Peninsula: From a supporting actor to the best actor in Chungmuro

Chapter 143 Acting Breakthrough Yoona

Chapter 143 YoonA’s acting breakthrough

"Damn... there's not a trace of snow!"

Director Lee Seok-hoon stood with his hands behind his back outside the makeshift command tent.

Head tilted up.

His brows furrowed into a deep frown.

Looking up at the gray sky over Gangwon Province, not a single cloud in sight.

half an hour.

He then let out a deep sigh from the depths of his throat, a sigh filled with heavy worries.

This time of year in previous years.

The mountains in Gangwon Province should have been covered with a fresh layer of snow long ago.

But this year is strange!
It's already past the halfway point of December.

Let alone heavy snow, even a decent frost is rare.

The air always carries a sticky, damp chill.

The wind blowing on my face felt more like the coolness of late autumn than the biting cold of winter.

The sun occasionally peeks out.

The sun made people feel even a little lazy.

A mild winter.

A word that has appeared more and more frequently in the news in recent years.

At this moment, however, it has become the biggest anxiety hanging over the heads of the "Himalaya" production team.

There was no real snow.

Such mountaineering epics, which need to showcase the cruel power of nature and exude a desolate and icy atmosphere, have become almost an "impossible mission."

The core scenes of climbing ice walls and struggling to survive in blizzards, created with artificial snow and wind machines, ultimately lacked a truly moving sense of realism.

Lee Seok-hoon pursues the raw realism of documentaries, rather than the refined artificiality of studio shooting.

"Wait another week."

Lee Seok-hoon's words to the assistant director sounded more like a declaration of resolve to himself:
"If there's still no sign of snow by the 20th... then we'll activate the backup plan and go to Nepal to film on location. Real mountains, real snow, and real ice crevasses."

The assistant director didn't say anything, just nodded silently.

Everyone knows what this means—

CJ Entertainment's initial budget of 50 billion won has been completely depleted.

Are we really going to take the whole team to Nepal?
Then director Lee Seok-hoon will probably have no choice but to bite the bullet, prepare a thick shooting plan and effect projections, and go to CJ headquarters to "beg for donations".

……

The days passed by in this waiting and anxiety.

The weather is like a stubborn gambler.

They just won't turn over the "snow" card.

The crew had no choice but to proceed with the scripted scenes and interior shots that didn't require real snow and wind in the set they had built.

December 14th.

night.

Outside the film set in Gangwon Province.

Civilian area.

On the artificial street with slightly yellowish lighting.

"Action!"

The clapperboard fell.

The camera moved forward silently.

Focus—

Under the dim yellow glow of the streetlights.

Park Moo-taek, played by Kang Jae-hoon, strolls leisurely down the street.

He was clearly drunk.

Her hair, which had been styled fairly well, now had several strands hanging down.

Sticky with sweat and snot.

He staggered.

Like a marionette with its strings cut.

One step at a time.

He almost stepped out of the frame.

"Sooyoung...Sooyoung..."

The sound was initially just a muttering.

then.

It was as if the valve of grievance and despair hidden deep within this name had suddenly been opened.

The volume suddenly surged, blasting loudly through the quiet film set streets!
"Soo-young!!"

That shout.

It was absolutely heartbreaking.

The sound cracked.

Like a fish thrown ashore and on the verge of death, it startled the passing extras.

"Ugh—! Sooyoung—I can't live without you!!"

Kang Jae-hoon howled again.

This time, his voice trembled with tears.

Tears and snot started flowing uncontrollably without warning.

That face, which originally had handsome features and a touch of untamed wildness.

At this moment, I was completely soaked in tears.

His eyebrows, eyes, nose, and mouth were all scrunched up!
She looked as wronged as a three-year-old who hadn't gotten any candy and was being punished by being made to stand in the corner.

He was yelling at the top of his lungs.

While doing so, he kept pounding his chest with his fist.

"I can't live anymore!! Just let me die!! *burp*!"

He cried out in a fit of excitement.

He even let out a loud burp.

at this time.

