I Will Live As An Actor - Chapter 8

I will live as an actor, episode 8,

small role.

Filming is a series of waiting. In particular, in the case of minor roles and supporting actors who had a lower role than the main supporting actors, they often stayed on set without any hesitation. Still, in the case of supporting actors, the situation is better than that of minor actors.

The auxiliary actors often had their main job and acting at the same time, and since there was a class leader who commanded them, they tended to gather in small groups and talk under his leadership. As a result, there are many people who have more than ten years of experience as assistant actors. But minor roles are a different story.

ephemera.

As it is said in vulgar language that one earns a day and eats a day, the life of a minor can be seen as similar to living a day. There is no intention to disparage them. As someone who has worked in small roles for a long time in my past life, I am simply expressing the pain that must be endured under the pleasure that acting gives. But the parties do not see it that way.

They think of themselves as chrysalis. It is a chrysalis that perseveres and works hard until one day it becomes a butterfly that will perform brilliantly on stage. That’s why I constantly repeat the short lines given to me. Sometimes, it is these minor roles that give off more excitement on set than the main cast.

“Guys, get some sleep and hi!”

The famous producer could not keep his mouth shut at the bizarre scene unfolding on one side of the filming set. A boy walking around among the minor characters, distributing boiled potatoes. I knew that he was good-natured and more mature than his peers based on what he showed before, but looking at him now, he seemed to be able to adapt quite quickly.

“Producer, Jumma is completely a thing, right?”

An FD (assistant director) from Busan stuck out his tongue. Anyway, no matter what anyone says, the person who is closest to the minor characters at the filming site is probably FD. This is because his role was to supervise the filming site and convey directing-related changes that frequently change between the PD and camera director to minor actors.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen a child actor come out like this at dawn.”

They were usually the first staff members to arrive at the filming set, but sometimes there were minor roles that arrived before the staff members. Usually, minor actors want to get to know broadcasting officials at least once. Therefore, they do not shy away from odd or unpleasant tasks and often do not leave the filming set even after their own filming is finished. Occasionally, there may be a case where a minor role is used in the place of a puncture, so be prepared.

“And I never thought they would boil potatoes like that.”

“Producer, you’re right too. Jumma has been giving out potatoes to the minors since this morning, and even the camera team and lighting team filled a large kettle full of sugar water and passed around a bowl. What he said was admirable. If you recite the lines on an empty stomach, it’s difficult to pronounce them. It can leak. The cargo staff told me that you need sugar in your blood vessels to gain strength. Huh, I thought I was watching my 80-year-old grandmother.”

It was definitely FD’s responsibility to connect the field situation flexibly and smoothly, like oiling an old motor. However, it is not easy to strike a balance between leading supporting actors and minor roles. This was even more so when a large number of talented supporting actors gathered together like today.

From the FD’s point of view, if you focus on supporting actors, dissatisfaction will leak out among minor actors. The young boy was now acting as a lubricant to eliminate this noise. Like a veteran who has been around the filming set for a long time.

“Jiyong, did our costume team prepare that outfit?”

Yumyeong looked at the outfit England was wearing. It was a filming location set in the 1980s. The boy’s costume was appropriate. Looking at the sneakers, which were torn here and there, faded, and dirty with mud, I felt like the research had been done properly. Moreover, look at his close-shaven head, which gave him a docile appearance, along with his bronze-colored skin, giving him a sharp edge. Anyone can see that it looks like a boy from the 1980s was taken straight out of a photo.

“I know you’re amazing. I prepared all of those clothes and hair for you. The head of the costume team was curious and asked me where on earth you could get clothes with such an old brand. The answer I got was outstanding.”

“What did you say?”

“They said they looked through all the old clothes collection boxes on the floor of Yeongdo. If you look at their fingernails, they are dead, but they were made that way by deliberately touching the briquette powder. The camera director said that when he saw that guy in the early morning, he almost fell to his death. Filming hadn’t even started. .”

Will I be able to get enough of it without being surprised?

“I thought it was really young Kim Ha-jin walking in.”

