Chapter 34:
Busan International Film Festival.
One of the leading film festivals in Korea and now representing Asia.
<The Last Diner> has been nominated for the New Currents category. New Currents is a section targeting the first or second feature-length works of directors from Asia, often selecting works of directors who have been recognized for their exceptional directing skills through numerous short films.
"Wow"
A sincere exclamation of admiration slipped from Han Yooil's lips.
"Congratulations, Director, really."
"It's all thanks to you, Yooil!"
"Not at all. It's all thanks to you, Director"
"No!"
Yoo Jaeho cut off Han Yooil and added,
"I'm 100% sincere when I say this. It really wouldn't have been possible without you, Yooil."
It was a voice filled with genuine sincerity. Han Yooil licked his lips.
Somehow.
It was an indescribable feeling.
"Thank you."
"I should be the one thanking you! Haha, let's all have a meal together next time. It's on me!"
After his hearty declaration, Yoo Jaeho ended the call.
Min Woojin, who had been sitting in the waiting room, widened his eyes after hearing the conversation.
After quickly exiting the waiting room to contact the agency, Min Woojin returned shortly after with an awkward smile.
"I thought so, but you already knew Haha!"
It's not time for an official announcement yet. It will take quite some time before the press release is issued.
"Anyway, congratulations, Yooil."
Yooil, while listening to Brion's voice, replied to Woojin's words.
"Thank you, hyung."
The plump cheeks of Min Woojin looking at Yooil were filled with pride.
Until just a few months ago, Han Yooil was an actor whose name wouldn't even properly appear on the internet.
Buku Film Festival'
While Woojin was immersed in the fulfillment he felt as a manager, a light knock sounded.
Now, Min Woojin could also tell whose knock it was.
"Harang is here!"
At Woojin's words, Han Yooil nodded and got up from his seat.
"Yooil hyung! Are we going to do the reading together today as well?"
At some point, Harang started calling Yooil Yooil hyung.' When Yooil once asked why, Harang cheerfully replied,
Just because I like saying it!
Well, whatever the reason, it was up to him, so Yooil didn't mind.
However, that nickname seemed to be quite an interesting topic for the other staff members.
"Harang, you're calling him Yooil hyung' as a nickname, right?"
"That's so cute~"
Harang responded to the staff's questions with a refreshing smile.
It was an expression that never failed to impress, reminiscent of the face shown to fans at a fan-signing event.
Yooil followed Harang out of the waiting room. On the set, the main actors had already gathered their chairs and were sitting in a circle.
"Shall we start right away if it's okay?"
"Yes!"
"Alright"
"Yes~"
As Byul, Hyena, and even Ji Eunho nodded, Yooil took out his script.
The director of the making-of film, holding the camera a few steps back, captured their images entirely.
Looks good.'
He looked at their image on the camera with a content smile.
There's no easy shooting in this world. There's even a saying, If it's not hard, it's not a shoot.' But no matter how tough it gets, if the atmosphere is good, it's bearable.
There's a saying that if the people are good, it's okay even if the work is tough, and it's not for nothing.'
And the protagonist leading that atmosphere was the actor sitting in the middle, wearing non-prescription glasses.
He didn't talk much, but he was kind and not overly friendly, yet sensitive.
It's amazing.'
The fact that the making-of film for <Sing in High School> was as popular as the main series itself was perhaps, unsurprising.
"Okay, let's start filming~"
At the assistant director's call, the actors stood up from their seats with a more relaxed expression.
* * *
All the kids, except for Gihyeon, were in the club room.
Two days ago, they had completed the second round of <Superstar High School> and earned the valuable result of passing.
Now, what remained was the final round.
However, despite the situation that should have been entirely joyful, the children's expressions were dark.
It was because Seon Gihyeon hadn't shown up on the day of the evaluation.
"What should we do Does anyone still have contact with him?"
"Hey, don't tell me something happened to him?"
Half of the children were worried.
"It's obvious. He must have chickened out at the last moment. Everyone knows he doesn't like us."
"Seon Gihyeon does hate me. A lot."
The other half thought it was intentional behavior.
The former were Hyobin and Harang, the latter were Heena and Taewoo.
At Heena's cynical remark, Hyobin, who was rolling her eyes, suddenly stood up at Taewoo's claim that Seon Gihyeon hates me.'
"Hey, stop it. We should find out what really happened before saying anything."
Hyobin glared at Taewoo with eyes wide open like an angry Maltese. Taewoo watched Hyobin expressionlessly for a few seconds and then smirked.
"If the top student says so, it must be true."
"Taewoo!"
At the clear sarcasm, Hyobin was about to get angry when the club room door opened.
The person who entered was none other than Seon Gihyeon.
"What, I thought you left?"
Heena's sharp words were followed by Taewoo's voice.
"Speak of the tiger and he will come."
Hyobin watched tensely as Taewoo and Gihyeon interacted. She had been the closest observer of their relationship, which seemed to get a little better only to fall apart again and return to square one.
Please don't fight.'
Taewoo leaned forward aggressively and then slowly approached him.
"Hey. Why didn't you come?"
However, Gihyeon kept his head down, not responding to Taewoo. It was a completely different look from his usual upright posture and sharp gaze.
"You said you'd come. That you'd stand on stage. Then why did we practice? Why did you even go to the preliminary round?"
Taewoo continued, his voice rising with each step he took closer to Gihyeon.
