An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 208

208. #36 – Broaden Your Perspective (5)

“What happened, Hyung?”

I asked Kim, my manager, as he trudged towards me after ending the call.

“Haa… First, Chief Han said he’d call back.”

I could tell immediately from his expression and tone.

The company was against me appearing in the sitcom.

Kim’s sighing tone proved it.

“Is he going to think it over and then call?”

“Yeah, that too. It seems like someone’s with him right now. He’ll call again after they leave.”

I raised my eyebrows and cautiously asked him.

“So… the reaction isn’t good?”

He forced a smile at my words and slowly nodded.

Just as I thought.

Kim, who’s with me in Hollywood, was against appearing in the sitcom.

There’s no way Chief Han, who handles things in Korea, would approve it right away.

But that doesn’t mean I can change my mind.

I have to persuade Chief Han and the company.

Because I definitely want to appear in it.

About an hour passed like that.

Bzzzz.

Kim’s cell phone rang.

“Hee-sung, it’s a call from the company.”

“Okay, take the call.”

Usually, he would take company calls in the other room so I couldn’t hear, and then tell me about it afterward.

So, I naturally answered him as he got up from his seat.

“Hello, yes. Ah, I understand.”

But Kim tilted his head and came back to me.

“Hee-sung, it’s a video call… Chief Han wants you to join too?”

“Really?”

Since it was late at night in LA, I had been relaxing. I quickly ran a hand through my messy hair and showed my face in front of the screen.

“Chief, how have you been?”

He laughed heartily at my greeting and replied.

-Yeah, Hee-sung, how are you doing?

“Yes, I’m doing well.”

Chief Han, visible on the screen, was sitting in his office chair.

-Well, let’s skip the greetings. Let’s talk straight.

“Yes.”

-So, a TV sitcom? You suddenly want to appear in it?

At Chief Han’s question, with a frown, I immediately nodded.

“Yes, it’s just a minor role, but I really want to try appearing in it.”

-I see. But why would you go for that role, even though it’s minor?

Chief Han’s expression grew darker.

He continued, with a look of disbelief.

-No, you even went to Hollywood… and got a good supporting role close to the lead. What do you mean you’re suddenly going to appear in a sitcom as a minor character?

I perked up and answered.

“I wanted to gain more experience.”

But even at my words, he shook his head and spoke in a soft tone, as if to persuade me.

-No. Hee-sung, your experience is enough. You’ve done everything in Korea, from minor roles to supporting roles to lead roles. You’ve steadily climbed up and even advanced to Hollywood, so why suddenly a minor role?

Despite his persuasion, my mind was too firm.

“But Chief, what I’ve experienced is in Korea, isn’t it?”

-So?

“Coming to Hollywood and acting for the first time, everything was so unfamiliar and new. It was on a different level from what I learned while acting in Korea during that time.”

-Of course, it would be. The market itself is different.

“Exactly. So, I want to gain more experience here.”

I paused for a moment, then continued, as if burning with determination, towards Chief Han, who was hesitating.

“Moreover, I felt so lacking here. I want to become a more famous actor, an actor more crazy about acting. Although it’s a minor role, I will learn as much as if I were playing the lead.”

-Haa….

He avoided my gaze and sighed.

I straightened my posture and said to him.

“Please allow me just this once, Chief. I will work hard so that you will hear that I did well to appear on the TV sitcom. I really want to do it.”

With my words, silence filled the space between the cell phone screen connecting Korea and the United States.

Chief Han continued to look like he was holding back a sigh.

The sight of him scribbling something in a notebook caught my eye.

And soon, he raised his head and looked at me.

-Hee-sung.

“Yes, Chief.”

-Is Manager Kim next to you?

At his question, Kim, who had been standing next to me out of view of the screen, revealed himself.

“Yes, I’ve been listening here.”

-Okay, then Kim, take good care of him, and try doing the TV sitcom.

At Chief Han’s words, my eyes widened and I exclaimed.

“Are you allowing me?”

-Yeah, you say you want to act this much, what can the company do to stop you? It’s not like you’re playing around; you’re asking for permission to work.

“Thank you. I’ll really work hard!”

-Kim, contact them and report the details immediately.

“Yes, I understand.”

I turned my head, looked at Kim, and smirked.

Chief Han spoke to me with a stern expression.

-Instead of just appearing, there’s something you have to do.

“What do you mean?”

-Instead of just going on the sitcom, we’ll prepare a press release on our end. You’ll have to do a few interviews. Can you do that?

“Yes, but what kind of interviews should I do?”

-The article that Hee-sung advanced to Hollywood has already spread, but it won’t do if you suddenly appear as a minor character in a TV sitcom. We need to give the impression that you’re starting from the bottom in Hollywood, so we need to do several interviews.

I nodded my head vigorously at his words and exclaimed.

“I understand!”

-Okay, it must be late at night there, both of you get some rest.

“Yes, good night, Chief.”

As soon as I hung up, I clenched my fist and shouted to Kim.

