst? For Ryu Jung-min??”

All of the main actors of ‘Profiler Hanryang’ praised ‘Park Dae-ri’ effusively.

For several minutes, the hundreds of reporters chewed and tore apart the bait that had been thrown to them. As a result, the press conference easily exceeded its scheduled time. A lot of things had already been discussed before the question about Park Dae-ri was even raised.

Thus, the press conference moderator began to wrap up.

“Alright- We’re already 30 minutes over. Let’s take one last question and finish up.”

“Over here!”

“I’ll ask the question!”

“Yes, the reporter in the grey shirt!”

The selected reporter lowered his hand and met the gaze of the smiling Hong Hye-yeon.

“Hye-yeon, you recently appeared in the ‘Mise-en-scène Film Festival’ and turned the short film world upside down. You received the Best Actress award at the ceremony but yielded the Grand Prize to an unknown actor. How did that feel?”

It was a question with a slight undertone of aggression, unrelated to ‘Profiler Hanryang’. Just as the moderator raised his hand to signal Hong Hyeon not to answer. but,

“Reporter, haven’t you seen ‘Exorcism’? Go and watch it.”

Hong Hye-yeon answered calmly with a relaxed smile.

“Then you’ll understand why I received the Best Actress award. I acknowledge that actor’s Grand Prize. You ask such questions because you don’t know.”

The reporter who asked the question was slightly flustered.

“Ah- ah yes. That, that’s right.”

Hong Hye-yeon’s entire management team sighed, covering their faces.

“Ha- again.”

Her playful actions were not the first time.

Several minutes later, in the conference room of the Harmony Film Company.

Choi Sung-gun, sitting next to the expressionless Kang Woojin, was in a state of shock.

‘······Lead, lead role? Not even a supporting role, but a lead role??!’

He had just heard from director Kwon Ki-taek a few minutes ago that he was planning to cast Kang Woojin as a lead villain. Currently, Director Kwon Ki-taek was explaining the upcoming schedule related to his next work.

“The investment is already secured······”

But none of his words reached Choi Sung-gun, who was shocked. What on earth was happening?

‘Yeah··· I had expectations. Since director Kwon Ki-taek personally came to the site, I thought he would give us at least a supporting role or a minor role.’

Even a minor supporting role would have made Choi Sung-gun drop his jaw. After all, he was joining the team of Director Kwon Ki-taek, a master of film. But Director Kwon Ki-taek was handing out the lead villain role to Kang Woojin like candy.

‘H-how many steps are we jumping at once??!’

It was a sight that even Choi Sung-gun, who had spent over a decade in the entertainment industry and had an outstanding network and skills, had never seen before. A newcomer who only debuted two months ago is getting a lead role from Director Kwon Ki-taek? This isn’t just breaking the convention, it’s smashing it. If this story spread in the film industry, it would cause a huge stir.

At the same time, Kang Woojin would be in the spotlight.

Around this point…

-Whoosh.

Choi Sung-gun, with his eyes widened, slowly turned his head and locked eyes with Kang Woojin beside him. He was nodding his head calmly while listening to director Kwon Ki-taek’s explanation.

‘…Why on earth are you so calm?’

Where is the source of this calmness or courage? Is it from his high self-esteem?

There wasn’t a hint of disturbance from Woojin. As if he had predicted this situation. In the meantime, Kang Woojin turned his head to the right. Unconcerned, he locked eyes with Choi Sung-gun’s.

Exclamation marks appeared in Choi Sung-gun’s eyes.

‘Ah… I see. There will be many situations like this if I go along with you, so I should be moderately surprised and do my job? Ha ha, got it. Unlike you, I don’t have a heart of steel.’

Kang Woojin, who was looking at Choi Sung-gun calmly, was very confused.

‘No, shouldn’t we check if this great director is really okay? He asked me to tell him about an interesting character? But he’s offering me that character.’

At this point, Choi Sung-gun raised his hand while Director Kwon Ki-taek was explaining.

“Director. Really. I am very grateful for your offer. I think I’ll remember this moment for the rest of my life, haha.”

“I think I will also remember this for a long time. As you know, this is my first time doing this.”

“Yes. Me too. I am very grateful. However, I think it is a bit early to write a contract today.”

What? Kang Woojin, who was startled inside, stared wide-eyed at the boss of the agency. Choi Sung-gun, noticing the gaze, discreetly winked with his right eye. He was signaling he understood, just leave it to him.

“Today, I think it’s appropriate to conclude a verbal agreement with the director, Woojin, and myself, and to sort out the details and contracts later.”

“Hmm-”

“Of course, it would be great if you could let the people from the film company witness the verbal agreement. That way, both you and Woojin can confirm with each other, and I’ll gradually discuss the details with the film company.”

It was common practice. The film casting contract involved many conditions and negotiations of the appearance fee, as well as the need to adjust the schedules of the actors and the shooting team. Therefore, verbal agreements between the director and the actors were often made.

Verbal agreements were almost as good as confirmed.

Especially for a director with a high reputation like Kwon Ki-taek, the power of a verbal agreement was even stronger. However, Kang Woojin was not aware of this. Therefore, he sent a more intense gaze to Choi Sung-gun. He was internally asking, ‘why?’.

Choi Sung-gun understood this too.

‘Yeah, Woojin, I get your point. You want to raise the appearance fee, right? It’s a lead role from director Kwon Ki-taek. You’re saying not to pass it on recklessly, right?’

Although their understanding was clearly different, Choi Sung-gun derived his own answer from Kang Woojin’s gaze.