A worn-out, dusty fisherman's hat, with relentless speed and force—

"Snapped!"

There was a crisp sound.

It landed precisely on Kang Jae-hoon's tear-streaked face.

He was abruptly pulled back from his throat when he was halfway through preparing his second "Xiuying—", which was almost bursting into the sky!
The whole world went silent for a second.

The only sound was a muffled groan from Kang Jae-hoon, his face hidden by his hat, a sound of grievance and disbelief: "Ugh...?!"

aside.

Hwang Jung-min put one hand in his pocket.

The other hand was still in the "pulling off the hat" gesture.

He looked at the guy whose face was covered by a hat, as if he were frozen in place, with a look of disgust.

"Pfft..."

Uncontrollable low laughter finally escaped from the throats of several onlookers.

behind the monitor.

Director Lee Seok-hoon's lips curled into a wide smile.

The scene shows Kang Jae-hoon looking both pathetic and comically pathetic, a stark contrast to his nonchalant attitude towards heartbreak at the dinner table in the previous shot.

"Crack!"

The voice that called for a stop even carried a hint of barely suppressed laughter.

Kang Jae-hoon sniffed.

He took a thick stack of tissues from the staff and haphazardly blew his nose and wiped away his tears.

He walked up to the monitor and leaned closer to watch the replay.

The image of himself on the screen, with tears streaming down his face and looking distorted with grievance, combined with Hwang Jung-min's disdainful yet precise hat-giving gesture, created a hilarious effect.

"Um……"

Kang Jae-hoon stroked his chin, seemingly lost in thought:
"Could it get any more pathetic? Like... after being knocked down by the hat, wriggle around on the ground like a turtle flipping over?"

"..."

He was thinking about how to "add more scenes" to the character.

Jin Dayuan squeezed through like a gust of wind, clutching his constantly vibrating phone, the caller ID on the screen exceptionally clear—

[Director Kwon Hyuk-chan]

"Jae-hoon, the phone!"

Kang Jae-hoon stared at the screen for a moment, stunned.

Good Days?
Calling during this time period...

It seems the broadcast has been finalized?

"Director, I'm going to take this call."

"Well, let's go."

Lee Seok-hoon's attention was still on the brilliant crying scene from earlier, so he casually waved his hand.

Holding his phone, Kang Jae-hoon quickly walked to a relatively quiet corner at the edge of the film set.

Away from the lights and noise.

Press the answer button.

"Hey, Director Kwon?"

"Jaehoon."

On the other end of the phone.

Director Kwon Hyuk-chan's voice was slightly hoarse and tired.

"Yes! Director, please speak!"

"Good Days..."

Kwon Hyukchan seemed to take a deep drag on his cigarette, his voice deep and muffled:

"...The launch date has been set."

"Ah, great!"

Kang Jae-hoon immediately chimed in, "When exactly? Do I need to attend the press conference? I need to ask Director Lee for leave..."

There will be no press conference.

Kwon Hyukchan interrupted his explanation.

"Ok?"

Kang Jae-hoon was taken aback.

"The people at KBS... said our drama was like a Frankenstein's monster, a mix of a travelogue and a melodramatic romance, with a chaotic theme... lacking 'episode integrity.' That's what they said."

"The people from MBC and SBS shook their heads, saying almost the same thing."

“Naver TV…you know, it’s a competitor of LINE, and their platform positioning clashes.”

"The production company itself borrowed heavily to make this show. Now the show is stuck with debt, the money can't be recovered, and they can't afford a decent publicity budget... They can't even squeeze out the money to hire online trolls to release press releases."

"The copyright... was bought out by LINE for a bargain price. There was no press conference, no publicity, nothing at all. The launch date is December 16th."

"..."

Silence fell on both ends of the phone call.

Only the hissing of electricity and the howling wind in Gangwon Province at night could be heard.

Kang Jae-hoon opened his mouth as if to say something.

comfort?

Or is it just a way of saying that I heard it?

But in the end.

He simply nodded very slowly into the microphone.

Even though the other party cannot see it.

"Ah."

A single note.

