Chapter 18

In the script, Jiji was trembling in the corner of the dark warehouse until Jin Kang-sik opened the warehouse door.

Jiji’s mind had already reached its limit since she was kidnapped by strangers days ago.

Confined in the dark warehouse, she was just waiting for the day she would be killed.

She had never thought that Jin Kang-sik, who shared no blood relationship with her, would come to rescue her.

Therefore, Ha Eun’s acting, who opened the warehouse door and came out on her own before Jin Kang-sik even opened it, needed an explanation.

From the perspective of the scene captured on camera, it was an impeccable and touching moment, but it was an ad lib that could easily disrupt the flow of the film if not handled correctly.

For smoother editing of the footage, Director Kwon Jong-hyuk needed to understand Ha Eun’s ad lib.

“So, Ha Eun, persuade me. Why did Jiji come out on her own?”

Director Kwon Jong-hyuk received the emotions that Ha Eun wanted to convey as Jiji clearly.

The confusion stemming from the sight of the men lying around helplessly, having fainted at the hands of Jin Kang-sik.

Realizing that she was ultimately saved by Jin Kang-sik, she exhibited sorrow akin to that of an ordinary child for the first and last time.

Although it was slightly different from Director Kwon Jong-hyuk’s intended process, ultimately, everything resonated deeply.

However, he couldn’t accurately grasp the intention behind why Ha Eun, who usually delivered performances faithfully adhering to the script, acted so differently.

After seating Ha Eun right next to the director’s chair located in the center of the filming set, he asked her to briefly explain her acting while slowly replaying the recently filmed scene.

What Ha Eun faced was not only Director Kwon Jong-hyuk and the various filming staff.

Even though it was an ad lib that hadn’t been discussed in advance, Kang Seon-woo was also gazing intently at Ha Eun.

It would be a complete lie to say that the gazes directed solely at Ha Eun were not burdensome at all.

Still, she didn’t feel like she had acted poorly.

“I thought that acting this way would convey a sense of danger better.”

“Sense of danger… you say?”

“Yes, danger.”

Ha Eun began to explain step by step to Director Kwon Jong-hyuk the intentions she wanted to capture within the camera.

“It would have been safer to stay inside the warehouse than to go out. Jiji was in a state of not knowing what was happening outside.”

“Well, that’s true. All Jiji could know was that someone was fighting outside.”

According to Ha Eun, the probability of Jiji coming out unscathed was very low.

It wasn’t easy even to muster the courage to step outside the warehouse.

“But if she remains trapped in there, she will ultimately die. If she does nothing, nothing will change.”

“Are you saying that Jiji fought for her last chance regardless of her chances of survival?”

“Yes.”

To put it nicely, it could be called an adventure.

To put it poorly, a gamble.

Just as reality often is, risks of failure are higher than those of success in such matters.

With human traffickers swarming outside the warehouse, the likelihood of Jiji escaping safely was literally abysmal.

However, when such dreadful odds are miraculously defied,

People tend to experience catharsis.

“Jiji must have felt a sense of danger as well. But somehow if she goes outside, and miraculously encounters Uncle Jin Kang-sik…”

“…it would make the dramatic atmosphere of the scene stand out even more?”

“Uh, that’s probably right…?”

Anyway, in the end, it’s a movie that concludes with a happy ending.

The more dramatic the atmosphere, the better it is.

Above all, this scene can be considered a pivotal highlight for Uncle Jin Kang-sik.

It is a scene that threads together the film’s major narrative, where Jiji, who has lived an unfortunate life, is rescued by Jin Kang-sik, who shares no blood relation with her.

Ha Eun thought it would better represent the image of ‘rescue’ to risk going outside to confront Jin Kang-sik rather than being rescued from the comparatively safe confines of the warehouse.

For this reason, instead of focusing her performance on Jiji’s fear of the impending death,

She concentrated more on the situation of Jiji being ‘rescued’.

At the same time, without excluding the fear arising from Jiji’s dangerous situation, she directed her performance toward Jin Kang-sik.

She led the scene so that Jiji would find herself in the safest arms of Jin Kang-sik.

In this way, Ha Eun’s acting was no longer limited to merely adjusting her own portrayal.

She was transforming the overall atmosphere of the filming scene as the other actors involved in the same scene worked.

A meaningful expression briefly appeared on Director Kwon Jong-hyuk’s face at the sight of Ha Eun’s performance.

“I understood your thoughts, Ha Eun.”

