Become a Star

After signing the contract for the movie and getting the script, Woo-Jin had thought about Cha Hyun-Seung the entire time and studied his character. As a result, he had been able to think of a new version of ‘Cha Hyun-Seung’ while retaining the writer’s intentions to the best of his abilities. However, he had been disappointed with the ambience during the table read, so he decided to get rid of the Cha Hyun-Seung he had created and just follow the script.

“Maybe it’s possible...” Woo-Jin mused to himself.

Remembering Director <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon’s words from a while before, Woo-Jin got up from his seat and went to look for the former. Following the staff’s directions, he found Choi Yi-Geon elegantly sipping on some tea. Contrary to his initial enthusiasm, Woo-Jin hesitated a little.

Moon Seung-Kwon was the only director Woo-Jin had known before this movie. To put it tactfully and honestly, <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon was very different from the plump, and heavyset Director Moon in every aspect, be it the movie genre they shot or appearance. Director Moon was sloppily dressed throughout the shoot while there was not a single thing that could be nitpicked of the neat suit that <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon was wearing; even his necktie was perfectly secure, without leaving even a single inch of space. He looked as though he could attend a board meeting right away; Woo-Jin found it difficult to approach him.

“What’s the matter?” <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon asked.

“I have something to discuss with you. Do you have time to talk?” Woo-Jin replied. As he had never had a personal conversation with the director<meta charset="utf-8">, he started to read the room without realizing it.

“If it’s related to Cha Hyun-Seung, I’m always free to talk whenever.”

Contrary to Woo-Jin’s concerns, Choi Yi-Geon readily pointed to the chair across the table with his right hand and invited Woo-Jin to sit. As Woo-Jin sat down, Choi Yi-Geon watched quietly while leaning his back against the sofa with his arms folded.

“You mentioned that this is your second time acting, right?” asked Choi Yi-Geon.

Originally, there was supposed to have been an interview or a test conducted by the director before the casting call, but all of those things had been omitted in their case. Thus, in truth, they did not know much about each other.

“Yes,” Woo-Jin replied.

“I’m sorry, but what was the movie? I’m just asking because I don’t know,” Choi Yi-Geon continued.

“It hasn’t been released yet. I heard it’s going to be released in early July, but I don’t know the exact details yet.”

“Supporting role?”

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“Initially, it was a minor role, but I was called back for additional shooting. I’m not sure how much of it will be used in the movie after they’re done editing it.”

Woo-Jin scratched his head in embarrassment for not being able to give a proper answer to any of <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon's questions thus far; in particular, the fact that he himself did not know whether he had a minor role or a supporting role was rather hilarious. That said, Woo-Jin realized that he had definitely lucked out. It was evident that he was lucky, as he had landed a significant supporting role in his second movie after playing a minor role in his first, with the success or failure of the movie out of the equation.

“If it’s going to be released in July, that means it’ll only be released after our shooting ends. As you may have already known, we won’t need more than a month to shoot our movie.”

The movie did not have any action scenes, and there was no need for fancy techniques to portray the love story of two college students. If everything went smoothly, they would be done with the shooting in a month. The movie’s runtime was only 100 minutes. As such, it was understood that the movie would be released in mid to late August. It was not as if the audience would suffer from heatstroke while watching a passionate love story in midsummer, but at least that was one excuse they had for the impending box office flop.

“If both movies are in early July and mid to late August, they might overlap if your previous movie becomes a hit. However, since you’re not the main character, it’ll be okay.”

Hearing that the movie would be released in early July, Choi Yi-Geon had a hunch that Woo-Jin’s movie was a blockbuster. If that movie was a hit, it would be highly likely that both of Chae Woo-Jin’s movies would overlap in terms of screening, since that film would stay in the theaters for a longer period of time. If that was the case, this film’s public relations agency might adjust the release schedule for Glooming Day.

However, judging from the fact that Woo-Jin was not the main character, but a minor or supporting character, it appeared that it would not pose a major problem. Hence, Choi Yi-Geon nodded.

“I don’t have any information about you so I wanted to look for it, but unfortunately, I couldn’t find it. So, I wondered if it would turn out okay if we make a decision with just your looks, in accordance with CEO Choi’s expectations. Fortunately, you don’t have any lines,” <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon said.

“Looks? What’s there to make a positive judgment of?” Woo-Jin responded.