So light it could almost be blown away by the wind.

"Understood, Director."

The phone hangs up.

Kang Jae-hoon held the phone whose screen had gone black.

Stand still.

The night wind ruffled the messy strands of hair on his forehead.

The film set in the distance was still brightly lit.

The faint sounds of director Lee Seok-hoon adjusting equipment and directing the set design could be heard.

And the desolate darkness in which he was now.

It felt like we were in two different worlds.

Good Days...

That web drama, filmed under the Jeju Island sun with Kim Ji-won, with a touch of healing.

That work embodies his detachment from heartbreak and also reflects the hopes of new director Kwon Hyuk-chan and his writer sister.

And so it sank silently.

……

December 16th.

A new drama series called "Good Days" has quietly appeared in a corner of LINE TV.

There are no homepage recommendations.

There are no splash screen ads.

There wasn't even a decent poster.

Like a grain of sand thrown into the deep sea, it doesn't even bother to make a splash.

During a break on set, Kang Jae-hoon swiped his phone, stared at the lonely icon, hovered his finger for a moment, and finally just turned off the screen.

Director Kwon Hyuk-chan's sigh still seemed to echo in my ears.

He put his phone back in his pocket.

Turn around and walk towards the funeral hall area where preparations were in full swing.

Yoona was standing quietly in front of the monitor.

She had already changed into a simple, almost heavy mourning dress.

The fabric drapes.

It outlines a slender and delicate figure.

Director Lee Seok-hoon was whispering instructions to her about the scene.

His finger occasionally tapped on several key movement and emotional moments on the storyboard.

This scene is the last and most important of the three scenes in which Im Yoona makes a cameo appearance.

When news of Park Moo-taek's tragic death in the snowy mountains arrived, Choi Soo-young's world instantly crumbled.

Her presence was the key driving force that prompted Yan Hongji, who had retired due to injury and whose heart was still filled with unresolved issues, to finally make up his mind to gather his old teammates and return to Mount Everest, determined to bring Park Moo-taek's body down the mountain.

Her despair ignited a flame in Yan Hongji's heart—a flame that belonged to climbers, to brotherhood, and to redeem himself from his past shirking of responsibility.

In the drama, Yan Hongji's wife strongly opposes her husband going into danger again.

Choi Soo-young's pain and silence became a heavy burden that prevented Yan Hongji from staying at home.

The director finished explaining the scene and left.

Lim Yoona knelt in the center of the set with her eyes downcast and her hands gently folded in front of her lower abdomen.

She seemed to be trying to get into the right mood.

Kang Jae-hoon's scenes in the urban setting were all filmed the day before yesterday.

At this moment, he's more like an observer on set. Or perhaps...

In a sense...

ghost?

His gaze was uncontrollable.

Walk past the staff who were busy adjusting the camera positions.

It fell silently on Lim Yoon-a.

Kang Jae-hoon watched her lowered eyelashes and her slightly furrowed brows as she tried to immerse herself in the story but clearly couldn't find a starting point.

I'm reminded of her "disastrous crying scene" that netizens criticized as "exaggerated," "affected," and "disastrous"...

I paused for two seconds to think.

He then stepped forward and walked over.

Footsteps made a slight sound on the makeshift wooden floor.

Im Yoon-ah looked up when she heard the sound.

His eyes held a hint of bewilderment at being interrupted.

Then I realized it was him.

That confusion quickly turned into inquiry.

"I have some ideas about this scene... is that alright?"

A hint of surprise flashed in Lim Yoona's eyes, and she nodded:
"of course."

"Hmm... I think the sadness in this scene might not need to be so... acted out."

Kang Jae-hoon carefully considered his words, trying to express his meaning clearly:
"When people first receive such devastating news, their first reaction is often one of shock and emptiness. They can't cry, or even process what's happening. Their mind may be blank, or they may be replaying trivial details over and over again. They feel numb."

