I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 139

Two hours later, Korea. Suwon.

The ‘Frozen Romance’ team was settled inside KBC’s drama production center:

“Set check complete!!”

“Lighting is OK!!”

“Props will be finished once we organize this area!”

“Shooting starts in 15 minutes, hurry up!”

Filming preparations were nearly complete. The set area was packed with equipment: cameras at various angles, reflectors, lights, and cables snaking like veins. Dozens of staff members hurried between them.

Amidst the bustle,

“Oh, Writer, please sit here.”

The directing PD, from his spot with three monitors, gestured for writer Lee Wol-sun to sit beside him. Lee Wol-sun, her designer handbag on her lap, smiled faintly.

“The set is lovely. Even after seeing it a dozen times, I still enjoy the atmosphere here.”

“Hahaha. Is that so?”

“Yes. It feels like I’m watching the story I wrote come to life.”

Lee Wol-sun chuckled softly as she looked around.

“By the way, our actors have all arrived.”

Filming was about to begin with the male lead, Jung Jang-hwan, and Kang Woo-jin, the ‘mysterious man next door’. However, the actors who should have been waiting were already on set. The directing PD explained,

“Well, it’s the first day of filming. They probably want to see it for themselves. It’s something we both allowed.”

Lee Wol-sun, thinking of Kang Woo-jin, nodded in understanding.

“It’s the scene that was revised after that ad-lib during the script reading, so they must be curious.”

“They also want to see Woo-jin’s acting. It’s different from just reading lines.”

At that moment,

-Swish.

A woman approached from behind them.

“Hello.”

It was the sign language expert who had attended the script reading. Lee Wol-sun stood to greet her.

“You’re here? Thank you for coming on our first day of filming.”

“It’s nothing. I wanted to come. But-”

The sign language expert, noticing Kang Woo-jin sitting quietly on the edge of the filming area, looking down at his script, asked cautiously,

“Mr. Kang Woo-jin… he’s much calmer than I expected?”

Lee Wol-sun followed her gaze and chuckled.

“Woo-jin is always like that. If I had to compare him to a season, it would be winter?”

That was mostly incorrect. Kang Woo-jin was actually in turmoil inside. To be precise, he was lost in thought.

‘The editing of ‘Male Friend’ is done, so the release isn’t far off, right?’

He had heard from Choi Sung-gun that the editing of ‘Male Friend’ was finished. It felt like yesterday that his heart had nearly burst during the kiss scene, but the editing was already done. It was the right amount of time, but it felt very fast to Kang Woo-jin.

His heart began to pound.

‘Ugh—I’m excited but also worried.’

Unlike ‘Hanryang’, ‘Male Friend’ was his first leading role. His first overseas lead role, not in Korea. Moreover, Japan was already buzzing about Kang Woo-jin. He was nervous, but he maintained a poker face because so many people were watching.

The other actors whispered amongst themselves, watching Woo-jin.

“He seems to be getting into character; he looks very serious.”

“Hmm—is that so? But Woo-jin is usually like that. Well, I’ve only seen him for a day.”

“He’s been like that since he arrived, so I think he’s getting into character. It must be a difficult role.”

“It must be different from just reading lines, right?”

“He was amazing in ‘Hanryang’ too; it was like a real serial killer had appeared.”

“Acting with a disability is really sensitive; you have to control all your hand and body movements—hmm, I wonder how he’ll do.”

Around this time, Kang Woo-jin received a call. It was time for costume and makeup.

Some time later,

Kang Woo-jin’s appearance, after preparation, was revealed. There wasn’t anything drastically different. The costume was simple: jeans and a hoodie. His hair was natural and slightly messy, as if he hadn’t styled it, and his makeup was light, just enough to give him a healthy complexion.

If anything was emphasized, it was his eyes.

They weren’t dark, but they had a subtle hint of dark circles. Once Woo-jin was ready,

-Swish.

The directing PD, Kang Woo-jin, and the tall Jung Jang-hwan gathered in the middle of the set for a simple script rehearsal. Jung Jang-hwan’s appearance was neat and tidy, with short hair and a sharply tailored suit.

Anyway,

“Is this okay? Since it’s the first cut, let’s do a light run-through of the lines.”

After a brief verbal rehearsal, both the calm Kang Woo-jin and Jung Jang-hwan nodded.

“Yes, PD.”

“Understood.”

The directing PD smiled, clapped his hands a few times, and then shouted to the entire set,

“Alright! Let’s roll the cameras!!”

Jung Jang-hwan’s eyes met Woo-jin’s. For some reason, Kang Woo-jin was looking at Jung Jang-hwan. Jung Jang-hwan chuckled.

“Ah, don’t worry. I won’t ad-lib today. Even if I do, I’ll tell Woo-jin beforehand.”

Huh? It’s okay if you do. Kang Woo-jin wondered what he meant. He was just admiring Jung Jang-hwan’s height.

