To put it simply, Jo Seo-hee had only recently learned about the true nature of the movie *Miss Gyeongseong*.
Having been active since her childhood, Jo Seo-hee had quite an extensive network of connections. This was partly because the veteran actress Jung Eun-sun adored her, but also because Jo Seo-hee herself paid great attention to maintaining her relationships.
'The acting world is ultimately all about familiar faces.'
Therefore, it was best to build as many good relationships as possible.
She had thought so since she was young, and that hadn't changed much now that she was grown up.
Director Baek Min was someone with whom Jo Seo-hee shared a particularly long history.
During her childhood, it was through an introduction by actress Jung Eun-sun.
And after she had grown a little, it was because she had appeared in a movie called *Joint Operation*.
"*Gyeongseong*, Miss?"
At first, she thought it was simply a movie with an unusual title.
The setting was the Japanese colonial period.
She wondered if it was a film related to the independence movement, which was a common theme.
'It might help improve my image.'
Jo Seo-hee thought that while sipping a warm Americano.
With her rather sharp impression, Jo Seo-hee had faced plenty of negative public opinion.
Rumors that she was a delinquent, or that she looked like a floozy.
Anyway, since such rumors were quite prevalent, this would be a welcome opportunity.
'It would be nice if it's a role where I die a heroic death.'
If they played the emotional card properly, it wouldn't feel too bad.
Furthermore.
'It's also a good chance to compete with acting skills.'
Joo Seo-yeon.
Jo Seo-hee recalled the girl who had recommended Director Baek Min's movie to her.
The impression from her childhood remained, but she had grown into an excellent actress.
Although she had only filmed one movie so far, Jo Seo-hee knew.
She had the potential to rise to the top quickly.
She still hadn't forgotten.
That sense of helplessness she felt as a child.
Because the sight of Seo-yeon competing against adult actors, not child actors, was still vivid in her mind.
'It will be different this time.'
She was no longer a child actor.
She was still young, but she lived in the world of adult actors.
"It's a lesbian film."
"Pfft!!!"
At Director Baek Min's words, Jo Seo-hee ended up spitting out her coffee.
Right at the moment she was resolutely steeling her resolve, what on earth was this?
"I, I think I misheard just now, Director."
"No, you heard it correctly."
Director Baek Min, covered in the Americano Jo Seo-hee had spat out, laughed.
"Ah, ah! I, I'm sorry. Here's a handkerchief..."
"It's fine."
Director Baek Min's bright smile was the same as always.
A young director now in his mid-thirties.
However, his talent was such that he was called the most promising among young directors.
From Jo Seo-hee's standpoint, he was an incredibly valuable connection.
"I really want to cast Seo-hee as the lead in this movie. There's no actress among her peers as remarkable as Seo-hee."
"Th, that's a truly appreciated evaluation, but..."
Director Baek Min held Jo Seo-hee in high regard.
First of all, her outstanding appearance, and the acting skills considered the best among her peers.
Thorough self-management.
There was no actress in Jo Seo-hee's age range who could do as well as her.
He could confidently assert that much.
Therefore, he definitely wanted to cast Jo Seo-hee as the lead in *Miss Gyeongseong*.
"And, the one such Seo-hee spoke highly of... Joo Seo-yeon? I need to see her acting as well, but I'm looking forward to it."
Director Baek Min had never seen Tae Soom-dal, nor had he seen the play.
So he had never properly seen Seo-yeon's acting, but he knew about the actress Jo Seo-hee had been mindful of since childhood.
Since she had been generating buzz recently, he was paying attention to her in many ways.
"You'll bring her next time, right? You said you were friends."
"Ah. Y, yes. We're, we're friends."
Jo Seo-hee barely managed a smile with her trembling lips.
Fortunately, her facial muscles, trained by her acting career, carried out their duty exactly as she intended.
"I'll definitely bring her, Director."
"I'll look forward to it."
At Director Baek Min's beaming smile, Jo Seo-hee could only helplessly nod.
And so, today.
『That, that's how it happened.』
"Ah, a lesbian film."
『Right...』
At Jo Seo-hee's words, Seo-yeon tilted her head with a hum.
