"H-Hyeri."
"Snap out of it."
Kim Hyeri.
A first-year student at Yeonhwa High School.
Truthfully, some girl in the next class blabbered about coming to this school because of the famous actor here, but that wasn't really the case for Kim Hyeri. That being said, if you asked whether 'that actor' had absolutely no influence on her choice of school, that wasn't the case either.
It was just that as that actor made huge strides, Yeonhwa High School's name became the biggest among the nearby high schools.
Above all, unlike schools that pushed for arts and athletics, Yeonhwa High School was strictly an academic high school.
It was also much easier when persuading her parents.
"How many talented kids are there among actors?"
"Our Hyeri is pretty, but it's hard to make a living as an actor for the rest of your life. Actors who succeed are a minority, an extreme minority."
Every time the holidays came around, she always heard such things.
Still, talent aside, she had good luck.
She had a cousin working as a broadcasting station PD, so she was able to try working several times.
And then, an opportunity came.
"Among the works currently in production, there's one called
After
Works trying to ride even a little bit of that box office wave increased, and there were even places rushing into production.
Among them,
Filming started a bit later than
"Is it okay for an inexperienced actor like me to join? In the first place, I wonder if I can even get in..."
"It's fine, it's fine. High school-aged actors are hard to come by. If we can't find one, we have to use an older actor. But since it's not a major role either, the current situation seems a bit awkward."
It was a situation where her young age worked to her advantage.
They could have just looked for a slightly older actor, but it seemed the director thought that the freshness of that age group could only be brought to life by an actor of the same age as the role.
Like that, Hyeri was lucky enough to land the supporting role that appeared for only 4 episodes.
'It's sheer luck.'
Getting an opportunity like this is quite difficult.
If this goes well, I might be able to land a better role.
Then I can shut my parents' mouths, and I'll be able to brag about it at school, too.
Already, Hyeri, who was acting at a young age, stood out particularly among her friends.
She was essentially the head of the clique that hung around together.
'Ju Seoyeon? She might have better skills, but catching up isn't impossible.'
In the end, performance is everything in this industry.
Even for actors with better acting skills and higher evaluations, the performance of their works often fell short.
Of course, Ju Seoyeon was a special person even among them.
Honestly, Kim Hyeri was merely curious about how a human like that could exist.
Debuting at age seven, she was called a genius child actress, and after making a glamorous return ten years later, she had the entire nation on the edge of their seats for a year.
Ten million viewers—an achievement worth applauding even if accomplished only once in a lifetime—twice in a single year.
Even without a leading role, she achieved it with a significant supporting role.
In the case of
- Honestly, should Gyeongseong Lady even be counted as a 10-million movie? lol
- For a same-sex romance film to hit those numbers, it's fucking insane lol
- Luck played a fucking huge role though lol There were literally no other movies to watch
- That's because for a while, works were skewed towards OTT releases
- That's exactly why Child Game blew up
- Honestly, if it weren't for Ju Seoyeon, Gyeongseong Lady would've been a 6~7 million-viewer movie at best
- Even that much is fucking insane lol Besides, the lead was basically a newcomer in the film industry
- Lee Jiyeon? Honestly, I thought her acting was just passable early on, but the latter half was really good
- Ju Seoyeon hit 10 million because she did a stunt show in Japan
- Honestly, Gyeongseong Lady should bow deeply to Japan
Reaching 10 million viewers for
Just as the internet said, this
Starting from Stella, who made a cameo appearance, she participated because of Seoyeon.
And, as Seoyeon's popularity rose, they even made a documentary in Japan, which was also a huge hit.
So it was only natural that it served as advertisement in Korea as well.
It's human psychology that when a domestic movie does well overseas, people become curious to watch it.
And the one that benefited the most from that psychology was
'Amazing, it's amazing but. If only this
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I could build recognition comparable to two 10-million viewer movies.
You could tell just by seeing how the actors who appeared in
Their overseas recognition instantly became insurmountable.
Even an actor who appeared for just 10 minutes was featured in commercials.
Therefore, it meant that Kim Hyeri being inwardly confident wasn't entirely without basis.
In her heart, she felt like she would defeat Seoyeon and ascend to the position of the queen of Yeonhwa High, but...
[Moving Heaven's record-breaking flop.]
[Was Child Game a fluke? K-Culture continues to struggle at the box office]
"I'm going to die."
"Hey, Kim Hyeri!"
"There's only one left!"
"There won't be a second time."
"What are you talking about!"
Hyeri ended up fainting.
Because all the effort she had put in for filming this drama had gone down the drain.
***
Later, the half-year of K-Culture hell.
Roughly the period that was called that.
'Especially this month will be the worst month where launched works are wiped out.'
Due to the success of
Movies were turning to OTT too.
Anyway, it was a period where the entertainment industry was in an uproar trying to sell even a little bit to the world.
Of course, looking back, there were successful works during this half-year as well.
'But, no work even came close to Child Game.'
If you asked whether there were no benefits from
There definitely were.
It was a time when works that would normally barely receive a handful of attention easily hit tens of thousands of views.
Because now was the period when overseas reviewers, who wouldn't normally care about Korean dramas, were wildly reviewing them.
However, due to the qualitative decline of the works, unlike those reviews, none of them properly succeeded.
'Moving Heaven flopped.'
Seoyeon looked at Kim Hyeri, who was half-fainted on the school bench, and thought it was really unfortunate.
She remembered her acting cocky before, but well, she thought that could happen.
A girl of that age.
And for a young actor, it would be stranger not to harbor such feelings.
...Though the point when she blurted it out was a bit much.