People often told him that he was handsome, but Woo-Jin himself could not see it. Even when he looked at Woo-Hee, who looked more like him than anyone else, he felt that she was cute because she was his younger sister, but he did not find her pretty. Hence, whenever someone called him ‘handsome’, he merely took such words as compliments people said out of courtesy. To him, it was similar to the way people called anybody who was tall with clear skin good-looking.

Thus, he could not help but be taken aback when he heard <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon telling him that he had gone ahead solely based on Woo-Jin’s looks. What reason exactly did <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon have to believe in his looks so much? For a moment, Woo-Jin wondered if he had been cast as another excuse for the box office flop.

“I believe in your looks,” <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon insisted.

“If you do that, the movie will be ruined,” Woo-Jin replied.

“Our movie is already ruined.”

Seeing the director speak so confidently, Woo-Jin became dispirited. Even though they both knew that for a fact, he had been unable to say it because he had wanted to cling to the hope that it might work out.

“When it comes to being a hit at the box office, who would pay to watch an old-fashioned movie like this in today’s world? Still, my goal is to make a film I won’t be ashamed of. Just because it’s a box office flop or it isn’t interesting doesn’t mean that the film itself will be a wreck. I can’t produce something like that with my name on it. It’d be freaking embarrassing.”

Sitting elegantly in an expensive suit, <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon uttered slang that did not fit his image without hesitation. Despite that, he still looked dignified, throwing Woo-Jin off. That man was a movie director with the good looks of a movie star, which made him rather special.

“On that note, what does the Cha Hyun-Seung you are trying to portray look like?” <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon asked. To a certain extent, he was able to guess why Woo-Jin had decided to look for him at this time.

“In your opinion, what kind of man is Cha Hyun-Seung?” Woo-Jin asked back.

“A depressed loser who struggles with an inferiority complex,” <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon said.

It was a firm assessment that was void of sympathy, but it was not that different from Woo-Jin’s thoughts, and so Woo-Jin nodded. Most of the viewers would feel the same way too when watching the movie. However, he asked, “Can I portray Cha Hyun-Seung in a different way?”

“Is there anything you’re not allowed to do? Didn’t I explicitly tell you to portray your character according to your wishes? It’s just that you have to do it ‘well’. Otherwise, I’ll chew you out like I did to those two earlier on. Have you seen any lovers who were truly in love with one another, acting like them? Have they never been in love before?”

<meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon clicked his tongue. He gestured in the air, not wanting to think about it. He asked, “Mr. Woo-Jin, what kind of person do you want to portray Cha Hyun-Seung to be?”

“To me, Cha Hyun-Seung is someone with a brighter personality and a little more enthusiasm. However, the title of the movie is Glooming Day…”

He was concerned because the word ‘glooming’ was in the title itself. There would be a fundamental error if Cha Hyun-Seung, the only person who should be depressed by seeing the bright and vibrant young lovers, became a more positive and upbeat person.

“The lovers are breaking up anyway. Isn’t it depressing for them to accept reality and go their own way in the worst way possible? The main characters have a sad ending, but what does that have to do with the supporting character’s sad disposition?”

“Ah! Ah…”

Woo-Jin blushed and turned his head away for a moment. He was at a loss for words. It was said that children thought they themselves were at the center of the world. Likewise, Woo-Jin, the rookie, had made the mistake of thinking for a moment that he, the supporting character, was at the center of the movie. He had been unable to pay attention to the ending of the main characters, as he had been too caught up in the burdensome sense of duty that came from the thought that he was the only one responsible for the melancholic and depressing theme of the film.

<meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon chuckled when he saw how Woo-Jin struggled to lift his head, covering his red face with his hands. This trait of his, that rookies usually had, was not a bad thing. At the very least, <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon liked his attitude so much that he seriously thought about putting Cha Hyun-Seung at the center of the movie.

“Come to think of it, you don’t have a single line, but you always participated seriously at every table read.”

At that time, the two main leads had been busy working with one another for their scenes, and had paid no attention to Cha Hyun-Seung. Nevertheless, Woo-Jin had looked at both of them with eyes that sparkled. He seemed to have been looking forward to the performances of the two actors who had already made it big, and he had looked extremely curious as to how they would portray the love between the two characters. There was no ugly jealousy or any inferiority complex.

