I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 322

Cannes Film Festival. Honestly, even at this moment, with the finished product test of ‘Leech’ about to happen, Kang Woo-jin didn’t feel like it was real. Unlike other movies like ‘Drug Dealer’ and ‘Island of the Missing,’ which felt like his own flesh and blood due to the publicity blitz around their release, ‘Leech’ hadn’t undergone any major promotion or marketing yet.

Of course, thanks to director Ahn Ga-bok, a legend in the Korean film industry, the great actor Shim Han-ho, and the ‘Issue King’ Kang Woo-jin, interest had surged, and articles were popping up everywhere.

『‘Leech’ Finishes Filming, Which Category Will It Be Invited To? Cannes Film Festival Official Selection Announcement Next Week』

After that initial flurry, only occasional articles about the Cannes Film Festival surfaced, and things were generally quiet.

The reason was simple.

The film company and distributor of ‘Leech’ weren’t actively promoting it. They were solely focused on the Cannes Film Festival. Naturally, when the Cannes Film Festival opening drew near, they would ramp up the articles, but for now, it was considerably quieter compared to other commercial films.

That’s why Kang Woo-jin, waiting for the elevator, felt even more detached from reality.

“······”

Inside Woo-jin’s head, behind his intense poker face, various thoughts were swirling.

‘Cannes—Cannes, huh.’

He wasn’t just pretending to be serious; he was genuinely serious. That was it. It was like when people watch an interesting comic or other content and imagine themselves as the protagonist. Recently, Kang Woo-jin had frequently searched about the Cannes Film Festival. He had checked numerous materials from the past to the present, including various articles, photos, and YouTube videos.

Even though it didn’t feel real, the reason Kang Woo-jin’s heart was pounding was because of that.

‘Wow—damn, this kind of day is actually coming. Thinking that something I only imagined is about to happen makes me so nervous.’

Photos of Korean actors walking the red carpet at Cannes, videos of interviews with hundreds of foreign reporters at the Cannes Film Festival closing or awards ceremony, group photos with world-renowned filmmakers, including those from Hollywood.

And.

‘Who was it? Anyway, a Korean director raising a trophy at the Cannes awards ceremony was so cool.’

A Korean director receiving an award in front of thousands of world-class filmmakers. If such things were about to happen to him, not just in his imagination, who wouldn’t be nervous? Especially Kang Woo-jin, who had never even dreamed of an overseas film festival in his life.

‘Ugh—I’m starting to feel nauseous.’

There was also fear. Of course, there was worry. The scale of this first experience was enormous. If he focused on his persona, he could somehow get through it, but the Cannes Film Festival, several times grander than the Blue Dragon Film Awards [a major South Korean film award], was a fresh shock to Woo-jin.

At that moment.

-Ding!

The elevator he was in opened its doors on the floor he had arrived at. Choi Sung-gun, with his ponytail, tapped Woo-jin’s shoulder, who had been lost in thought.

“Let’s go.”

Choi Sung-gun, though much less imposing than Kang Woo-jin, also had a slightly firm expression. Woo-jin and Choi Sung-gun had arrived at a small studio inside the large film company. In front of the studio, some of the ‘Leech’ staff were already waiting.

“Ah! Hello!”

They immediately greeted Kang Woo-jin as he approached. After greeting them appropriately, Woo-jin entered the studio. The interior looked different from other movie test locations Woo-jin had experienced so far. It was more like a small screening room. There were various work devices, a moderately large screen at the front, at least 50 chairs, and officials already filling about 30% of the seats.

They were all busy greeting Kang Woo-jin as soon as they saw him.

And.

“You’ve arrived.”

Director Ahn Ga-bok, with short white hair and many wrinkles, suddenly appeared from among the officials. Woo-jin, who shook his hand, which had a slight smile but shining eyes, thought anew.

‘Oh, this old man. No, director, he looks much older than the first time.’

He could feel the hardships Director Ahn Ga-bok had endured. He probably sacrificed sleep and almost his life to complete ‘Leech.’ Anyway, after shaking hands, Director Ahn Ga-bok guided Woo-jin to the front. On a desk near the equipment, he saw a familiar poster attached to a plastic board.

“We decided yesterday.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, we’ll send this poster to Cannes.”

At that moment, Choi Sung-gun, who had been spacing out, stuck to Woo-jin’s back, curious. Woo-jin and Choi Sung-gun fixed their gazes in the same direction. They were looking at the official poster of ‘Leech’ that would be formally sent to Cannes.

‘Damn, I’m too big in this.’