Soon, Taewoo was right in front of Gihyeon's nose.
"Do you find all this funny?"
""
"Or is it me who's the joke?"
Taewoo, with one corner of his mouth raised, spoke sarcastically.
He looked at Gihyeon with eyes that had gone cold.
"Answer me. While I'm still asking nicely."
"Hey, Taewoo stop it."
"Shut up, you."
Harang, who tried to intervene, was brushed off and shrank back.
Even then, Gihyeon kept looking at the ground.
Hyobin looked at Gihyeon with worried eyes.
Why is he like this?'
Gihyeon's behavior was very unlike him. Just as Hyobin was about to approach him, Gihyeon's lips began to move.
"rry."
His voice was more of a strained whisper than a murmur.
Seon Gihyeon's lips moved again, his voice hanging by a thread, seemingly ready to snap at any moment.
"I'm sorry."
In the bewildered eyes of Taewoo, the reddened rims of Gihyeon's eyes became apparent.
In an instant, a single tear streaked down from Gihyeon's right eye like a shooting star.
"Hey, you"
Taewoo's mouth hung open. It was as if someone had whitewashed his mind; no thoughts came to him.
"I wanted to be on stage Really."
Gihyeon continued, his head hung low. His voice, though on the verge of breaking, continued without a break.
"I had no choice because of my father. I'm sorry"
Gihyeon's father. The local congressman, known for his benevolent smile, was actually recognized by those close to him as being oppressive and a control freak. He always pushed Gihyeon, constantly comparing him with Hyobin, the top student in school.
Taken aback, Taewoo stepped back.
He hadn't expected that' Gihyeon to apologize, let alone cry.
"Hey."
Gihyeon still fixed his gaze on the ground.
"Okay, got it, so stop crying."
Starting with Taewoo's voice, everyone began to chime in.
"Yeah, Gihyeon!"
"Ah! Do you want some water?"
"Here, tissues."
Gihyeon looked blankly at them.
""
In his blurred vision, he could see the worried faces of his friends and various hands reaching out to him in a flurry.
The turmoil, resignation, sadness, and guilt staining Gihyeon's face gave way to a question.
Why are they all making those faces?'
Gihyeon thought they had every right to criticize him and be angry. He hadn't shown responsibility or courtesy.
But why.
Why are they being like this to me?
"Thank you."
A vitality slowly began to return to Gihyeon's clouded eyes.
The camera, capturing Gihyeon in a bust shot, slowly started to zoom in on his face.
The subtle tremble in Gihyeon's eyes as he took in the faces of his friends, his eyes gradually cleared.
"Perfect."
Kim Kyuoh watched the monitor with satisfaction.
Just as he was about to call cut, Gihyeon did something unexpected.
"I want to be on stage."
"!"
"I'm sorry. I won't run away anymore."
Everyone looked at Gihyeon with widened eyes.
That was'
They were genuinely surprised.
Because,
That line wasn't in the script.'
The line Gihyeon just uttered wasn't in the script.
A brief silence followed.
"Okay!"
Kim Kyuoh called okay, then fixed his gaze on the monitor with an inscrutable expression.
Hmm.'
Kim Kyuoh generally didn't favor ad-libs or additions to the script by actors.
But this time,
"Nice."
He had known it before, but Han Yooil was indeed a smart actor. He knew exactly what he was good at.
Kim Kyuoh shrugged and said,
"Let's go with this."
* * *
During the break at the nursing academy,
Jin Hayoung, sitting on a chair placed in front of the classroom, checked her phone. It was to see the message just received from her nephew.
(Photo)
Auntie. I'm filming today as well. Make sure you eat well. See you on the weekend!
The photo sent by Yooil was a selfie. The blurry backdrop showed the filming equipment lined up on set.
Hmm.'
Apparently, her nephew didn't have a talent for selfies.
But he's handsome, though.'
While Jin Hayoung was smiling at her phone, she started to hear the voices of the students.
"Is there anything fun these days?"
"I really enjoyed <How We Ended Up> recently!"
"Me too."
"Oh come on, that's old news."
The youngest student in the academy lit up and spoke.
"I've been enjoying something recently! Ah what was it, Sing something. I can't remember all of a sudden! Ah, what was it?"
Jin Hayoung's ears perked up. Without realizing, she opened her mouth.
"Sing in High School?"
"Yeah! That's it. Do you watch it too, teacher?"
Jin Hayoung tried to suppress her rising cheekbones and replied calmly.
"Of course."
"Wow, me too. I thought it would be childish with all the idols, but it's really fun."
"Yeah, everyone acts so well!"
"Who was it, Yooil? That guy is really good at acting."
Jin Hayoung's lips were now proudly raised. She felt an itch to speak.
It should be fine to say this much, right?
Jin Hayoung took a deep breath and spoke.
"Actually, that guy is my nephew."
"What, really?!"
"Wow! Teacher, really?!"
"Han Yooil?!"
The classroom suddenly became noisy.
The students, with a sparkle in their eyes rarely seen during lessons, bombarded Jin Hayoung with questions. It was a level of enthusiasm she hadn't seen during class.
Jin Hayoung looked at them with an ambiguous smile. The auntie's self' and the teacher's self' clashed inside her, but eventually, the former won.
"He just sent me a photo, want to see?"
"Wow! Awesome!"
"Want to see!"
She couldn't help being a doting aunt.
And so, Jin Hayoung's class that day concluded with stories about Han Yooil.
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