To put it simply, Seohui Jo had only just recently learned the true nature of the movie.
Seohui Jo, who had been active for a long time since her child actress days, had a fairly wide network of connections in the industry.
Part of this was because actress Jeong Eun-seon doted on her, but Seohui Jo herself also paid great attention to nurturing her relationships.
‘In the end, everyone in this acting world eventually sees the same faces.’
Thus, it was best to foster good relationships whenever possible. This was a belief Seohui Jo had held since her childhood, a belief that had remained largely unchanged even as she grew older.
Director Baek Min was one of those with whom Seohui Jo had a particularly long-standing connection. Initially, it was through Jeong Eun-seon’s introduction during her child actress days, but the relationship deepened when she starred in the movie [Emergency Cooperation] as she grew older.
“Miss of Gyeongseong?”
At first, Seohui Jo simply thought it was a movie with a peculiar title, set during Japan’s colonial rule over Korea. She imagined it was a typical story involving the independence movement.
‘Maybe it’ll help improve my image.’
Sipping on a warm Americano, Seohui Jo reflected. Despite her sharp features, she wasn’t without her share of negative public opinions—accused of being a school bully or overly provocative.
Still, she found these criticisms rather agreeable in a sense.
‘If the role ends with a grand, emotional death scene, that’d be ideal.’
Emotional pull could indeed result in something not altogether bad.
Plus,
‘It’d be a good opportunity to showcase my acting skills.’
Joo Sooyeon. Seohui Jo recalled the girl who had once recommended Director Baek Min’s films. Despite lingering impressions from her younger days, she had since grown into a commendable actress. Having only starred in one movie thus far, Seohui Jo already recognized her immense potential to rise quickly.
She still remembered feeling powerless as a child, competing with adult actors. She could still vividly picture that determined Sooyeon from her youth.
‘This time, it’ll be different.’
She was no longer just a child actress. Though still relatively young, she now operated in the adult actors’ league.
“This is a lesbian movie, you know.”
“Phew!!!”
Director Baek Min’s sudden revelation caused Seohui Jo to spit out her coffee.
In the midst of preparing herself to embrace a strong sense of commitment, what was this supposed to mean?
“Uh, I think I must have misheard you, Director.”
“Nope, you heard correctly.”
Even soaked with spilled Americano, Director Baek Min smiled.
“Ahhh! I’m so sorry, here’s a napkin…”
“It’s fine.”
Director Baek Min’s cheerful demeanor remained the same as usual. At thirty-something, he was a young director but highly regarded for his immense talent. To Seohui Jo, he was an invaluable contact.
“I really want you, Seohui, to take the lead role in this movie. There’s simply no other actress from your generation who matches your caliber.”
“That’s truly an incredible evaluation, but…”
Director Baek Min held Seohui Jo in high regard—not just her striking appearance but also her unmatched acting skills among peers and exceptional self-discipline. He was firm in asserting that there was no actress of her age capable of what she could do.
That was why he particularly wanted Seohui Jo for the lead in The Gyeongseong Lady.
“And the actress whom you’ve highly praised… Joo Sooyeon, right? I’ll also be monitoring her performance, though I haven’t watched The Moon That Hid the Sun or any stage plays yet.”
Director Baek Min wasn’t familiar with Sooyeon’s acting but he was aware of her as someone Seohui Jo had been paying attention to since childhood. Moreover, Sooyeon had recently been drawing increasing attention.
“Will you come with her next time? You said she’s a friend, right?”
“Ahh, y-yes, she’s a friend!”
Seohui Jo managed a trembling smile, her well-trained facial muscles performing their duties.
“Certainly, we’ll come together, Director.”
“I’ll be looking forward to it.”
Seohui Jo could only nod weakly in response to Director Baek Min’s affable smile.
Thus, on this day.
“That’s… That’s how it happened.”
“Ah, so it’s a lesbian movie you’re talking about.”
“Yes…”
Sooyeon tilted her head at Seohui Jo’s words.
‘Is it necessary to deliver that with so much trembling?’
In today’s creative works, that kind of keyword is almost a basic element. Even when forced into the narrative, quality sometimes drops, leading to criticism.
‘But actors shouldn’t be too picky about their roles.’
That was Sooyeon’s basic mindset. The only thing she might avoid is love scenes, which she recognized would eventually be part of her career.
‘Undeniably, The Gyeongseong Lady is a challenging movie.’
For reference, the actress Sooyeon remembered from The Gyeongseong Lady wasn’t Seohui Jo at all. It was a low-budget project, free of any actresses promoting its lesbian themes.
Instead, three unknown actresses became the film’s leads and scored an unexpected blockbuster success.
Audience numbers hit 4 million. It was nominated for an Academy Award, appeared in various international awards, and garnered plenty of media attention.
Afterward, the actresses involved in the movie transitioned into OTT dramas.
Though they didn’t immediately participate in big hits, their initial recognition overseas was substantial.
‘The drama featuring those young ladies!’
While they didn’t achieve the high expectations set, they made an impact.
“Why so quiet?”
“Ah, just lost in thought…”
Though Sooyeon responded casually, Seohui Jo tensed up. The calm and emotionless tone of Sooyeon’s voice could easily be misinterpreted as irritation or dissatisfaction.
“If you don’t like it, it’s okay to decline.”
“I do not dislike it.”
“Huh?”
Unexpectedly, Seohui Jo was surprised by the answer. She had assumed outright rejection.
“Just, I’ll take a little time to think about it.”
“Ah… I see.”
Sooyeon’s subsequent words reinforced that assumption — that she was gently turning it down.