'Is it something to be trembling about while saying?'
Recently, that level of keyword was basically included in all kinds of creative works.
There were even cases where it was forcefully inserted, lowering the quality and drawing criticism.
'But it's also not good for an actor to be picky about roles.'
That was Seo-yeon's basic mindset.
If there was something she shied away from, it was romance acting.
However, she was aware that she would have to do it someday.
'Definitely, *Miss Gyeongseong* is a movie that could feel burdensome.'
For reference, the actress Seo-yeon remembered in *Miss Gyeongseong* was not Jo Seo-hee.
Originally, it wasn't a movie with a large budget, and no actress had applied due to the lesbian keyword.
So three unknown actresses.
Those three became the leads in the work... and it was a massive hit beyond expectations.
4 million viewers.
Not only was it nominated for the Academy Awards, but it also made it to various overseas film festivals.
Since it won many of them, it was all over the news for a while.
'Afterwards, the actors who appeared in that movie got the opportunity to advance into OTT dramas.'
Of course, they didn't participate in any hit works after that, but initially, it caused quite a stir overseas.
'The new drama featuring those ladies!' and such.
It just didn't achieve results up to expectations.
『Hey, why are you quiet?』
"Ah, I was just thinking for a bit."
Although Seo-yeon answered casually, Jo Seo-hee shrank back considerably.
That was because, basically, Seo-yeon's voice was calm and didn't reveal much emotion.
At first glance, it could sound like she was in a bad mood or even angry.
『If you don't like it, you can refuse.』
"It's not that I don't like it."
『Huh?』
Jo Seo-hee was flustered by the unexpected answer.
Because she thought Seo-yeon would naturally refuse.
"But, I'll think about it a little."
『Yeah...』
At the following words, she thought, ah, as expected.
She figured Seo-yeon was refusing in a roundabout way.
For the record, Seo-yeon wasn't exactly refusing in a roundabout way.
Rather, she thought *Miss Gyeongseong* would be a truly good opportunity.
'One of the few movies that can raise overseas awareness right now.'
*Miss Gyeongseong* was a film that became a hot topic even on overseas internet communities.
In the era before the OTT market was activated, awareness of Korean actors on overseas communities was virtually nonexistent.
Of course, later on, Korean movies and dramas were exported for various reasons and awareness increased significantly, but that was at least a few years later.
'It's a really good opportunity, but.'
The reason Seo-yeon couldn't give a definite answer to Jo Seo-hee's proposal wasn't because the film dealt with a lesbian genre.
It was simply because she was purely worried about whether she could pull it off.
In many ways, in terms of acting.
'I don't know what role it is, but if I'm appearing with Jo Seo-hee, the probability of it having a large part is high.'
There were three leads in *Miss Gyeongseong*.
'The daughter of a prestigious Japanese family' and 'her rival lady'.
Lastly, 'the lady's maid'.
She didn't know which role Seo-yeon would get among these.
However, all three required some romance acting.
Seo-yeon, who had never done romance acting, honestly lacked confidence.
"...Dream Future."
『Ah, yeah. I heard you're appearing in that.』
"I'll try it there first and then let you know."
Dream Future would certainly include romance acting.
However, the role of Jo Ha-rin had a low frequency of it, and since it was a character with a one-sided crush, the acting involving crossing emotions was relatively minimal.
Still, since she ends up with a different character rather than the male lead Kim Si-hwan at the end, it couldn't be said there was none at all.
So it seemed like a good idea to try it there first and get a feel for it.
'It's too good of an opportunity to throw away just because I think I can't do it.'
Setting aside that it was a proposal from her friend Jo Seo-hee, it was indeed a truly good opportunity, so she couldn't simply refuse it just because it was burdensome.
『Alright. There's still time, so just let me know within this year.』
"Yes."
At Seo-yeon's reaction, Jo Seo-hee seemed slightly relieved and said goodbye in a bright voice.
After Seo-yeon hung up on Jo Seo-hee.
"What on earth are you talking about?"
Lee Ji-yeon asked with a strange expression.
It must have been because she was right beside her and heard the conversation.
I looked Lee Ji-yeon up and down.
'Hmm.'
Lee Ji-yeon had only appeared in cable dramas so far.