‘Envy. Does he look like he’s 2m tall? I wish he’d give me 5cm.’

But he couldn’t haggle over height with the concept he had adopted. Kang Woo-jin lowered his voice as much as possible and answered bluntly,

“Please take care of me.”

“Yeah, I’m counting on you too.”

Around that time, the directing PD, who was already at the monitor, asked the two actors,

“Jang-hwan, Woo-jin! Let’s get into position!”

A little later,

The camera captured the set, which resembled a luxury apartment corridor, with steel doors and an elevator door. Kang Woo-jin and Jung Jang-hwan were not visible at the moment.

They were behind the steel doors, waiting to appear. When the action sign was given, Jung Jang-hwan would move first, followed immediately by Kang Woo-jin.

Kang Woo-jin,

‘Hoo-‘

Standing in front of the steel door, he awakened the ‘mysterious man next door’ within him, who had been sleeping peacefully. This process was now instantaneous. Before he knew it, the ‘mysterious man next door’ was draped over Woo-jin from head to toe.

Woo-jin’s posture and attitude changed.

The lines, as if memorized thousands of times, took their place in his mind. His senses, emotions, and inner thoughts took root in his heart, and a firm world unfolded before his eyes. Gradually, his ears became muffled.

The beginning was tinnitus.

A beeping noise spread in Woo-jin’s ears. The sounds around him gradually disappeared, into the ground, into the sky. The noisy set scenery faded away like smoke.

‘It’s quiet.’

It felt as if only this piece of the corridor was floating like an island in an endless expanse. But it wasn’t a good feeling.

A world where nothing can be heard is just empty.

At least, Kang Woo-jin, or rather, the ‘mysterious man next door’, felt that way. It was empty and frustrating. Despair welled up from deep within, but he endured it. He didn’t even glance at the despair. Endured? No, that wasn’t it.

He was just deceiving himself with familiarity.

Soon, a huge silence and a faint fear intertwined in Kang Woo-jin. The frustration of having to live like this for the rest of his life, and the loss of motivation that overflowed even after covering that frustration. At this time, the camera moved to Kang Woo-jin’s side profile.

The angle was a bust shot.

Therefore, Woo-jin’s face was displayed on one of the monitors. A seriousness spread in Lee Wol-sun’s eyes, and she covered her mouth.

“Before the actual acting starts, it’s as if he’s captured the world of the ‘mysterious man next door’ on his entire face…”

Several staff members, including the scriptwriter, exclaimed in succession.

“Wow—Woo-jin, look at his unfocused eyes.”

“The detail is something else—it’s like there’s an expression but no expression… where did he learn such an expression?”

“How many seconds has it been? The speed at which he gets into character is ridiculously fast…”

Around this time, Lee Wol-sun asked the sign language expert on her right,

“How is his expression right now?”

The sign language expert, with wide eyes, answered softly,

“There’s no sense of incongruity; it’s really like the real thing. Even I, who don’t know anything about acting, think it’s amazing. How can he be like that?”

Even the action hadn’t started yet. The directing PD chuckled while looking at Kang Woo-jin on the monitor.

‘Disability acting, which most actors avoid. They can’t help but be scared. But he’s fearless. And yet, I feel a chilling sense of realism.’

The directing PD, filled with awe and seriousness, slowly raised the megaphone. He shouted to the entire set,

“High—Cue!!”

The entire set, which had been whispering, became as quiet as a church mouse. But for Kang Woo-jin, for the ‘mysterious man next door’, it didn’t mean anything. Either way was the same.

At that moment,

-Clunk!

Jung Jang-hwan, or rather, ‘Song Tae-hyung’, opened the front steel door. The camera was on his front. Song Tae-hyung appeared, rubbing his hands as if he had just applied hand sanitizer.

At the same time,

-Click.

The steel door of Song Tae-hyung’s next-door neighbor also opened. The ‘mysterious man next door’ appeared slowly. Song Tae-hyung immediately narrowed his brow.

“Tsk.”

On the other hand,

-Swish.

Woo-jin noticed Song Tae-hyung’s presence not by sound but by sight. A small joy mixed into his stopped expression. Because a situation was created from the stiff loss. Kang Woo-jin’s expression was exactly like that right now.

He didn’t dislike Song Tae-hyung.

‘That person’s house always smells good.’

Maybe it was because of his sensitive sense of smell, but Kang Woo-jin liked the scent that came from his house when it opened. Here, the camera pulled back, capturing Kang Woo-jin and Jung Jang-hwan in a two-shot.

The changes in the two were clearly revealed on the monitor.

They were two people looking at each other, but communication was impossible. ‘Song Tae-hyung’ had voluntarily cut himself off, and Kang Woo-jin had been cut off by others. Therefore, their understanding, thoughts, opinions, and perceptions were all different.

At this moment, Kang Woo-jin took a step towards ‘Song Tae-hyung’.

