An Actor Who Has Lived For 10,000 Years [EN]: Chapter 167

“Ready, action!”

At Director Hong’s signal, I quickly immersed myself in the role.

With a forceful gaze, I stared at Song Yoona and began my lines.

“Who checked on the patient in room 7?”

Song Yoona bit her lip at my words.

I furrowed my brow, suppressing my anger as I calmly questioned the actress playing the nurse next to Song Yoona.

“Nurse Park, I’m asking who checked on the patient in room 7.”

“That… well….”

She blinked nervously, avoiding my gaze.

I grabbed Song Yoona’s arm and started walking towards the edge of the set.

“Come with me, now.”

Song Yoona, with tears welling in her eyes, was led away by my hand.

As soon as we stepped out of the camera’s view, Director Hong shouted.

“Cut, NG [No Good]!”

At his words, Song Yoona and I walked back into the camera’s frame.

Director Hong addressed the actress playing the nurse, not me.

“Um… instead of just stuttering, you need to convey a voice trembling with anxiety.”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

“Let’s try again.”

She, Song Yoona, and I quickly got back into character.

“Ready, action!”

At Director Hong’s signal, we began to deliver our lines again.

“Who checked on the patient in room 7?”

The acting continued as before.

Shortly after,

“Cut, NG!”

Another NG was called.

Again, it was the mistake of the supporting actress playing the nurse.

Her face flushed red, and she repeatedly bowed her head.

“I’m sorry, I’ll do it again.”

“Haa….”

Director Hong ran his hands through his hair and stood up from his seat.

I approached Director Hong and spoke.

“Director, when I deliver my lines, how about I don’t hold back my anger and shout at Nurse Park?”

At my words, Director Hong looked at the script and said.

“Hmm… would that be better?”

“Since I’m immediately dragging Yoona outside anyway, I thought it would be more fitting to express my anger towards Nurse Park right away. That way, Nurse Park would tremble even more.”

At my words, Director Hong nodded without a moment’s hesitation.

“Okay. Let’s go with that.”

“Understood.”

I bowed my head towards him.

Director Hong patted me on the shoulder and said.

“You can do whatever you want with these small details or ad-libs, Heesung. You can freely change the tone, nuances, and even add lines.”

“Ah, really?”

He raised his eyebrows and replied to me.

“Of course. Try it out, and if the overall feeling deviates too much from what was originally intended, I’ll let you know then.”

“Understood.”

I couldn’t help but smile at his words.

In my previous project, I wasn’t allowed to improvise even the smallest ad-libs or facial expressions.

Of course, acting according to the script is acting, but I thought it was much more natural to deliver the lines in a way that felt right and with expressions and tones that I thought were appropriate.

In that regard, I felt much more comfortable acting in this project.

I realized once again that expressing my emotions while acting suited me better.

As I walked back in front of the camera and struck a pose, Director Hong grinned and shouted.

“Ready, action!”

***

“Cut, okay!”

Director Hong gave the signal and stood up from his seat, clapping his hands.

“Wow, that was a great performance.”

“Thank you.”

I smiled as I looked at Director Hong.

He approached us and gave us a thumbs up.

“Heesung, needless to say, you were great, and so was Yoona. Chungmin and Taejoon were also perfect.”

“Haha, thank you.”

“I’ll work hard!”

It was a shoot that started early in the morning, but the atmosphere on set was excellent.

Everyone was bound to be tired from the non-stop filming, but no one showed any signs of fatigue.

And okay shots kept coming one after another without any acting mishaps.

“Ah, what’s going on today? Haha.”

Director Hong said to the assistant director next to him, bursting into a satisfied laugh.

“I know, right? That’s why Director Hong seems to be in an especially good mood today.”

“Is that so? When the actors follow along so well, the director can’t help but be excited.”

A friendly atmosphere on set.

“Then let’s take a short break and move on to the next scene.”

At the staff’s shout, we each stepped out of the camera’s view to take a break.

Song Yoona followed her manager, Chief Choi, straight to the vehicle.

“Heesung, do you want to rest in the car?”

Kim, my manager, who was waiting, asked me.

I shook my head and replied.

“No, I feel suffocated in the car. Since the shoot is coming up soon, I’ll just wait outside.”

“Are you sure you don’t need to rest?”

“I’m going to sit in the waiting area over there. It’s just a short break, so you should go to the car and rest comfortably, hyung [older brother/term of endearment for a close male friend or colleague].”

At my words, he shrugged his shoulders and replied.

“No, I’ll rest outside with you. You’re going to the bench over there, right?”

It was always the spot where I rested outside.

Kim gestured towards the bench as if it were obvious.

I raised the corners of my mouth and replied.

“Yeah, let’s go together.”

On the way to the bench with him, I saw the place where the supporting actors were gathered.

As always, my gaze naturally turned towards that direction.

But unlike usual, the space was empty.

I tilted my head and said.

“Didn’t the supporting actors come out today?”

At my words, Kim shook his head and replied.

“They filmed early in the morning, and since they didn’t have any more shoots, they all went in.”

“But didn’t they usually move together?”

“Yeah, but today, the actors who finished filming went fishing together. I heard that a few managers went with them too.”

At his words, I opened my mouth and blinked my eyes.

“Ah… so that’s why everyone’s not here.”

“Yeah, some went fishing, and some are in the dorms or came out to practice, I heard.”

We soon arrived at the bench and took our seats.

I leaned back and turned my head to look at the empty space.

Then.

A person caught my eye.

It was the supporting actor Kim Mingyu, whom I had encountered during the first shoot.

The reason I remembered him wasn’t just because of our first meeting.

He was one of the actors who blended in the best with the always boisterous group of supporting actors.

So, when I looked at them, Kim Mingyu was always at the center, leading the situation while mingling with the actors.