He observed Yoona's expression, and seeing that she was listening attentively, he continued:
"So, when Yan Hongji comes over to talk to you, don't react immediately. Try... to clear your mind. Look away from the topic, as if you haven't heard what he's saying at all. Let him finish speaking, wait two or three seconds, and then very slowly, like a rusty machine, turn your head to look at him little by little."

Kang Jae-hoon demonstrated to her the sluggish head-turning motion and the empty, lifeless look in his eyes.

“When you look into his eyes at this moment, don’t show too much emotion. Resentment? Yes, because he led Moo-taek down this path. But more than that, there’s numbness, a huge emptiness, and… a trace of despair that you yourself don’t want to admit, a despair that you can only rely on him. Because only he can bring back Park Moo-taek’s body. This emotion is very complex, but it can be expressed in just a pause in your eyes, or a slight curling of your fingers.”

"As for crying... wait until Yan Hongji loses control of his emotions first, and his tears and guilt burst out, then you can break down along with him."

"That suppressed sorrow, brought forth through his tears, feels more real and powerful. It makes the character…more than just a tool to drive Yan Hongji's decision. She has to be a woman of flesh and blood, crushed by fate, clinging on by her last shred of devotion. Even…"

"...so that the audience can forget about your face, Yoona, at that moment."

Yoona's breath hitched for a moment.

Kang Jae-hoon's words were like a sharp, cold scalpel.

It precisely dissects the complex texture of the character.

It was like a surge of scalding electricity.

It instantly broke through the bottleneck that had previously been unclear to her, which she could only express by "acting sad".

Lim Yoona turned to look at Kang Jae-hoon and suddenly felt a little dizzy.

She couldn't quite tell whether the dazzling light came from the ceiling lights or from Kang Jae-hoon himself.

Or maybe.

It's both.

—The somewhat clumsy yet strangely attractive man she initially "picked up" in the dubbing studio.

At this moment, a truly powerful and steadfast core has grown.

This belongs to the core of actor Kang Jae-hoon.

He was not just teaching her acting.

More importantly, she is shaping the "world" as she understands it.

"I understand."

The tension in Lim Yoona's eyes, the tension from working so hard for the performance, dissipated considerably. She gave Kang Jae-hoon a very faint, almost imperceptible smile of gratitude.

"Thank you for your special treat, Mr. Park Moo-taek."

Kang Jae-hoon felt a slight stirring in his heart when she addressed him as "Mr. Park Moo-taek," but he simply nodded.

"come on."

He stepped back a few paces, giving her back the space.

……

"Action!"

The clapperboard fell.

The camera is on.

The atmosphere inside the mourning hall was as cold as ice.

Hwang Jung-min plays Eom Hong-gil, who has a limp and an injured leg.

With heavy, hesitant steps.

step.

The sound of heels striking the floor echoed in the empty room.

He stopped in front of Lim Yoona.

Looking at her bloodless face.

Those eyes were hollow, as if covered with a thick layer of dust.

Hwang Jung-min's lips moved several times.

A thousand words.

Self-blame, guilt, and promises.

In the end, he managed to squeeze out only a broken syllable, choked up by a sob in his throat:
"...Sooyoung...I'm sorry...I..."

At this moment, Lim Yoon-ah, who plays Choi Soo-young, looks like a frozen wax figure.

His gaze was unfocused.

It was as if they hadn't heard at all.

two seconds.

Two cold, long, and deathly silent seconds.

The sound of the camera panning was clearly audible.

The pain and shame on Hwang Jung-min's face were amplified silently in the extreme silence.

An uncontrollable redness gradually rose in the back of his eyes.

A thick layer of water vapor quickly spread out.

He suddenly raised his rough palm.

He covered his mouth tightly!

Trying to suppress the overwhelming emotions that surged up in that instant, a mixture of self-blame, pain, and regret!

But suppressed sobs still leaked out from between her fingers.

His shoulders twitched violently.

It was like the last pillar collapsing with a crash.

"Woo..."

Just as Hwang Jung-min broke down, Im Yoon-a's body finally trembled almost imperceptibly.

It was as if I was awakened from the boundless void by this sudden sob.

She was extremely slow...

Extremely stiff...