Soon, what Ha Eun faced was Director Kwon Jong-hyuk returning to his usual lukewarm expression.

However, the words that soon emerged from his poker face were,

“Well then, let’s shoot one more scene.”

“…Yes?”

“Why are you so surprised? Since you convinced me, it’s only natural that you take on the responsibility of convincing me.”

It was not a type of compliment that could even be described as lukewarm.

“The part where Jiji comes out of the warehouse was not captured on camera. We’ll be reshooting from the scene where she is contemplating inside the warehouse until she comes outside.”

As a result, she had no choice but to head back to the cold warehouse once again.

Unlike before when she was alone, this time she was accompanied by a cameraman.

Thus, it began with the tense look on Jiji’s face, peeking outside the warehouse through the cramped doorway.

Finally, after she resolved to step outside into the perilous situation, she turned the doorknob with her trembling hand that had been quivering for some time, showing this to the camera.

“Cut! That’s a wrap~.”

Afterward, Ha Eun made her way back to Director Kwon Jong-hyuk’s side.

Silently watching the video that reordered the scenes they shot today.

“Ah, uncle… I… missed you… so much…”

Seeing her own tearful appearance on the screen felt quite different.

In any case, it was somewhat embarrassing, but it seemed the emotions she wanted to convey were well expressed.

“Are there any scenes you want to reshoot?”

“…No. There aren’t.”

Shaking her head at Director Kwon Jong-hyuk’s question about whether there was a scene she was dissatisfied with.

Well, it was her best shot from start to finish.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Yes, well. You too, Ha Eun.”

Strictly speaking, there were still several scenes that Ha Eun needed to shoot.

It was just that she felt a sense of accomplishment at having satisfactorily finished the scene she had been preparing for the most.

For the first time, she felt like she had achieved something.

And it was also the first time she felt such a feeling.

‘…Oh? Did I just… smile?’

For a brief moment, she showed a genuine smile, not one born out of acting.

Ju Jung-yun, who was watching Ha Eun from afar, wore an unexpectedly soft smile that made her doubt her own eyes.

***

“…Time flies, doesn’t it? It’s already June.”

“Indeed.”

It was around the time all shooting for Uncle Jin Kang-sik had concluded, and the process of editing the footage was reaching its final stages.

As Uncle Jin Kang-sik’s release date approached, meetings for the film’s success were held once again today.

The trailer, which briefly summarized the highlights of the movie, had already aired on TV several times.

The responses circulating on the internet were not too bad either.

However, knowing that another form of promotion, such as a production presentation, was also necessary,

“First of all, we’ll ensure that the director and actor Kang Seon-woo attend. The other person should be Ha Eun, right?”

“It certainly makes the most sense for Ha Eun to attend. However, she’s still young. I wonder if she can handle the reporters’ questions…”

The staff from the marketing team of the film’s distributor, “Make Future,” were once again deliberating over who would attend the production presentation.

Names of potential actors to replace Ha Eun came up only after this discussion.

“It might be better if actors Kim So-hyun or Jung Kwang-hyun attend instead. Both are supporting roles, but they certainly have strong characterizations.”

“Hmm, but the lead is still Ha Eun. It would seem odd for her not to show her face at all.”

“If she stumbles over her words, it could have the opposite effect. We need to be as careful as possible.”

As a result, no concrete conclusions were reached today either.

So, when they finally contacted Director Kwon Jong-hyuk to seek his opinion,

[What strange concerns are you all having? Of course, the leads should attend the production presentation.]

“But Director Kwon, I can understand Kang Seon-woo attending, but Ha Eun is only seven years old…”

[Ha Eun’s age is not a problem at all. I want the production presentation to proceed with me and the leads.]

For some reason, he emphasized Ha Eun’s attendance at the production presentation somewhat excessively and firmly.

As a result, they had no choice but to put their uneasy feelings deep down in their hearts and decide to have Ha Eun participate in the production presentation.

However, about two weeks later,

On the day of the first rehearsal for the production presentation, when Ha Eun met everyone,

“I tried to act in a balanced way so that I didn’t look too pitiful or too confident.”

“Oh, I see. It definitely seemed like those aspects were well represented in the trailer.”

The vocabulary and tone that did not seem at all like those of a kindergarten student left an impression that felt like being hit on the back of the head.

It inevitably made one reflect on what they were doing at that age.

However, from Ha Eun’s perspective, she was simply sharing her thoughts as they were.

She was focused solely on the fact that soon she would be making her first appearance as a respectable child actor in front of people.

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