Chapter 10 · 10 min
Chapter 10
Movie Filming
________________
“I’m Park Sangcheol, playing the role of Yoon Hoyoung. I look forward to working with you.”
Clap clap clap!
Due to the nature of zombie movies, about 90% of it is running away, but wouldn’t that be too bleak otherwise.
So in Train to Seoul, there is one role that unusually goes on a rampage.
‘Yoon Hoyoung.’
Forget zombies, just look at those arms that seem capable of tearing even a zombie grandfather in half.
Just looking at them makes me feel reassured.
“Next is Actress Ryu Mina.”
Now it was my turn.
“Hello! I’m Ryu Mina, playing the role of Seo Hayoung! Since this is my first movie, I’m sure I’ll have a lot of shortcomings, so I look forward to working with you!”
Clap clap clap!
‘What a shame... Introductions should be impactful, after all...’
I had just come up with a fresh, foolproof introduction that would leave a definite impression on everyone gathered here.
But unable to withstand the murderous aura from Mom that I could feel even without turning around, I ended up doing it normally.
And after everyone else finished introducing themselves too.
“Now that the introductions are over, let’s get started in earnest.”
At Director Noh Seojun’s signal to begin, I lightly prepared myself to immerse in the role.
“Since it’s the first time, let’s start lightly from Scene 3.”
‘Ah, if it’s Scene 3, I don’t have anything to do.’
Scene 3 is where the protagonist, Seo Woojin, argues with his wife over the phone.
So I relaxed the body I had tensed in preparation to act and looked at Mr. Kim Jinho.
‘I was curious how Mr. Kim Jinho acts, so this works out well.’
Even if it was only a script reading, he was a famous, acclaimed actor.
Surely even here, I would be able to see at least a glimpse of it.
“Hello.”
And the moment I heard his first line, I felt my prediction had been correct.
‘...He’s different.’
For one thing, I could immediately see something he was clearly better at than me.
‘His vocal projection is really good...’
I knew that vocal projection was important in acting.
But vocal projection was something you had to work on regularly, wasn’t it.
Right now, I had only become interested in acting, not seriously decided to become an actor.
So practicing vocal projection felt like too much of an investment, and I had focused on raising other abilities instead.
‘And it’s not like my vocal projection is bad either. Especially my pronunciation.’
This was another ability I had developed after regressing.
‘Back when I was little and couldn’t pronounce things properly, I struggled desperately to make myself understood, and this is what came out of it.’
So even if I didn’t know about my projection, my pronunciation alone was top class.
“Are you bringing Hayoung to Seoul this Chuseok?”
“Do I really need to?”
‘Whoa... Seeing this in person makes me want to smack him in the back of the head even more.’
Even when I watched the movie, every time Seo Woojin spoke in that irritating way, my violent impulses rose.
Seeing it in real time made that feeling at least twice as strong.
“I’m her mom! What do you mean, do you really need to?!”
“Her former mom, you mean.”
‘He’s seriously good.’
Now it went beyond merely feeling annoyed and reached the point where I didn’t even want to deal with him.
‘That’s how good his acting is.’
I continued observing Mr. Kim Jinho carefully until the scene ended.
‘Hmm... I feel like I’m starting to get it...’
I identified a few elements that raised the level of detail, but I still didn’t understand the essence.
‘Well, we’re only at the script-reading stage, and there are plenty of good actors around me right now.’
Suddenly, I became curious.
By the time today passed and filming for this project ended.
How much would I have grown?
______________
A few days after the script reading ended.
Train to Seoul went through various processes and entered full-scale filming.
‘It definitely gets really busy once filming starts...’
“Though not today!”
Today was, incredibly, the first day since filming started that I had absolutely nothing scheduled, so I could peacefully rest at home.
“I’m going to really sink my teeth into a game for the first time in a while~!”
There was a game I had gotten into lately.
It had been famous even before I regressed, but back then I didn’t have a smartphone, so I couldn’t play it.
By the time I got a smartphone later, the craze had already ended, so I had simply forgotten about it.
‘If I’d known it was this fun, I would’ve played it sooner.’
I settled into position on my bed, stocked the shelf beside me with plenty of cola and snacks, and played the game seriously for a while.
‘...Why isn’t this fun?’
Suddenly, my interest plummeted.
‘No, it’s not that it isn’t fun.’
It was just... less fun.
“Ehh, I guess I’m already bored of it.”
I suppose there was a reason the craze had died so quickly.
I quickly turned the game off, made plans to hang out with the kids from school instead, and went outside.
“Hi~!”
“Hey! Mina’s here!”
And 30 minutes later.
‘...Why isn’t this fun either.’
Once again, my dopamine wasn’t being satisfied.
“Guys, I’m going to head home first.”
“Ah, stay and play a little longer!”
“Yeah!”
“Sorry.”
Leaving my friends who tried to stop me behind, I came home and wondered what I should do for fun.
‘Ah, right.’
Suddenly, the filming set came to mind.
“Mom.”
“What.”
“I want to go to the set.”
“Huh? Don’t you have no filming today?”
“Yeah. But I want to go anyway.”
Over the past few days, I had succeeded in organizing what I learned from watching the other actors during the script reading and what I learned on set.
‘Organizing it, at least.’
I had organized it, but I couldn’t quite get a feel for how to actually absorb these things.
“So I want to go and watch directly.”
“Really? Then let’s go.”
“Yeah!”
‘This is probably why I can’t relax and have fun, because I haven’t solved this yet.’
Doesn’t playing while you still have homework left leave you feeling uncomfortable in the back of your mind.