Along with *Miss Gyeongseong* that Jo Seo-hee had just proposed.
'They definitely couldn't find applicants, so unknown actresses were cast.'
It was highly likely that they wouldn't be able to find a proper actress until the 'next year' Jo Seo-hee mentioned.
In other words, it was a very good opportunity for Ji-yeon.
"Lee Ji-yeon, are you interested in a movie audition?"
"Whaat?"
At Seo-yeon's words, Lee Ji-yeon couldn't help but be flustered, which was rare for her.
***
"Seon-a, have you finished the article?"
"Ah, yes. It'll be up soon."
Han Seon-a smiled and replied to her senior before sighing.
These days, as internet articles became the main trend, she had a lot of work for various reasons.
There were many times when she was collectively criticized because of reporters who posted articles without proper reporting.
"Hmm? *The Chaser*?"
"Ah, yes. Do you know about it?"
"Of course~. That's the movie GH Group invested in this time. No need to worry about audience numbers."
Han Seon-a smiled at the senior reporter's words.
As Seo-yeon's number one fan, just hearing such things made her feel unexplainably good.
"But Joo Seo-yeon? Hmm, is there really a need to write an article? Haven't there already been many articles about actress Joo Seo-yeon?"
"Ah, it's not an article to post right away. I'm planning to post it when the 2nd or 3rd PV drops."
The article Han Seon-a prepared was one that covered actress Joo Seo-yeon's growth process and what kind of appearance she would show in *The Chaser*.
It was essentially an article to properly introduce the actress Joo Seo-yeon, who was still unfamiliar to the public.
"It's ambiguous. If you write something like that, what do they call it these days? Aggro? It won't draw much of that."
"Too provocative articles are a bit..."
"Come on, why worry about that? Actually, it's because we worry too much about those things."
'Sunyang Media,' which Han Seon-a belonged to, was on the moderate side.
However, being moderate meant it had less recognition compared to places that poured out relatively provocative articles.
"Well, Seon-a is good at her work, so I trust you."
"Yes, yes. Don't worry."
Han Seon-a sighed at the senior's warning as he turned away.
The article about Seo-yeon was half fandom, half belief anyway.
'It will definitely explode.'
With *The Chaser*.
Plus, there was evidence that she had recently taken a drama audition.
Han Seon-a planned to move to find information about that.
Exactly what happened at the audition.
About the new role Joo Seo-yeon had chosen.
And, that role was.
"I'm Joo Seo-yeon as Jo Ha-rin. I look forward to working with you."
Seo-yeon bowed her head toward the actors looking at her.
The first meeting for *Dream Future*.
A gathering where the actors who passed the audition came together in one place.
It was the first meeting held under the lead of cinematographer Kim Pil-seok.
It wasn't a script reading, but simply to build familiarity.
"They're all young actors, right? They're all about the same age."
Director Kim Pil-seok, with his relatively hearty personality, laughed heartily as he said that.
Most were in their early twenties.
The younger ones were in their late teens.
Among them, Seo-yeon was seventeen, uniquely young.
Excluding the male lead Kim Si-hwan and the female lead Song So-ha, the four main cast members were each showing off their individuality.
They were young, and some had achieved success at a young age, so their confidence was overflowing.
The representative of that was.
"Wow, Seo-yeon. You're still a high schooler, right? Is it okay if I speak comfortably?"
Piercings in his ear.
A man with flashy blonde hair, Ma Yeon-woo, was the prime example.
At his words, the faces of the other four contorted violently.
It was only because it came from Ma Yeon-woo, who had the largest fandom, that they didn't say anything outright.
'Not good.'
Seo-yeon gave a slight nod as she looked at them.
Young actors.
And looking at their roster, they were all actors who would achieve great success later.
There was nothing good to come from ruining relationships needlessly.
'Among them, I'm the one with sociability.'
She thought she had to be the center.
Although she struggled a bit in school life, wasn't she first-rate when it came to social life?
Seeing Seo-yeon nodding to herself with such thoughts.
'...Looks like she's having weird thoughts again.'
Park Jung-woo let out a sigh.
Anticipating that it would be a rather exhausting gathering.