“The way you looked at the main leads at the time wasn’t bad. I would be okay with Cha Hyun-Seung looking at them with those eyes. The same way there are multiple interpretations of a single sheet music, isn’t it the same for scripts? Even with the same lines, the mood changes entirely depending on the pronunciation and emphasis, as well as the facial expression. However, the problem is that Cha Hyun-Seung doesn’t have a single line to express his emotions.”

Woo-Jin, whose face was not as red as before, made eye contact with <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon. As he looked Woo-Jin in the eye, <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon had a mischievous look on his face. He asked, “How can we express Cha Hyun-Seung’s changed image without any lines, our dear actor, Mr. Chae Woo-Jin?”

After taking an early lunch, the actors and the staff, who had used up the two-hour grace given by <meta charset="utf-8">Choi Yi-Geon, went back to the shoot with a serious attitude. Kwon Sung-Min and Song Jae-Hee did not seem to have wasted the two hours they were given; they were immersed in their roles with a completely different attitude from before.

***

Park Ji-Hyuk and Na Mi-Yeon were sitting at the table across from one another in an empty room, teasing each other. It was not much of a story, but when they laughed, holding each other’s fingers and looking each other in the eye before pecking each other on the lips, it gave off the impression of young love. Their acting this time was better than their uninspiring acting the first time around. They looked like lovers, tickling the audience who were watching them. These actors lived up to their names and were proving the fact that they were extraordinary, as they had the ability to change the ambience in an instant with their acting.

“Ah! When did you get here, Hyun-Seung?” Na Mi-Yeon was the first person to discover Cha Hyun-Seung, who was hesitating by the door. She waved at him. In response, he tapped Na Mi-Yeon’s head lightly with a book that was in his hand, before glancing at the clock on the wall.

“We skipped class.”

“Please let us off this time, Hyun-Seung.”

Cha Hyun-Seung forced a smile as he looked at the young couple, because he felt that it was pathetic how they had made their way to the department room of all places after skipping their class.

“Well… I want to drink the coffee you made for me, so I’ve been waiting for it!” Na Mi-Yeon exclaimed.

In truth, both of them had wanted to be alone in silence, so they had chosen to go to the department room, but it was not necessary for her to say that. Everyone present knew the truth. The lovely woman’s lie was a witty excuse to some, and an offensive joke to others.

Cha Hyun-Seung placed the book and materials he had been holding on the desk, and made a cup of coffee for Na Mi-Yeon without saying a word. He poured the coffee mix into a paper cup, and added hot water from the water purifier before stirring it with a teaspoon.

Park Ji-Hyuk grimaced at the sight of it. “Mi-Yeon, how can you drink something like that?” he asked. The young master could never imagine drinking instant coffee in a paper cup, and ended up trying to snatch the paper cup from Cha Hyun-Seung.

However, Mi-Yeon was a little faster than him, and said, “Thanks for the drink. Ah, it’s hot!” She grabbed the paper cup with both hands and tried to drink it quickly, but ended up scalding herself with the hot coffee.

Park Ji-Hyuk was startled and asked her why she drank it. He placed his hands on Na Mi-Yeon’s face and looked at her lips. They looked each other in the eye as he blew on her sore lips. They smiled at each other, becoming lost in their own world.

They had already forgotten about Cha Hyun-Seung, who was still sitting next to them. Cha Hyun-Seung looked straight at them as he sat on the chair with his chin resting on his hand. It was only after they had said goodbye to him and left the department room that the look in his eyes changed. They had not held a tinge of darkness or sadness, but had now turned into regret.

Now that he was alone, he got up from the chair and carefully grabbed the cup of coffee that Na Mi-Yeon had tried to drink from earlier. He carefully rubbed the faint lipstick mark left behind on the paper cup and walked toward the window. Leaning one of his shoulders slightly against the window, Cha Hyun-Seung brought the paper cup to his lips.

In the original script, Cha Hyun-Seung was supposed to place the part of the cup with Na Mi-Yeon’s lipstick stain on his lips, but Woo-Jin did not follow that direction. After hesitating for a moment, he stroked that part with his finger before drinking from the other side of the cup. He looked at the faint lipstick stain with kind eyes and nothing more.

It was a sunny day. He drank the fragrant coffee with his eyes half-closed, basking in the light that poured in through the window. The world was a very beautiful place to the man, drunk on his affection for someone who was more fragrant than the cup of coffee.