‘I know. Woojin, you’ve received a groundbreaking fee even in Hanryang, and when you signed the contract with me, there were clear guidelines for the contract conditions and contract money. In other words, you are suggesting to delay the contract until at least the first episode of ‘Profiler Hanryang,’ right?’

The recognition in the entertainment world can change explosively overnight. Even if no one knew you yesterday, if you become a hot topic today, the market value can change drastically. Choi Sung-gun noticed this from Kang Woojin’s gaze.

‘You’ve already risen as a blue chip in the film industry with the ‘Mise-en-scène Film Festival’, but your recognition is not that explosive yet. If we contract in this situation, we might regret it.’

The conclusion is that the value will jump several times until ‘Profiler Hanryang’. Choi Sung-gun sent a reassuring smile to Kang Woojin, who was looking at him indifferently, as if to say not to worry.

‘I’ll take care of it for you.’

Then Director Kwon Ki-taek slowly nodded his head while looking at Choi Sung-gun. The kind smile was a bonus.

“Hmm, I see. I understood what you meant. I proceeded a bit hastily, forgetting the realistic aspects. I was too eager because I wanted Woojin.”

“I understand, director.”

“Then let’s proceed with the verbal contract first by joining the production team of the film company.”

“Please.”

Director Kwon Ki-taek took out his cell phone and called the production team that was on standby, and Choi Sung-gun cautiously asked Director Kwon Ki-taek, who had hung up the phone in no time.

“But Director, sorry, but when do you plan to disclose to the media about the next work? You said it’s still confidential for now.”

“Right. I have to do it once the lead actors are somewhat settled. It will probably be sorted out within this month.”

“This month. Can we also put some effort into publicity when it is confirmed? That Woojin has joined the director’s team.”

Director Kwon Ki-taek’s smile deepened as if it was okay.

“It’s true, so why wouldn’t it be okay?”

“Thank you.”

Choi Sung-gun, who had bowed his head, approached Kang Woojin. Woojin was still expressionless, but inside he didn’t know what was going on. Choi Sung-gun whispered to him.

“At least twice. Maybe more. I’ll get you a satisfying amount for your value. Let’s delay the contract somehow. It seems entirely possible from what I’ve seen of Director Kwon. He is treating you like a grandchild, right?”

Where did the sudden talk about the value come from? Woojin couldn’t figure it out no matter how much he thought about it, but he thought there was no need to refuse if he was going to raise the appearance fee.

“···Yes, I understand.”

“And. Imagine how crazy it would be if we do a bit of publicity. You’re already on the rise after winning the acting award at the ‘Mise-en-scène Film Festival’ right? The water is already stirred with you being a blue chip in the film industry and all. If ‘Hanryang’ also becomes a hit, let’s add that you joined Director Kwon Ki-taek’s team as a lead actor. What do you think?”

Choi Sung-gun grinned here.

“You’re not just a blue chip in the film industry, you’re a nuclear bomb in the entertainment world.”

The next day. 9 in the morning, at a luxury hotel in Seoul.

It was a suite that looked spacious even at a glance. A man with gray hair, wearing a bathrobe, was standing by the window overlooking Seoul. He was sipping coffee while quietly looking out the window.

It was the Japanese master director Kyotaro Tanoguchi.

“······Hmm.”

Despite the ‘Mise-en-scène Film Festival’ ending two days ago on the 7th, Director Kyotaro was still in Korea. It was his voluntary choice. Naturally, his team, who came with him, were also in Korea.

-Swish.

Director Kyotaro, who was looking out the window, sat down on a luxurious sofa. The script he had just been reading was spread out on the table in front of him. Recently, Director Kyotaro had been reading several scripts for his next work.

But.

“No.”

He softly muttered in Japanese and closed the script he was reading. He was not focused at all. In fact, his mind was still full of an unknown actor from Korea.

It was Kang Woojin.

He had only seen a glimpse of his acting, but it was insanely good, and that itself aroused explosive curiosity.

“······That fluent Japanese. It seems like he lived in Japan, but- the tone of acting was not Japanese at all. Or did he live in Japan when he was young and then move to Korea?”

Anyway, the unknown actor Kang Woojin seemed to definitely lack recognition. A very small number of people knew him at the ‘Mise-en-scène Film Festival’, and even the Korean reporters had treated Kang Woojin very unfamiliarly.

“His acting is better than that of a veteran with decades of experience, but his recognition is still at the bottom. There was no rumor of him being in any work in particular. He didn’t look particularly young either. Is the hurdle for the acting scene in Korea really that high?”

Director Kyotaro couldn’t understand it at all. Just looking at his acting skills, he was an actor who wouldn’t be out of place in a blockbuster. Fortunately, his skills were proven at the ‘Mise-en-scène Film Festival’, but it was still a non-mainstream short film festival.

“What a waste. Isn’t it too much of a waste to leave an actor like that?”

Waste. It was such a waste not to cast a actor like Kang Woojin.

“It doesn’t make sense for an actor with such ridiculous abilities to be struggling in short films. In my eyes, he’s an actor who should contribute to the development of the acting world, whether in Korea or Japan.”

At this point, director Kyotaro made a decision. He decided to introduce this all-too-unknown actor to the world, both Korea and Japan. Of course, director Kyotaro had his own ambitions as a director. He wanted to work with this actor, who was still a rough gem.

‘He will give a wake-up call to Japanese actors. Korea has such great actors spending several years in short films.’

After making a decision on his own and concluding, he picked up his cell phone.

“Let’s talk in my room now. I think I need to stay in Korea for a few more days.”

He called his team who were in another room.