'Sure enough, it's not easy for anyone.'
She recalled Min Ara, whom she had met around here before.
Honestly, she had a slightly more dangerous aspect compared to Kim Hyeri.
She was starring in a web drama, but as of now, there was no path forward beyond that.
It would be difficult enough just to land a role in a movie or drama, and even if she grabbed an opportunity and succeeded, one or two times wouldn't mean much.
Seoyeon also had her observations, being in this industry.
Mixed-race actors faced a wall that was just that huge.
"Ju Seoyeon!!"
"!"
While thinking that, Kim Hyeri, who was half-fainted on the bench, suddenly jerked her upper body up.
Then, she made eye contact with Seoyeon, who happened to be approaching holding two cans of Zero Cola.
Kim Hyeri's lost gaze soon dropped downward.
"S-Sunbae, hello."
"Ah, yeah."
"I, I was just dreaming for a moment."
Was she asleep?
No, it didn't seem like she was asleep.
'Just how conscious of me is she.'
It felt strangely proud but also quite complicated.
She realized that her recognition had risen this much, but also felt burdened.
Is this the burden one carries as a senior?
'No, why is this senior here.'
Kim Hyeri was bewildered in her own way.
It was a blessing she didn't spit out a curse.
Of course, she didn't shout that name because she intended to curse at Seoyeon.
It was just a reflex.
Since her recent drama flopped, that name naturally lingered around her mouth.
"I, I saw the drama."
"Even though it flopped."
"Still, I think it's pretty decent compared to the other works."
At Seoyeon's words, Hyeri seemed to think she was just saying it out of politeness.
'It's true, though.'
It wouldn't be anything amazing, but it would be enough to cheer her up.
The current results were shattered because there were no reviews up yet.
Among the works being released this month, its situation was the best.
The rest were annihilated without even a chance to cheer up.
'Honestly, Moving Heaven's title is trash.'
You couldn't even guess what the content was about.
Moving Heaven, how would overseas audiences receive this title?
In Korean terms, it would feel something like 'Moving Paradise.'
Our country's indiscriminate misuse of loanwords was having a negative effect here.
"There probably isn't an actor your age who can act that well."
"……."
At Seoyeon's rather serious words, Kim Hyeri wondered for a moment if she was making fun of her.
'Didn't she become a 10-million actor at the same age as me?'
Even if a work starting filming now was released, it already felt too late for this year.
It was just that Seoyeon's filming ended overly quickly; normally, that doesn't happen.
Moreover, thinking of the praises Seoyeon received at the same age, Kim Hyeri was just a run-of-the-mill high school aspiring actor.
The only big difference was that she had at least debuted.
'But.'
Kim Hyeri burned with ambition.
Although she was defeated right now... if she played her cards right with Seoyeon, wouldn't she be able to get an opportunity?
Above all, there were rumors that Ju Seoyeon was close with Jo Seohee.
She didn't know if it was simply a business relationship or if it was real, though.
'You can't trust the image shown on variety shows.'
Still, seeing how they worked on the same project twice in a row, they must have some level of friendship.
Kim Hyeri was a fan of Jo Seohee.
If Seoyeon and Seohee were really close, there would be a chance to meet her someday.
"I, I'll listen to whatever you say, Sunbae."
"…Huh?"
"I can even be a dog. If you tell me to bark, I'll bark."
This suddenly?
Seoyeon was bewildered.
She was going to give her a Zero Cola as a form of comfort, but suddenly a Chihuahua-like junior latched onto her.
Seeing those burning eyes, she was definitely not saying this as a joke.
It seemed the flop of her work dealt a huge mental shock to her.
Still, a dog is a bit much.
'She's definitely not saying this because she likes me, right?'
Seoyeon had that much sense.
This kid was clearly hoping for the crumbs that would fall by staying by her side.
Well, in a sense, she was honest, so she didn't hate it, but...
"Seoyeon Sunbae!!"
With Kim Hyeri looking like she might drop to her knees right then and there in front of her, another junior came running.
A mixed-race girl who could easily overpower Kim Hyeri in looks alone—Min Ara.
Being mixed-race definitely gave off an incredibly pretty feeling just looking at her appearance.
"Don't believe this girl. Just looking at her, she totally has the face of a backstabber."
"…Hey, who are you to talk."
"All my friends in the next class told me. You're always acting so full of yourself. Sucking up, and your drama flopped."
"You—!"
Min Ara was a true-blue loyalist of Seoyeon.
Who knew she would bite as soon as she saw the Chihuahua full of thoughts of betrayal.
'Umm.'
Seoyeon was flustered by the feeling that the image of a senior she had only imagined was being realistically formed.
Usually, this kind of thing ended as a delusion, didn't it?
Seeing the juniors fighting a war of nerves over her (though one side seemed full of ulterior motives), she felt quite a complex and subtle emotion.
'Still, it feels kinda good.'
Anyway, Seoyeon liked receiving attention, so it was fine either way.
As for the Chihuahua, her motives were so transparent it didn't evoke much thought.
Rather, the burden was on Min Ara's side.
'So this is why being liked can also be a burden.'
Seoyeon realized that fact anew.
This...
Since
If this flops...
'Ah, no. I trust Seohee's acting. And of course... my acting too.'
Seoyeon could feel her heart pounding from the tension.
Because a sense of crisis began to rise that her image as a cool senior might quickly end with Season 1 if she wasn't careful.
And, amidst that tension.
The official release date of
One day before the release.
[Can I go to your school tomorrow? I heard we're watching it together at school.]
Along with such a text from Jo Seohee.