Like a rusty puppet turning its first joint.

He shifted his empty gaze from the cold floor to the man in front of him, who was covering his face and trembling with pain.

Her eyes still lacked any sparkle.

She just stared at him intently.

Looking at the man who once led her husband to the pinnacle, and now brought her cold, devastating news of her husband's passing.

Watching him crumble before my eyes.

Her lips moved slightly.

He seemed to want to say something.

But in the end, no sound came out.

In those lifeless eyes.

A single, glistening tear.

Without any warning, under such an empty gaze, tears silently slid down her pale cheeks.

It eventually dripped onto the back of her hand, which was tightly gripping the hem of her clothes.

It left a cold, damp mark.

……

"Crack!"

On the monitor screen—

A tear in Lim Yoon-a's empty eyes.

Hwang Jung-min covered his face, his hunched figure frozen in time, completely devastated.

There is no extra scheduling.

There was no deliberate attempt to evoke emotion.

It relies solely on the actors' meticulous and precise portrayal of being immersed in immense grief.

This creates an unparalleled impact.

Director Lee Seok-hoon leaned deeply into the folding chair.

He stared at the close-up shot he had been watching repeatedly on the screen—

Lin Yoona's slender hands gripped the hem of her clothes tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.

It's this tiny, almost negligible action.

"hiss……"

Director Lee Seok-hoon gasped.

His eyes held a mixture of surprise, astonishment, and disbelief.

He recalls that he only emphasized "numbness" and "delayed reaction".

But that little gesture of clenching the hem of her clothes...

This emotional progression is precise down to the millisecond...

This unadorned, bone-deep sorrow and sense of helplessness...

And that's how she came to perform, all so fresh and beautiful?
at the same time.

Kang Jae-hoon, dressed in dark casual clothes and so quiet he almost blended into the background, slowly raised his hand.

The movements weren't fast.

Yet it carries a clear and solemn meaning.

They applauded the slender figure in the room who seemed not to have completely detached herself from the role of "widow".

a bit.

One more time.

The applause was not loud.

It was exceptionally clear in the quiet, newly quiet film set.

The stagehands and lighting assistants nearby were taken aback for a moment.

I was immediately moved by the applause, which was filled with pure appreciation.

They also sparsely joined in the applause.

soon.

The applause rang out in a small burst.

It's an affirmation of the director.

I admire Hwang Jung-min's textbook-level emotional intelligence.

It is also a genuine tribute to Yoona's groundbreaking performance.

Amid the applause, Lim Yoona slowly turned her head.

His gaze unconsciously searched for something.

then.

Unsurprisingly, he ran into Kang Jae-hoon's focused gaze, which was filled with undisguised approval.

Eyes facing each other.

Kang Jae-hoon could clearly see the lingering sense of heartbreak in her eyes.

The urge to get closer and confirm her well-being instantly entwined his heart like vines, driving him uncontrollably toward her.

The surrounding noise seemed to become a blurred background sound.

When he came to his senses...

He had stopped half a step away from Yoona.

Adam's apple rolling.

A million comforting opening lines flashed through my mind.

Just as he hesitated over how to begin—

Without warning, Lim Yoona took a step forward and buried herself in his arms!
Her forehead pressed heavily against the chest of his thick down jacket.

The tip of her nose was buried deep inside.

Kang Jae-hoon's body stiffened instantly!
A sweet peach scent, mingled with the faint scent of candles lingering on her mourning clothes, instantly and forcefully filled his nostrils. The aroma was so close, so real, that it instantly shattered all his hesitation and barriers of reason.

Everyone on set was focused on the unexpected hug.

A subtle silence, a mixture of surprise, understanding, and good-natured irony, filled the air.

A few seconds later.

Kang Jae-hoon's stiff body finally relaxed.

He raised his arms very slowly.

There was a sense of unfamiliarity and hesitation in it.

But in the end.

And with unwavering determination and complete resolve—

He hugged her tightly in return.

One hand carefully, through the thick, soft fabric.

He pressed his hand against her slightly trembling back.

The fingertips of the other hand.