A Genius Actor Appears Out of Nowhere - Chapter 4

“Cut. Okay. Keep this one and let’s go for one more take.” “Keep. One more take.” “Going for one more take!”

A corner of Donghan University. A group of students were busy shooting a movie.

It was none other than Park Sang-hyun’s crew—the staff of Cutting Edge.

Park Sang-hyun continued directing while watching the monitor set up in a corner of the location.

Since Kang Woo-joo was currently detained in a holding cell, his strategy was to film all the supporting cast’s scenes that didn’t require Kang Woo-joo today.

The shoot itself was progressing smoothly.

His plan was to shoot the lead actor’s missing scenes all at once later when Kang Woo-joo was released.

Of course, if he wasn’t released within a week, things would get extremely tangled up.

Still, his wishful thinking was that within that week, Kang Woo-joo’s manager, agency CEO, or some acquaintance would pull some strings for him.

If even that failed, he would have to re-audition actors quickly, but for now, the shooting couldn’t be delayed any further.

If things flowed according to the expected timeline, submitting to major film festivals would barely be doable.

Even though the situation had been settled roughly like this, Park Sang-hyun’s expression was far from pleased.

“Senior. Are you not satisfied with the footage? We still have some time, should we go for a few more takes?” “Huh? No. I liked Take 3 and Take 6. The take just now wasn’t bad either, so I think we can pick and choose later.” “…I-Is that so?” “Why?” “Ah, your expression right now looks just like a director who clearly has something to say but is desperately holding it in so he won’t ruin the atmosphere on set.” “Me?” “Yes.” “I’m not.”

He really wasn’t. The supporting actors were currently delivering passionate performances.

Since the film was on the brink of going under due to Kang Woo-joo’s controversy, they were showing 200% enthusiasm among themselves.

Park Sang-hyun was also pleased with most of the shot footage.

Even so, the reason he wore a expression like he’d swallowed a lemon:

“…Mr. Bong Seong-hwa…” “Is it about that person again?” “Yu-jun. You should have seen him too. You really should have. Sigh…”

An aspiring actor named Bong Seong-hwa who had suddenly appeared. It was because he had rejected the lead role and left.

Assistant Director Lee Yu-jun had never seen him act like this before.

‘He was always a senior who bossed people around without a shred of tact.’

Park Sang-hyun held considerable influence within Donghan University.

Even the professors cherished Park Sang-hyun, anxious to connect him with film production companies they had ties with.

Although Donghan University was a prestigious institution for film, no prominent star director had emerged from it recently.

Inwardly, they had earmarked Park Sang-hyun as the famous director who would represent the next generation of Donghan University.

And knowing this fact himself, Park Sang-hyun had pursued his creative work with a fair bit of arrogance.

Yet such a person was now pining desperately over a single actor—an actor with an unclear agency, unknown college background, or rather, no credentials whatsoever.

By this point, even Lee Yu-jun had grown curious about the acting of this aspiring actor named Bong Seong-hwa.

“If you were that regretful, you should have tried harder to hold onto him.” “I did.” “And he still said no?” “Well, he beat around the bush, but ultimately it meant he didn’t want to appear in it.” “What did he say?” “He said he doesn’t want to appear in a work that tells lies. He told me to put my true heart into it.” “…Pardon?”

It was a rejection reason that sounded almost like a philosophical question.

“He said he’d consider appearing once I can put my true heart into the work.” “No… A guy who suddenly showed up with no credentials at all, making such an overstepping demand…” “Tsk! How dare you speak so disrespectfully of the actor!” “…You really look like someone possessed, Senior.”

At this rate, it was almost a religion. Lee Yu-jun felt goosebumps at Park Sang-hyun’s bizarre behavior.

“But is that really a rejection?” “He told me to put my heart into it… I even said I’d modify whatever could be modified, but he just told me to put my true heart into it. He said he didn’t want to boss the work around or command changes.” “…Still, setting modifications aside, isn’t it possible he really just wants to see sincerity?” “That is a rejection. What even is ‘true heart’?” “I don’t know what that means either. But it doesn’t sound like a complete rejection.” “…Really?” “Could he mean something like authenticity?” “Are you saying my work lacks authenticity?”

At this moment, Lee Yu-jun debated whether he should offer a blunt truth or not.

There was no one around who dared to tell Park Sang-hyun this or that about his work.

Park Sang-hyun had already proven himself with numerous awards and was already building a solid career in the film industry.