“Hyung, it’s done!”

At my words, he shook his head with a look as if he couldn’t handle me.

“Tsk, really, with this much passion, who could stop you?”

I grinned and smirked.

***

A few days later.

I arrived at the sitcom filming location where Brian was appearing.

Unlike dramas that are 20 episodes or less, sitcoms can continue to air for months, or even years, depending on their popularity.

So, the script wasn’t complete until the end.

After I confirmed my appearance, it didn’t take long for the script for my appearance to come out.

I prepared for the sitcom acting without harming Jeffrey’s work.

“Jin!”

As soon as I got out of the car, Brian greeted me.

He came up to me as if he had been waiting for me to come.

“Brian, why are you here?”

“Jin, I heard you were coming, so I waited to say hello.”

He shook my hand, expressing his delight.

“Thank you. I’m so glad to be acting with Brian.”

Brian smiled and nodded.

“Me too. I can’t believe the day would come when Jin and I would act together.”

We made eye contact, and I was filled with emotion.

It feels like only yesterday that I first saw Brian and was impressed by his acting.

To think that we would be appearing in the same work together like this.

You really never know what will happen in life.

What if I hadn’t seen Brian’s play that day?

What if I hadn’t gone to that bar that night?

I wouldn’t be here with him right now.

I wouldn’t have been able to become friends with Brian.

He grabbed my arm and said.

“Let’s go. I’ll introduce you to the actors, director, and staff inside.”

“Okay.”

We hurried to the set.

Brian shouted towards the staff and actors gathered together.

“Here’s Korea’s best actor, Jin Hee-sung!”

At his words, everyone on set looked at me and clapped.

Clap clap-.

Then they welcomed me with cheers.

“Nice to meet you.”

“I’ve never seen a Korean actor before. You’re handsome, Hee-sung.”

They greeted me with comments one by one.

“Thank you. Please take care of me.”

I also made eye contact with them one by one and greeted them.

Brian introduced me to them like my manager, like my spokesperson.

“Jin is a very famous actor in Korea. He’s currently filming Jeffrey’s movie, and he’s playing a huge role there too.”

“Wow, you’re filming with Jeffrey?”

“Oh, Jeffrey?”

The actors next to me opened their eyes wide and asked me.

“Yes, thanks to their kind consideration, I’m working hard on filming.”

Just by the fact that I was appearing in Jeffrey’s work, the way they looked at me changed a little.

A different expression from when they just said I came as a minor character.

It was a look as if they were now curious about who I was.

Brian was excited by their reaction and continued to introduce me.

“And Jin has a big role there, but he came here because he wanted to experience the Hollywood atmosphere.”

He was not only packaging me well, he was also trying to create a harmonious relationship with the surrounding actors.

“Good job. Movies are good, but you should experience sitcoms like this too.”

“That’s right. Let’s get along well.”

I smiled brightly at their welcome, and I felt like I could start filming in a good mood.

Much later.

They announced the start of filming.

I appeared in front of the camera with Brian.

“Jin, did you practice a bit?”

“Yes, I worked hard, so I’ll have to do well so I don’t cause any NGs [no-good takes].”

At that time, Director Felix approached and stood in place with a smile.

“Then let’s start lightly. Ready, action!”

The red light on the camera turned on.

I quickly immersed myself in the role as I had practiced.

“Are you the one who caused trouble at the company and ran away?”

Brian came up to me, tapped me on the shoulder, and shouted.

“Do you know me?”

“What? You…?”

He frowned and said to me in a flustered voice.

“Oh, you. I don’t know why I have to talk to you when I’ve quit the company.”

“You little!”

The wind blew on my face for a moment.

I had to make eye contact with him and send an angry look, but I ended up closing my eyes tightly because of the wind.

And that appearance was naturally captured on camera.

“Cut, NG!”

As soon as Director Felix’s sign fell, I bent over.

“I’m sorry. The wind suddenly blew… I’ll do it again.”

My eyes closed due to the wind on the first shoot.

I swallowed a sigh and apologized.

But the scene unfolding before my eyes was very different from the NG scenes I had seen in my works.

“Why are you sending the wind upwards all of a sudden?”

“Without realizing it, I made a mistake while looking at Jin Hee-sung’s face. I’m sorry.”

“No. He’s handsome, so it could happen. Haha.”

The staff member holding the fan made a joke.

And even the director accepted the words as a joke.

It was a fresh shock to me.

The movie side of the filming set was quite rigid and static.

It belonged to the serious and heavy side.

But the sitcom filming set was not light.

I felt a deep friendship and warm harmony.

Everyone was working, but I felt like people who got along well were working happily.

Everyone was working with a smile, so the atmosphere on set was naturally good.

Of course, even so, there wasn’t a single person who wasn’t professional when filming started.

‘It’s more fun than I thought…?’

I smiled at the interesting situation unfolding before my eyes and quickly refocused. I was convinced that I would realize and learn more about acting here.