However, that wasn’t the case. Sooyeon actually regarded playing in The Gyeongseong Lady as a great opportunity.
‘It’s one of the rare chances to build recognition overseas currently.’
The Gyeongseong Lady had already become a topic of discussion in foreign online communities. Back when the OTT market wasn’t as active, foreign communities had almost zero awareness of Korean actors.
While that awareness would increase later due to various circumstances, that was still a few years away.
‘This is really a wonderful opportunity.’
Sooyeon hesitated not because it was a movie tackling the theme of lesbianism but simply because of doubts about her own abilities — whether she could pull it off well.
‘It’s probably a significant role if I’m paired with Seohui Jo.’
The Gyeongseong Lady had three main female leads: ‘a noble family’s daughter from Japan,’ ‘her rival lady,’ and ‘the lady’s maid.’
It wasn’t clear which character Sooyeon would play, but each would require some form of romance.
Without prior experience in love scenes, Sooyeon wasn’t confident.
“…Dream Future?”
“Yeah, I’ve heard you’re participating in it too.”
“I’ll try it with Dream Future first and then let you know.”
Dream Future indeed involved romance scenes. However, the Jo Harin role in it was relatively less frequent, portraying unrequited love, minimizing cross-cut emotional performances.
Still, her interaction with another character at the end meant it wasn’t entirely devoid of romance.
So, trying and testing herself in Dream Future first might be beneficial.
‘I shouldn’t discard such a valuable opportunity without trying.’
Setting aside the fact it was a request from her friend, it was undoubtedly a great opportunity and not something to turn down purely based on hesitation.
“Understood. Since we have time, please let me know by the end of the year.”
“Yes.”
At Sooyeon’s response, Seohui Jo seemed to relax a bit and greeted her with an unburdened tone.
After hanging up the call, Sooyeon murmured,
“What exactly was that about?”
A puzzled Jiyeon was nearby; she had probably overheard her conversation.
Evaluating Jiyeon from top to bottom, Soyeon thought,
‘Well…’
Jiyeon had only participated in cable dramas so far. Considering the proposal Seohui Jo mentioned was The Gyeongseong Lady, which was known to have cast relatively unknown actresses due to a lack of applicants,
‘Before the new year arrives, it’ll be a while before proper actors are chosen, and this is a great opportunity for Jiyeon.’
“Do you think about auditioning for a movie, Jiyeon?”
“Huh?”
This unexpected question left Jiyeon momentarily speechless.
“Miss Sun-ah, are you done with the article?”
“Oh, yes. It will be up soon.”
Han Sun-ah responded to her senior with a smile but then sighed. These days, most articles are internet-based, making the workload more challenging. Journalists who don’t do proper investigation also get criticized collectively.
“Ah? The Chaser?”
“Ah, yes. Do you know it?”
“I know it. GH Group invested in it this time, so I don’t think there’ll be worries about low audiences.”
At the mention of GH Group’s financial backing, Han Sun-ah smiled. As the number one fan of Sooyeon, any mention of her work makes her day brighter.
“But, Joo Sooyeon? Hmm, is it essential to write an article about her? Hasn’t her story already been told enough?”
“Not immediately. I plan to upload it alongside the second or third promotional previews.”
Han Sun-ah was preparing an article that detailed Sooyeon’s growth as an actress and what audiences could expect from The Chaser. The intent was to enlighten the general public about the relatively lesser-known actress.
“Tricky. These types of articles draw lesser attention these days. Isn’t that what it’s called now, trolling?”
“Too sensational can be a bit…”
“Eh, don’t worry about those things. In fact, we stress way too much over them.”
The “Seonyang Media” Han Sun-ah worked for was relatively moderate, but compared to more sensational outlets, its readership was lower.
“Well, as you do a good job, Sun-ah, I trust you.”
“Thank you, you don’t need to worry.”
With her senior’s departing reminder, Han Sun-ah sighed. Her write-ups about Sooyeon were half out of fandom and half out of solid belief.
‘She will definitely succeed.’
With The Chaser and evidence of taking a drama audition, Han Sun-ah planned to dig into information about Sooyeon’s new role.
About the new character Joo Sooyeon had chosen and her new role.
“I am Jo Sooyeon for the role of Joo Harin. I look forward to working with all of you.”
Sooyeon bowed to the room of actors who were watching her.
It was the first meeting for Dream Future*, where cast members who had passed the audition gathered.
The first encounter was led not by a script reading but by filming director Kim Pil-seok, to foster camaraderie among the young actors, all of whom belonged to a similar age bracket — mostly in their early 20s and some in late teens.
Among them, Sooyeon at seventeen was exceptionally young.
Besides the male lead Kim Si-hwan and the female lead Song So-ha, the four lead actors each displayed distinct personalities. Many had youthful confidence, succeeding at a young age.
For example,
“Hey, Seoyeon, you’re still in high school, right? Would you mind if I speak casually to you?”
A man with a piercing, sporting flashy blonde hair, Ma Yeon-woo, was a prime example.
At his words, the other four involuntarily flinched, albeit silently, given Ma Yeon-woo’s large fan base.
‘Not ideal.’
Sooyeon nodded faintly, evaluating the room. These young actors, many of whom would become big names in the future, were not to be alienated easily.
‘Here, I need to be sociable.’
Resolving to take on a central, unifying role in this environment, even though she struggled slightly with her school life, Sooyeon thought her social skills were excellent in this world.
As she nodded to herself, her thoughts struck Park Jung-woo as odd.
‘…She’s lost in another thought again, isn’t she?’
Sighing, Park Jung-woo anticipated that the meeting would be a tiring one overall.