Noticing Lee Yu-jun hesitating, Park Sang-hyun spoke up.

“What. You have that look on your face like you have something to say?” “Huh?” “Speak.” “Ah.” “Tell me. What is it? Quickly!”

At Park Sang-hyun’s nagging, Lee Yu-jun ended up blurting out the thought he had kept to himself ever since he first read the script.

“It’s… way too much!” “Way too much?” “It feels… way too targeted.” “…Targeted?” “Yes.” “Targeting what?” “Winning film festival awards.” “…!” “Honestly, even you can’t deny it, Senior.”

Park Sang-hyun couldn’t hide his flustered inner feelings.

“You created this aiming for the Grand Prize at the Montage Short Film Festival. It’s been quite a while since a Grand Prize was awarded at Montage, and the judges coming this year happen to be people who like highlighting humans crushed by the times.”

At Lee Yu-jun’s analysis, Park Sang-hyun’s ears turned bright red.

He was right. This work had been planned specifically aiming for the Grand Prize at the Montage Short Film Festival.

He had won awards at numerous famous film festivals. But there was one film festival he particularly had no luck with: the Montage Short Film Festival.

As a short film festival, it boasted the largest scale and highest authority in Asia, serving as a gateway for star directors.

There were Jury Special Awards for each genre, and a single Grand Prize awarded across all genres combined.

However, because the Grand Prize required a unanimous vote from all judges, no Grand Prize work had been awarded for seven years.

Park Sang-hyun was targeting that first Grand Prize in seven years.

“This gloomy atmosphere is the kind Montage Short Film Festival likes, and a character endlessly sinking into despair is the exact character type this year’s judges favor.”

At Lee Yu-jun’s sharp words, Park Sang-hyun bit his lip.

Normally, he would have crushed him with a phrase like, “What do you know, kid!”

Yet strangely, this time he couldn’t bring himself to do so.

If he used his authority to press him down even now, it felt like he would turn into nothing more than a petty human being.

It felt as though he had become a brat who had only learned bad habits early on just because people around him flattered him.

No, it wasn’t just a feeling—that’s exactly what he had been.

‘Was this what Actor Bong Seong-hwa saw…?’

His meeting with Bong Seong-hwa was brief, but the waves he left behind were long.

“…You’re right.” “…Pardon? What did you say?” “I said you’re right… Yu-jun.” “…Are you admitting it right now?” “Now that you’ve said it out loud, it makes it clear that I was a complete dinosaur.”

To think his mindset had hardened like this at merely twenty-seven. He felt ashamed of himself.

“This work… didn’t contain my true heart. You’re right. It didn’t contain my thoughts or beliefs either.”

He wasn’t particularly engrossed in searching for human value in the AI era. He wasn’t a person with a gloomy, depressing worldview. He wasn’t someone trapped in self-pitying thoughts either.

Yet he had put together a work synthesizing all of those elements—not to create a work containing his own essence, but to tailor one to a film festival.

‘I’m a failure as a director.’

Although it was a well-written script, it was a work without a soul.

“Scrapping everything right now… would be too much, wouldn’t it?” “It’s too much. And you don’t need to scrap everything either.” “Really?” “Don’t you remember what the professor told us in screenwriting class?” “I don’t know. I don’t pay attention in classes taught by people who make worse movies than me.” “…” “So what did he say?” “’As long as the beginning and the end of a story are good, the middle will carry itself. If you’re ambiguous, end it with a happy ending.’” “…?” “Since the beginning is already set, try revising just the ending. Rather than modifying what’s written, try adding just one or two scenes.”

Even just one or two scenes could vastly change the impression of a movie—especially if it was a short film with a small overall volume.

“…Just one or two scenes?”

Park Sang-hyun tapped his fingers against his temple, seemingly lost in thought. And then—

“…!”

As if something had struck him, he left the set after asking Lee Yu-jun to take care of things.

“Yu-jun. Feed the kids first.” “… Send them to eat? There’s still an hour left until lunch break?” “Eat early! I’ll be quick! I’ll go write a bit and be right back!”

In the middle of a fast-moving short film set, the director had abandoned his post for a second time.

“…Will this really turn out fine?”

Assistant Director Lee Yu-jun was genuinely worried whether the shoot would wrap up smoothly.

Bong Seong-hwa returned from his morning run.

“Ughhhh… Water…” “That’s why I told you not to drink like that yesterday.” “…Two days in a row… the hangover is severe.”