Kang Woo-jin occupied a large portion of the poster. No, ‘Park Ha-sung.’ The full body of ‘Park Ha-sung,’ increasingly consumed by the Ripley Syndrome [a psychological condition where someone believes they are another person]. He was looking at a family photo. A family photo of the chaebol [a large family-owned business conglomerate] family, including Chairman Yoon Jung-bae and Oh Hee-ryung. The face of ‘Park Ha-sung’ reflected in the glass of the frame was smiling eerily, but the real face of ‘Park Ha-sung’ holding the family photo had no smile at all.

This also implied the Ripley Syndrome.

Following that, the title, with a roughly smoky effect, was prominently placed at the bottom of the poster.

-‘Leech’

In other words, this poster with Kang Woo-jin plastered all over it would be prominently displayed at the Cannes Film Festival. At this, Woo-jin’s heart pounded again. Choi Sung-gun, who had no idea, nudged Woo-jin’s side and whispered softly. A smile was a bonus.

“Wow—the poster is amazing, isn’t it? That means all the big-shot filmmakers coming to Cannes will see it. Oh, I can’t calm down.”

Woo-jin, who had been excited just a moment ago, also agreed. But, trying to remain calm, he didn’t particularly respond. It was at this moment.

“Senior Shim Han-ho has arrived!”

A staff member’s shout echoed from the back. The great actor Shim Han-ho, reminiscent of a tiger, had arrived. It was the first time Kang Woo-jin had seen him since filming ‘Leech,’ so he bowed to him respectfully at 90 degrees. Shim Han-ho’s hair, which had been cut short for filming, had grown a bit. Even his beard had grown a lot. The rugged macho aspect had become abundant again.

After Shim Han-ho received Kang Woo-jin’s greeting.

-Swish.

He discovered the official poster of ‘Leech’ in front of Woo-jin. After silently staring at the poster for a moment, he spoke in a deep voice.

“It’s well done.”

The other actors arrived one after another. Oh Hee-ryung, of course, as well as Jin Jae-joon and Han So-jin. A few supporting actors as well. When all the actors and those who were supposed to come had gathered, Director Ahn Ga-bok declared to the entire studio, which had been buzzing.

“Let’s begin.”

Soon, the lights went out, and the video began to play on the screen in front.

-[“Hoo.”]

Along with the sound of wind, cigarette smoke billowed out. As the smoke spread, the angle slowly moved back. Gradually, a person’s face began to appear on the dark screen, and at the same time, a familiar narration began to play.

-[“I don’t know anymore, who I am.”]

At this point, the face of a man squatting and smoking a cigarette was displayed largely on the screen.

-[“Who am I existing as? I’ve lost my way. Is the one speaking now really me? Or am I just making excuses to fit the situation?”]

Before the title even appeared, ‘Leech’ began with Kang Woo-jin.

Meanwhile, at the same time. DM Production.

While Kang Woo-jin was in the middle of testing the completed ‘Leech,’ DM Production, which was in charge of producing ‘Beneficial Evil,’ was also busy. They were currently gathered in a large conference room, holding the final production meeting.

“Next is the set, have all the problems I mentioned last time been fixed?”

“Yes, PD-nim [PD is a Korean term for a producer or director].”

The production meeting, led by the bearded Song Man-woo PD, was mostly in a checking atmosphere. Most of the agenda items were completed, and it felt like Song Man-woo PD was checking and crossing off the list.

In fact, the pre-production of ‘Beneficial Evil’ was almost finished.

Except for the still-secret Miley Cara matter, the ‘CQC’ [Close Quarters Combat] storyboard by Ethan Smith, who joined in the latter half, was also completed, as well as the overseas location, the overall schedule, the arrangement of the actors, and the overall flow of funds. Everything was finished.

Now, all that remained was the final check and confirming the schedule.

The matter regarding the schedule was naturally spoken by the bearded Song Man-woo PD.

“······Hoo, okay. Then the script reading is on the 14th, and the first filming is on the 20th.”

Today was the 8th. That meant the script reading and first filming of ‘Beneficial Evil’ would start in about two weeks. Of course, this was the result of considering the schedules of all the actors, including Kang Woo-jin.

In addition.

“Since we’re wrapping up filming overseas, make sure to thoroughly check for any problems in Bangkok.”

The first filming of ‘Beneficial Evil’ was from an overseas location in Bangkok, Thailand.

A few days later, on the 11th. LA.

It was early morning. Because of the time, the congested roads of LA were a battlefield. The flow of people on the sidewalks was also enormous. The roads, overflowing with numerous cars, were filled with the endless sound of honking.

Among them, two large vans stood out.

The reason was simple.

-Click, click!

Foreigners in cars around the two large vans, which were stopped side by side, were constantly taking pictures of the vans. There were at least five cars. They were paparazzi, commonly seen in LA, even used as a tourist attraction. It was natural.

The two large vans they were photographing were Miley Cara’s cars.