This had to be the same reason.
‘I should finish it quickly and then have fun!’
With that goal in mind, I went to the filming set.
“Director! I’m here!”
“Oh, you came!”
I had told Director Noh Seojun in advance that I would be coming.
He had sounded excited even over the phone, and when I arrived, he greeted me with an extremely happy expression.
“Actress Ryu Mina. That desire to learn acting is truly admirable. It’s exactly how an actor should be.”
‘Ah, this guy’s starting again.’
The director was normally closer to the taciturn type, but whenever acting came up, he always became talkative.
‘Especially with me, I think.’
If his normal level was 1, and when he talked about acting with other people it was 6, then with me alone it was around 9 or 10.
“And I told you I might not become an actor.”
The last time I got the chance, I had once told him why I had participated in the audition for Seo Hayoung and how I currently felt.
Even so, Director Noh Seojun kept calling me an actor and lecturing me about an actor’s mindset.
“It’s only because the time hasn’t come yet. And when that moment comes, everything I’ve told you will help.”
“Ugh, what an old-fashioned geezer. Nagging again.”
“A-An old-fashioned geezer...?”
And this director.
Contrary to his image, he was surprisingly fun to tease.
‘How should I put it. Like a straight-A model student?’
Those kids who are only good at studying are surprisingly clumsy at other things, so their reactions are good when you tease them, aren’t they.
Director Noh Seojun was that type too.
“Hey.”
Flinch!
“Director! I’m sorry!”
I bent my waist to exactly 90 degrees.
“No, it’s fine. It was my fault for saying that when you haven’t even properly made up your mind yet.”
“Ah, then I’d like to withdraw the apology I just made.”
“...Ryu Mina.”
“Haha! Director! You know that part was a joke too, right?!”
“Yes... Of course...”
Since I had enjoyed myself enough, I stopped fooling around and decided to accomplish the reason I came here.
“So what scene are you filming right now?”
“Scene 16.”
To summarize Scene 16, it’s the scene where the protagonist, Seo Woojin, first encounters a zombie and runs away.
To explain it a little more fully.
After various events, Seo Woojin boards the train, goes to the bathroom, and notices that the inside of the train is in chaos.
So in order to figure out what is causing the commotion, he moves against the fleeing crowd.
And after going far enough, he witnesses from a distance someone who had just been screaming for help get bitten by a zombie and become infected.
‘It was kind of a frustrating part.’
Going against the crowd all the way toward the source of the disturbance, for one.
‘And right after this scene, there’s even a short sequence where he gets chased by those zombies.’
Still, it was a scene that clearly showed the movie had finished its buildup and was now truly beginning.
“It’s an important scene. That’s why I think it’s fortunate that Actress Ryu Mina gets to watch us film this scene.”
“Why?”
“You’ll have a lot to learn from Actor Kim Jinho.”
“Hmm...”
I did remember seeing this scene in the movie.
But if you asked whether it had left a strong impression.
‘I’m not sure.’
Narratively, it was definitely an important scene.
But I wasn’t sure whether there was a lot for me to learn from it in terms of acting.
‘The chaotic atmosphere is more memorable, after all.’
While I was thinking that.
“Alright, we’ll start again. Ready. Action!”
Filming began with Director Noh Seojun’s cue.
Thud! Thud!
“Aaaaaah!”
“R-Run!”
“Move!”
“W-What’s going on...?”
I watched Mr. Kim Jinho’s bewildered expression caught by the camera.
‘Hmm, just as I thought, the group seems more important than the individual here.’
Aside from Seo Woojin’s brief question just now, there were no more lines in this scene.
“Move!”
Seo Woojin, who had been standing still because he didn’t understand what was going on, was shoved aside by someone fleeing in a hurry.
‘He is acting well...’
His expression showed confusion and irritation toward the person who had just shoved him.
And curiosity about the current situation that overwhelmed all of it.
‘But this much is obvious.’
Just as I thought I should keep watching, the camera angle changed.
‘Oh, it looks like a third-person game screen.’
It placed the protagonist near the center of the screen while showing more of the surroundings.
Making it intuitively clear just how chaotic the situation was without any extra explanation.
‘But what do you call this kind of angle?’
I should ask the director separately later.
After finishing my thoughts about the camera angle, I looked at Mr. Kim Jinho again.
‘Huh...?’
I felt a sense of incongruity, as though something was different from just moments ago.
‘...Did his acting style change?’
When I focused a little more, it didn’t take long to notice what had changed.
‘What should I call this?’
It was like there was more exaggerated movement.
Yes, exaggeration had been added.
It was the moment I understood what the director meant when he said there was a lot to learn.
‘Acting doesn’t necessarily have to pursue naturalness at all times?’
If you think about it, acting is ultimately an act of showing something to other people.
In ordinary situations, acting naturally could be called good acting.
But if you acted naturally even in an environment this chaotic, the protagonist’s presence would get swallowed by the disorder and die out.
‘So he’s deliberately exaggerating his movements to raise his presence.’
I felt as though I had hit a wall.
‘No, he considers even things like this while acting...?’
But at the same time, I also felt competitive.
‘I want to act like that too— no.’
I want to act even better.
“Ah, this is fun.”
A sense of fulfillment completely different from what I felt while gaming or playing with the kids today wrapped around me.
‘The more I act, the less I understand acting.’
As my skill improves, I realize more and more that I’m a frog in a well.
And realizing that, then growing one step at a time again, is incredibly fun.
“Cut! Ah, that was good.”
‘Ah.’
While I was lost in my thoughts by myself, filming had already ended.