Last night, Lee Jin-sung had slept over at Bong Seong-hwa’s place once again, saying that since his exam was over, he needed to wash it down with another drink. Of course, Bong Seong-hwa didn’t drink this time either, but Lee Jin-sung, seemingly accustomed to drinking alone, poured himself drinks right in front of Seong-hwa.

As a result, early this morning, he had turned into a human heap of trash rolling around on the floor.

Seong-hwa handed him a bottle of fresh water. Lee Jin-sung took the water as if receiving holy water and gulped it down. Only then did his senses return slightly, and he barely managed to sit up and lean against the wall.

“…Do you run like that every day?” “Yeah.” “Amazing.” “What’s so amazing about this?” “…Morning runs. I always try to do them too.” “Then why don’t you?” “Because I only try. I don’t execute.”

Bong Seong-hwa gave a dry laugh and went inside to wash up.

While he was showering, Bong Seong-hwa’s phone vibrated.

Bzzzz— Bzzzz—

Lee Jin-sung, who had laid back down to fall asleep again, sat up at the noisy vibration.

“Ugh. Who is it?”

Soaked in his remaining hangover, Lee Jin-sung answered the call without even checking whether it was his phone or not.

“…Hello.” —Actor Bong Seong-hwa! Is it convenient to talk right now? “…Seong-hwa? Ah, it’s not my phone.”

Only then did Lee Jin-sung realize it wasn’t his phone.

—Ah, is this not Actor Bong Seong-hwa’s phone? Don’t tell me he gave me a wrong number on purpose… “Ah, no. It’s nothing like that. Argh, my head. Anyway, yes, this is Seong-hwa’s phone. Who is calling, though?” —This is Park Sang-hyun from Donghan University, whom he met briefly yesterday. “Park Sang-hyun…? Ah. Park Sang-hyun?”

That film student he met briefly yesterday was Park Sang-hyun?

Lee Jin-sung was belatedly shocked.

Park Sang-hyun was a student whose name was known to Donghan University students even if they weren’t in the film department.

Whenever he won awards at famous domestic and international film festivals, banners were hung across campus, and interview videos were frequently uploaded to Donghan University’s YouTube and social media accounts.

Thus, even among students from other departments, rumors circulated that a student named Park Sang-hyun was an incredible genius.

And that very Park Sang-hyun was the student Seong-hwa met yesterday, and now he was calling Bong Seong-hwa’s phone.

‘In just a single day? Only a single day after coming up to Seoul?’

Although Bong Seong-hwa had been extraordinary ever since they were young, Lee Jin-sung hadn’t expected things to move at this speed.

—I stayed up all night rewriting it completely. Far from adding just one or two scenes, I rearranged the scenes altogether and birthed an entirely new work.

To top it off, that famous Park Sang-hyun was talking about how he had rewritten the script for Bong Seong-hwa.

—I can come to where the actor is, so when Actor Bong Seong-hwa comes back, please pass along the message! Please! I beg you!

And with that, the call ended. A few minutes later, Bong Seong-hwa’s shower finished as well.

“Who were you talking to? I heard you speaking.” “Hey… Was the project you turned down yesterday Park Sang-hyun’s work?” “Ah, yesterday? Yeah. It’s Mr. Park Sang-hyun’s project. The writing was good, but it wasn’t what I was looking for.” “You crazy bastard! Do you even know who that person is to do that?”

Lee Jin-sung tried to make Bong Seong-hwa realize how precious the opportunity he almost missed was. However, Bong Seong-hwa’s subsequent reaction only made Lee Jin-sung’s enthusiasm feel awkward.

“Even if I knew, it wouldn’t change anything.” “What?” “If I stray from the path I set, there was no reason for me to come up to Seoul.” “Ha, seriously.”

Feeling somewhat drained by that unyielding firmness, Lee Jin-sung sighed.

“Fine. Well, whatever the case, Mr. Park Sang-hyun said he overhauled the work for you. He practically begged to see you just once more, saying he’d come to where you are.” “Ah, so that call just now was to my phone?” “Sorry. I answered thinking it was mine.” “No need to be sorry.”

Bong Seong-hwa received his phone back from Lee Jin-sung. Just in time, a text message from Park Sang-hyun arrived.

[Actor! I’ll come over with the revised script, so please just give me your address! I’ll be there right away! Let’s have one more meeting, please!]

“Hmm.”

Bong Seong-hwa fell into thought.