* * *

Dramas are divided into airing time prices depending on the production period and narrative structure. There are one-act plays that are digested as short stories through well-structured scripts and directing, but there are also morning dramas that take care of mothers’ mornings through a breathless narrative structure, mini-series produced considering the free format and quality lacking in regular serials, and family dramas and new dramas that have guaranteed viewership ratings. It ranges from weekend dramas filled with .

August man.

‘The Man in August’, the debut work of famous producer and writer Choi Eun-sook, was a 16-episode mini-series. Considering that most past mini-series were organized within 10 episodes, The Man in August boasts a fairly high episode count. This may be because the synergy between a famous producer and writer Choi Eun-sook was maximized.

“Are you the child protagonist?”

Around the time I was chatting with the minor characters.

“Yes, the role of Kim Ha-jin is Jang Young-guk.”

The actress who played the mother arrived at the scene. She can be said to be the most important supporting character in this filming set. Her years of experience, as well as her experience, were telling. The actress from the theater company ‘Dawn’ has just turned 30, but she is renowned for her outstanding acting in movies and dramas.

‘It’s still famous twenty years later.’

She was an actress I had encountered in my past life. It is said that his acting skills and understanding of immersive characters were outstanding even from his youth. As evidence of this, even at the age of over 50, he was quite active, taking on various roles. He is an actor with a wide acting spectrum.

But it was also famous in other ways. Look at the faint traces of lipstick smeared on her cheeks. I tried my best to erase it, but I couldn’t avoid the sharp eyes. Twenty years later, he became the subject of a rumored affair that spread widely because he said he couldn’t give his dog a bad habit. No matter how you look at it, the role of an adulterous woman is more appropriate than the role of a mother.

“Kid, have you ever tried acting? It’s tiring to play with inexperienced beginners.”

“It’s not a kid, it’s Jang Young-guk, ma’am.”

“What? Auntie?”

“You didn’t introduce yourself.”

“Hey, look at this little guy. Yes, I’m Park Soo-young, who plays your mother. Are you okay?”

“I have never learned acting separately.”

“Then that’s right. No, there are a lot of child actors, so where did they bring in such a rookie?”

Park Soo-young felt a tingling pain in his temples. I already heard from the producer in charge that he had casted a child actor who had to match up with him. But a child who has never learned acting?

“Who is the guardian?”

“I came alone.”

Child actors are usually divided into two categories. There are cases where I learned acting because I was surrounded by skirts and I couldn’t overcome the pressure from my parents, and there are cases where I do it because I like acting. However, I cannot guarantee that both categories will show usable performances.

That’s also true, the job of an actor requires you to portray a role through acquired experience and rich emotional portrayal, but how can you know all the joys and sorrows of life even if you’ve lived only a few years? Although it is said that there are child actors who are as good at acting as beans in a drought, Park Soo-young has never encountered such a child actor on set before.

“Okay, go out.”

It was a waiting room located on one side of the filming site. The problem was that I called the child actor who played the son to see what kind of child he was. Rather, as I thought about how many NGs I would have today because of that child, I felt like I was getting drunk again from the alcohol I drank last night. It was then.

“Then I’ll be waiting at the scene, Mom.”

“what?”

The actress’s eyes were filled with absurdity.

“Oh, and Mom. I need to put my makeup back on to look pretty on screen.”

“what?”

“Then I’ll go out first. Please come slowly.”

A child who naturally calls herself mother. Park Soo-young thought as she watched the back of the child walking away.

‘Well, there are all these reckless people out there!’

* * *

The schedule at the filming site is often determined by the lead actor. The higher the role, the more external events other than filming are held, so this is taken into consideration. However, what was considered an unwritten rule at the filming site was the filming of child actors. Because of the child actor’s physical limitations, he was given the utmost consideration. In a way, there is no need to suffer from waiting for appearances even if the appearance fee is low.

“Coach Yoo, we have to go to full shot (F/S) and then move on to full figure (F/F), so why don’t we go all the way to the last up shot (C/S) in one shot? Tilt up and go up, and it’s so bad! You keep changing the tape from the beginning. Is there anything I can do?”

“As you can see from reading the script, this direction is best done in one go. If you leave it separately and then insert it, it could end up feeling different, like the duck eggs in the Nakdong River.”