I hadn’t encountered Kim Mingyu during filming, but I had seen him often here, so his name and face were familiar.

He was holding a script and leaning against the railing, muttering to himself.

I stared intently at him practicing his lines.

He didn’t even realize I was watching him, and he continued to recite his lines while looking at the air.

“He’s really working hard.”

At my words, Kim turned his head to follow my gaze and said.

“Who?”

“Ah, that supporting actor. He’s practicing hard.”

“Ah….”

Kim glanced at him and then shifted his gaze again.

What scene is it that he’s working so hard for?

I quickly rummaged through the script.

Before long, I was able to find Kim Mingyu’s lines.

The scene to be filmed this afternoon.

It was a scene where I would be working with him.

Kim Mingyu’s lines were only two lines long, but I knew better than anyone how precious those two lines were back then.

Watching his focused appearance, I smiled contentedly.

***

Finally, the filming with Kim Mingyu began.

Because he was a supporting actor I had been keeping an eye on,

I looked forward to working with him and stepped forward to the filming location.

Seeing his nervous and frozen appearance, I opened my mouth with a warm smile.

“Mingyu, there’s no need to be nervous. Just do what you’ve been doing comfortably.”

At my words, he widened his eyes and replied.

“Oh? You remember my name?”

It seemed he didn’t think I would remember him.

He looked at me with a surprised face.

I chuckled and nodded my head.

“Of course. You’re Kim Mingyu, right? I saw you practicing hard earlier, let’s do well.”

“Yes, thank you.”

A little bit of the tension seemed to have eased through our brief conversation.

He slightly raised the corners of his mouth and took a deep breath.

“Then we’ll start filming.”

“Yes.”

We stood side by side, facing the camera, and prepared.

Director Hong, with a smiling face, grabbed the megaphone and shouted.

“Ready, action!”

As soon as his signal dropped, I tapped Kim Mingyu’s arm and said.

“Did you check everything I told you to check?”

At my words, Kim Mingyu blinked his eyes with a face full of tension again.

“Ah… vital… check….”

In the end, he couldn’t overcome his extreme trembling and mumbled his lines.

“Cut, NG!”

At Director Hong’s NG sign, he took a breath he had been holding in.

“Haa….”

I stroked his arm and murmured.

“Don’t be too nervous, just do it calmly as you practiced.”

“…Yes, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. Should we go again right away?”

“Yes, I can do it.”

At our conversation, Director Hong still smiled and shouted.

“Ready, action!”

Shortly after.

“Cut, NG!”

Before I knew it, the smile on Director Hong’s face had disappeared long ago.

He kicked his seat and shouted.

“No, how can you have 7 NGs with that short line! Are you kidding me?”

“…I’m sorry.”

Kim Mingyu repeatedly bent over.

I was overcome with pity and sympathy for his shrunken appearance.

I knew too well that it was a ridiculous mistake that came from a lack of experience and the pressure of wanting to do well, even though it wasn’t a difficult line at all.

I had also gone through the same period as Kim Mingyu.

I cried a lot back then too.

Remembering my past self, I didn’t get angry and instead placed my hand on his drooping shoulder.

“Mingyu, read the script again….”

As I was offering him comfort.

Director Hong put down the megaphone and quickly walked towards me.

“No, how many NGs is this now! Are you messing with me?”

Director Hong, who had been in a good mood all day, shouted with an angry face.

At his words, Kim Mingyu lowered his head.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry is only once or twice. How many times is this… Haa…. Never mind.”

Director Hong, who was shouting at Kim Mingyu, cut off his words.

He turned around and shouted at the assistant director.

“Hey, take away his lines!”

At that moment.

Kim Mingyu’s expression was as if he had lost his country.

The surroundings instantly froze.

Even the short lines disappeared, and Kim Mingyu became a supporting actor without lines.

In other words, he had become an image supporting actor.

If this happened, Director Hong would never give Kim Mingyu any lines in future scenes.

Director Hong came to me and explained that we would proceed without Kim Mingyu’s lines.

I bit my lip and nodded my head.

In this situation, it would be crossing the line for me to ask Director Hong to give Kim Mingyu the lines again.

Director Hong returned to his seat, sighed, and shouted.

“Ready, action!”

With his signal, I continued my lines.

“Then check the vitals and do the homework I gave you properly and come back to my room.”

As my lines ended, Kim Mingyu nodded his head without any answer.

The lines in the script ended here.

Kim Mingyu’s lines had disappeared.

But I tapped Kim Mingyu’s arm and ad-libbed.

“But did you wash your hair? Ugh, look at how greasy it is.”

Kim Mingyu’s eyes shook at my words.

Since it wasn’t in the script in the first place, he couldn’t help but be surprised.

At the same time, our eyes met in the air.

As I sent him a silent look that I could do it, Kim Mingyu immediately scratched his head.

“Professor, it’s better to sleep than wash my hair. But since I have to do rounds, I’ll wash my hair and come back.”

As if it were a real situation, Kim Mingyu spoke with an awkward smile.

I waved my hand in front of my nose and said.

“Yeah, even if you’re an intern, let’s not smell, humanly speaking.”

“Yes… I’ll wash my hair right away and do rounds.”

“Cut, okay!”

Soon, Director Hong’s okay sign came out.

He kicked his seat and shouted again with a smile on his face.

“Yeah, you should have acted like that from the start!”

Director Hong widened the corners of his mouth as if he was satisfied.

I murmured softly to Kim Mingyu, who was breathing a sigh of relief.

“Good job. You worked hard.”

At my words, Kim Mingyu turned his body to look at me and bent over deeply.

“Senior, thank you.”

I responded to his greeting with a smile and left the scene.

“You worked hard.”