Chapter 9
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Translator: Diva
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Cannes Invitation
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A moment later.
Jeon Se-yeon watched Seo Kyung-bin's performance from behind the camera.
This scene was the first meeting between the male and female leads.
Hyeon-woo had made a deal with his landlord's friend: if he could chase out the troublesome tenant plaguing the house, he could live there for just 100,000 won a month in rent.
- You're kinda scary-looking. Just use brute force to push her out.
Standing at the door, Hyeon-woo gave a rough reply into his phone.
"Brute force? Come on, you punk, I'm an intellectual too."
Jeon Se-yeon watched Hyeon-woo's acting from behind the camera and subtly smiled.
She knew it.
Seo Kyung-bin was a rookie who had burst onto the indie film scene like a comet, and he was perfect for handsome, cocky roles like this.
'With that face and acting chops, and still a newbie—no wonder indie directors are drooling over him.'
The only downside was that his face didn't scream romantic lead, making drama gigs tough—
'But with that acting, commercial films will come calling soon.'
"I can just talk my way through it. What the hell...?"
Just as Hyeon-woo said that and grabbed the doorknob—
Something inside the door—like it had been leaning against it—toppled over with a thud.
More precisely, a woman fell straight backward, staring up at Hyeon-woo.
Her upside-down face was smeared with jjampong broth like blood.
The woman's eyes were wide open.
Cute, yet grotesque.
The woman mumbled.
"Mr. Yong-mok...?"
The name of her old lover.
The moment Hyeon-woo saw Su-in, he freaked out and screamed.
"Uwaaaah! Uwaa! Aaaaah!"
But Su-in didn't care at all and slurped up the dangling jjampong noodle between her lips.
Laughter rippled through the staff.
The instant Jeon Se-yeon heard it, chills ran down her spine.
Ah, here it comes.
The feeling that this would be the moment audiences explode in theaters!
It had happened before when she was a script supervisor on a commercial film.
The production company wanted to cut the scene, but she'd felt the chills on set and insisted it stay.
In the end, that moment became the film's iconic gag, parodied by comedians on variety shows.
And right then—
"Cut!"
With Jeon Se-yeon's call, something popped up in front of Su-in... no, Ha Eun-rae.
[<Living with a Ghost> wiki updating...]
[Would you like to search the updated <Living with a Ghost> wiki?]
The moment Ha Eun-rae, still sitting there covered in jjampong broth, mentally selected 'Yes'—
<Living with a Ghost>
Awards: Invited to Cannes Film Festival, La Cinef section
Audience: 20,000
Cannes Film Festival: An international film festival held in Cannes, France—one of the world's top three.
...!
Cannes? For an indie film with 20,000 viewers?
Ha Eun-rae's eyes widened, and a handkerchief suddenly appeared before her.
She looked up to see Park Seo-woo holding it.
"Great work."
And at the same time—
[Congratulations! You've achieved 'First Audience 10k Breakthrough' and received 1 'Search Ticket'!]
['Would you like to use the 'Search Ticket'?']
A 'Search Ticket' had arrived.
* * *
Park Seo-woo couldn't take his eyes off Ha Eun-rae's acting the whole time.
The setup was contrived: a woman who truly believed she was a ghost.
Yet Ha Eun-rae fully embodied it while infusing a gritty realism, like you could imagine a woman like that actually existing somewhere.
Above all, her acting was creative.
She crafted the character in ways no one else would think of, then embodied it fearlessly with her body.
To the point where it made viewers uneasy.
But at the same time, her acting was so captivating it overpowered that unease.
It was almost infuriating to think of that talent in someone else's film.
"Eun-rae-ssi. This scene is gold. Mind if we shoot one more from a different angle? Can you hold the pose while we reset?"
"Sure, of course."
Ha Eun-rae smiled at the director and handed the handkerchief back to Park Seo-woo.
"I probably shouldn't wipe it off now."
"Ah, right."
Park Seo-woo pocketed the handkerchief again.
He obediently returned to the cinematographer and checked the storyboard.
"Hey, that girl's the real deal."
While resetting the gear for the new angle, the cinematographer quietly said to Park Seo-woo.
This cinematographer had shot a few OTT dramas before joining the film academy.
Actually, the academy was full of people with real-world experience, despite the name.
And here he was calling 'Ha Eun-rae'—who'd never acted before in her life—the real deal.
"She doesn't have an agency yet?"
"What, you think you're the lead actor here?"
"...She's twelve years younger than me. Should I call her Actor-nim? Don't be ridiculous."
The cinematographer, who was on casual terms with him, punched his shoulder in exasperation.
Even with that burly frame hefting equipment, Park Seo-woo's body didn't budge.
"You look scrawny, but you're solid. Still boxing?"
"You trying to get hit again?"
"You little punk."
The cinematographer scowled, remembering his sparring loss to Park Seo-woo.
Their connection started at a boxing gym.
Nineteen-year-old Park Seo-woo.
The cinematographer could never forget him.
He'd heard the kid trained for a few years, but their weight difference was over 20 kilos.
So he'd figured he'd win easily...
"Ugh... Uwa?"
Result: KO loss in the first round.
The nineteen-year-old Park Seo-woo charged in without a hint of fear, dropping him flat.
It was impressive.
The way he feared no opponent's punches.
"You aiming to be a pro boxer or something?"
"Nah."
"Then what?"
"Film director."
"What?"
"I want to be a director."
That was the start of their bond.
Park Seo-woo was still an enigma, as always.
The cinematographer quietly gazed at his profile as he studied the storyboard.
"How about one more take on this scene? I think more close-ups would work great."
He recalled what Park Seo-woo had said during the incense scene.
This monster could visualize the entire film from the storyboard alone, and he surely knew exactly how to edit those close-ups.
'I was blown away by the club footage he shot.'
Not to mention the script.
He'd even gasped at the photos Park Seo-woo took.
Could a twenty-year-old really shoot photos like that?
Great at scripts, knows his camera, now storyboards and editing too—fully loaded.
Academy acceptance was a given down the line.
Though Park Seo-woo's ambitions clearly went further.
When he'd raved about one of Park Seo-woo's scripts and urged him to start production right away, what did he say?
"Needs more polishing."
"You entering that somewhere? Or just for YouTube...?"
"I like perfection."
Genius types were impossible to understand.
And Ha Eun-rae was the actress he'd spotted at first glance.
Though anyone seeing her acting now would recognize her talent instantly.
"Anyway, whichever agency snags that Actor-nim is set. Once this hits theaters, offers will flood in. Right? Even showing rough cuts to the profs would get casting calls pouring. Those guys don't let fish like that slip away."
He was right.
Everyone in film hunts desperately for 'the real deal.'
Sometimes it's a script, sometimes a director.
But the ultimate prize is a new face.
A rookie actor.
Discover one right, and it's a jackpot.
That's when it happened.
"Hyung. That short film script you said we should make. Mine."
Park Seo-woo said something unexpected.
"I'm revising it today. Let's shoot it. Us."