Cara was in the front van of the two. Inside, Miley Cara, with her blonde hair down, was looking at a tablet while crossing her legs. The tablet was displaying large houses in the LA area. Then, Cara, with her face still cold, yet with a hint of something else.

-Swish.

She turned her head to the right and spoke to her main manager, Jonathan.

“Kang Woo-jin chose this house?”

The burly Jonathan nodded.

“Yes.”

Cara, with a slight smile, murmured.

“Nice, it’s close to my house too.”

“What? Cara, what did you say?”

“It’s nothing. Prepare the house that Kang Woo-jin chose. I’ll decide when to give it to him as a gift.”

“Okay.”

As the answer was heard, the congested road seemed to have cleared a bit, and the van slowly moved. Jonathan, who had received the tablet back from Cara, changed the subject.

“And Cara, an invitation came from Cannes again this year.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Decide whether you’ll go or not. You didn’t go last year, right? Same feeling this year?”

Cara, who changed the direction of her crossed legs.

‘······Kang Woo-jin is going to Cannes this year.’

She swept her blonde hair back while crossing her arms.

“Shall I go this year?”

“Oh—really? What’s the reason?”

“I’m curious about Kang Woo-jin’s movie.”

“······Aren’t you being too kind to him? Of course, he was a big help, but it’s strangely annoying.”

Cara, shrugging her shoulders, replied nonchalantly.

“Of course, it’s not just because of Kang Woo-jin. If I didn’t go last year, it’s okay to go this year, right? I haven’t shown my face in Hollywood recently due to album work.”

“That’s true. If you just step on the red carpet, it’ll quickly become noisy.”

“And for some reason, this year in Cannes.”

Cara, who paused for a moment, smiled slightly while thinking of Kang Woo-jin.

“I feel like a big incident will happen. It’s more thrilling to see such things in person.”

Jonathan, tilting his head, sighed as if he understood roughly.

“Okay, then I’ll revise the schedule to include attending Cannes this year. But I won’t be able to keep it long.”

“It’s okay. I only need to see one day and the closing ceremony during the Cannes schedule.”

“Okay, about two days.”

Several tens of minutes later, the van that Cara was in entered the parking lot of a large building in downtown LA. This magnificent building was Miley Cara’s agency. Soon, Cara, who got out with her team including Jonathan, got on the elevator. It seemed like she already had an appointment, as there was no hesitation in her movements.

-Ding!

Cara, who got off the elevator that had stopped, walked down the hallway, guided by Jonathan. Many foreign employees who passed by greeted her. It was natural, as Cara was the star of this agency, and before she knew it, she arrived at the glass door of a conference room.

Miley Cara asked Jonathan.

“Here?”

“Yeah.”

Cara, nodding, straightened her blonde hair and jacket. Then, she met Jonathan’s gaze again, who was standing next to her.

“How do I look?”

Jonathan showed a thumbs up without particularly answering. Cara, who chuckled softly, opened the glass door. Soon, the inside of the conference room and the people sitting at the U-shaped table came into Cara’s view. There were a total of four people, all of whom were East Asian. Among them, a man with a noticeable beard greeted Miley Cara first. Of course, in English. His voice was full of energy.

“Hello, Miley. I’m Song Man-woo.”

The man was Song Man-woo PD.

Meanwhile, in Korea.

It was morning in LA, but it was late at night in Korea. Nevertheless, Kang Woo-jin couldn’t leave work. He was currently in a recording studio. It was because there was a recording related to the ‘Kang Woo-jin Sub-Character’ channel, which had recently seen an explosive increase in subscribers.

Woo-jin was inside the booth.

His expression was extremely solemn, but.

‘Ugh, damn it. I’m so tired. Should I go into the subspace once?’

Internally, he was grumbling. It was at this moment.

-Vroom, vroom.

The cell phone in his back pocket vibrated. Without changing his expression, Kang Woo-jin took out his phone. The caller was, strangely enough, director Kyotaro of ‘Strange Geisha,’ who had resumed editing after the production presentation, and it was certain that even that was in its final stages.

What is it? Woo-jin, who was wondering, answered the phone and spoke in Japanese.

“Yes, director.”

Over the phone, director Kyotaro’s slightly hoarse voice was heard.

“Woo-jin-ssi [a Korean honorific]. I’m sorry for calling so late, I wanted to let you know first.”

“It’s okay. Please speak.”

“The editing will be completed without any problems by September, and ‘Strange Geisha’ will be released in Japan around the end of October. The work has already begun.”

“Is that so?”

Kang Woo-jin, who asked back, added a question.

“Then, the Korean release is…”

Director Kyotaro’s answer was quick.

“It will be around mid-November.”

In the second half of this year, the bombs to be dropped every month began to be loaded.

End