“Don’t you know that in my jjambap? I understand Director Yoo’s desire to save the picture, but you said this is your first time playing a child actor? That’s right, even when I saw you in the early morning, the mask fit so well that I didn’t even know where I got it. But if acting follows the face, being an actor becomes a job. “Where in the world can you be?”

Kim Deuk-hyeong, a cinematographer from Gyeongsang Province, scratched his head. Famous people are also not unaware of his concerns. The filming location was Jagalchi Market. It was originally a place with a lot of people, but when they heard that a drama was being filmed, merchants and other tourists gathered there from the morning, whispering. Although FD was in control, they couldn’t even steal their attention.

In these cases, most experienced actors blend in without paying attention to the situation on set, but child actors were different. The gaze of countless staff cameras and even the attention of onlookers. Outdoor filming is where all the pressure is felt.

“He said he was a guy who got his due. Don’t worry, let’s go.”

“Hmm.”

“How can you fill your stomach with just one drink? When you film a child role, you usually bring plenty of tapes. Don’t worry, I will take responsibility for making up for the camera team’s budget.”

“Okay, I’ll trust Director Yoo and give it a try. By the way, Actor Park should be quiet today. Even in the last production, filming was delayed because Actor Park was scolding the child actor.”

Are you afraid of maggots so you can’t make soybean paste? Under the leadership of Yoo Myung, everyone from the assistant director, camera team, lighting team, and sound team rushed to prepare for filming. The three FDs are busy with each role, with one delivering the director’s instructions to supporting actors and minor characters and the other controlling the scene. Soon, the red light on the camera came on.

“Scene number 1 Jagalchi Market’s mother and child—!”

Clapperboard Filming began with the cheerful sound of the commonly known slate clapstick hitting each other. The cinematographer held his breath and focused on the main character. He may have said that this was his first time acting, but his gait and actions that do not go out of frame are very natural.

What does that expression mean? The guy who used to walk around with a smile on his face even in the wee hours of the morning is now flashing his eyes like an angry rebel. At that moment, as if a trigger had been pulled, the first line of dialogue opened.

“I should be somewhere like this, but since I’m trying to study, you’re telling me to stop going to school and start a business? If you don’t have money, you can just live with what you don’t have, kid! I’m a long-time guy who catches things like parasites crawling in the water and sells them, and I even need mine! Even my dad is this strict. “He died while catching it. But do you want to borrow my hand?”

The rebel’s cry attracted the attention of those around him. However, he has a shiny attitude that doesn’t seem to care about the gaze of those around him. A loud voice caught the attention of Jagalchi Market. On the other hand, the mother, looking shabby and wearing tight pants, was at a loss.

“I’m the only child, so it’s okay to raise him like that. When I grow old like my mother, it’s like eating fish or palako. I won’t do that even if I die. Even if I die, I won’t be here! Wow, I can’t speak. Am I embarrassed? If I’m that embarrassed, I shouldn’t have just thrown it away! It won’t work. “I’m going to get rid of all this fishy stuff!”

The boy, who was as angry as a burning log fire, caught a fish splashing in the red basin and threw it away. It was a mackerel that should have been thrown on the floor of Jagalchi Market. For some reason, the direction the fish was flying was toward the mother, who was wearing skimpy pants.

Snap.

With a loud hitting sound, the fish flew into the arms of the mother, who was wearing skimpy pants. Cinematographer Kim Deuk-hyung was watching the filming scene on camera as if he was absorbed in it, and the staff were also watching. It was the same. The immersion was so deep that even the tourists looked at the scene quietly and holding their breath. It was then.

“NG!”

Yoo Myung shouted loudly at the mother’s line that did not come out over time. On the other hand, actress Park Soo-young, who played the mother, Her face was filled with only embarrassment and anger. It wasn’t just because of the fish that suddenly flew in. In the script, it was written as ‘thrown in,’ so she actually had nothing to say even if it flew at her. The

reason she was so angry was because of something else. It was there. Even though it was only for a moment, the fact that she was overwhelmed by the child actor’s force was unbearable. Her pride was scratched. In a tense confrontation where she could not swallow even once, the cinematographer tilted his head and muttered to himself.

“Jumma acting. Is this your first time?”