Song Tae-hyung flinched, but the muffled Kang Woo-jin only gave a small smile. Even if it was an ambiguous smile to others, it was positive for Woo-jin.

He liked Song Tae-hyung’s diligence.

Song Tae-hyung always left his house at the same time. Therefore, they could meet as if they had made an appointment, even without speaking. Woo-jin also liked Song Tae-hyung’s neatness. He was always neat and never disheveled.

His stiff expression was aggressive, but even that was good to Woo-jin.

Song Tae-hyung treated everyone the same, not just him. He was consistent.

‘People change when they know about me.’

Whether it was consideration or aversion, everyone Kang Woo-jin, everyone the ‘mysterious man next door’ had met was the same. It wasn’t a bad thing. It was just that Woo-jin thought Song Tae-hyung, who was always aggressive, looked cool, no matter who the other person was. It seemed like the standard of fairness was not on the other person, but on himself.

Kang Woo-jin’s hand twitched.

The camera zoomed in on Woo-jin’s hand, then his forearm, and then his face. Kang Woo-jin’s eyes had changed. They were full of longing and anguish.

At this moment, the sign language expert watching the monitor opened her eyes wide.

“Oh, my god.”

Lee Wol-sun quickly echoed her words.

“…Yes, I was about to say the same thing.”

“Right now, Woo-jin doesn’t look like an ordinary person at all.”

“How could he bring such a deep intensity to this short performance, to this short role?”

Kang Woo-jin was not provocative, but he was not transparent either. And he was diluted. It was because he had lost his motivation but had not given up hope. That hope quickly turned into despair.

Song Tae-hyung, or Jung Jang-hwan, who was looking at that expression head-on, paused.

‘I get it, why the big shots are sticking to him. If he’s this good in my eyes, in their eyes…’

Then, Song Tae-hyung’s lines were heard.

“What is it?”

The shape of his mouth. Woo-jin, whose sound had disappeared, recognized the words from the shape of his mouth. He was asking something. From here, Kang Woo-jin’s eyes were filled with countless pasts. At the end, ‘worry’ was waiting.

I want to ask a question, I want to talk to him, can I do that? Change is also scary, won’t that person be horrified when they see me?

Can we become friends?

However, Song Tae-hyung, tired of the ‘mysterious man next door’, clicked his tongue and went his way.

“It’s annoying, I should move.”

The camera, which had been filming Song Tae-hyung from the front, stopped abruptly and slowly approached Kang Woo-jin. He was still standing in place, looking at Song Tae-hyung’s back. Just this appearance was strange enough.

No, all of Woo-jin’s acting so far had been like that.

Without a single line, he acted only with his eyes, expressions, and detailed gestures and hand movements. It was clear that everyone watching the monitor, as well as the viewers, would see it that way.

That man, the silent neighbor, is suspicious.

Just as they were about to conclude that, Kang Woo-jin, who had been still, slowly raised both hands. The muscles in his face relaxed. Woo-jin, like that, spoke to Song Tae-hyung’s back.

‘I like you.’

For him, sign language was the line. Soon, a close-up of Woo-jin’s face. The monitor showed the slightly relaxed smile of the ‘mysterious man next door’. Perhaps around this time, the viewers would realize.

It’s not that he’s mysterious, it’s that he can’t speak.

It was a scene that was driven only by emotion. If it went wrong, it might be difficult to understand. But Kang Woo-jin so far had not made a single mistake.

He was complete and perfect.

All of that process, emotion, and expression were captured by the camera. There wasn’t a single line, but it was more intense than a hundred words. Deep and rich. The actors who had confirmed such Kang Woo-jin, both on the monitor and in person, reacted in their own ways.

Some were just mesmerized and fell into it.

“…”

Some were roughly exclaiming inside.

‘Wow—his acting is insane, how does he express such eyes…’

The common point was that all the actors’ final destination was the same.

That was not the kind of acting a rookie could do.

Then, the actors watching Woo-jin’s eyes widened even more. It wasn’t because something was intense. They were overwhelmed by the gentle, quiet acting. The two hands that Kang Woo-jin was moving in the air now, the sign language.

‘Can’t we become friends?’

It was too bitter and heartbreaking.

Then, without realizing it, Lee Wol-sun let out a chuckle.

“He just tore through the script.”

The acting of a supporting or minor role for a two-day shoot had surpassed the standards of Lee Wol-sun, a star writer with 20 years of experience.

“This is a big problem if my standards get too high. It might have been better not to see it at all.”

She had lightly replaced them.

At this time, in Japan,

While Kang Woo-jin was turning the ‘Frozen Romance’ set upside down, an absurd and bizarre entity related to ‘Strange Geisha’ had appeared in Japan.

『Kashihi Group, interested in the collapsing 「Strange Geisha」? Rumors in the film industry』

It was the Kashihi Group.

End