A chase suddenly broke out in a quiet park.
Kang Woojin ran.
His fired-up friends chased after him.
Both sides sprinted like crazy.
And the pursuers looked ready to tear through the sky with sheer momentum.
"Hey!! Kang Woojin!! Stop right there! Huh?!"
"You bastard! Stand still! Stop!"
"You crazy bastard!! Hey!!"
They looked like wild animals that had completely lost their minds.
If those lunatic bulls rammed into him, he was dead.
Kang Woojin sped up.
As a result—
Pat pat pat pat!
The distance between Woojin and the men chasing him never closed.
People out for a walk glanced at the four men running around and thought they looked slightly insane.
Which was understandable.
After all, a bunch of grown men in weekend clothes were running around like lunatics.
About three minutes later—
"Haa… hey! Ugh—don't run! Hey, Kang Woojin!"
"This bastard, huff! He's insanely fast."
"Damn it! Hey! Just stand still for a second! Huff!"
The three pursuers gradually started gasping for air.
The first to give up was the chubby Lee Kyungseong.
"…Urk—"
He slowed down.
Then finally stopped with both hands on his knees.
"Damn it… I think I'm gonna puke. Ugh!"
The next one to drop out was—
"Huff, huff—Kang Woojin, you lunatic."
Na Hyunggu.
The one with the playboy vibe.
He stopped running too and stared up at the sky while catching his breath.
Two pursuers down.
That left one.
"Kh—hey, Woojin!"
Kim Daeyoung.
His sturdy frame looked far more durable than the other two collapsed friends.
Meanwhile—
"Hup! Hah!"
Kang Woojin was still running, breathing steadily.
Because of that—
"Hey! Huff! Alright! Don't run! Kang Woojin, let's talk!"
Kim Daeyoung shouted while slowing down.
Woojin turned his head and shouted back.
"You stop first!"
"Fine! I said I got it!"
Kim Daeyoung stopped with his hands on his waist.
Only after confirming that did Woojin slow down as well.
The two friends who had dropped out earlier were sitting on the ground recovering.
Woojin, still breathing hard, shouted at Kim Daeyoung.
"Why were you chasing me like a wild boar?!"
"Of course I chased you! You showed up on a movie screen as an actor!"
"Then why did you look like you wanted to kill me?!"
"Why did you run?!"
"You idiot! Look at your size! Of course I ran!"
Their chaotic argument stopped.
By then, the other two friends had walked over and stood beside Kim Daeyoung.
Woojin let out a small sigh.
"Alright, I'll explain everything. Calm down. At this rate someone's actually going to die."
He glanced around.
There was a wooden bench nearby.
Woojin pointed at it.
"Let's sit first."
The three friends walked over as if they agreed.
Then—
Whoosh.
Kang Woojin reached the bench first and sat down.
His friends closed in.
But apparently punishment came first.
Kim Daeyoung grabbed him by the neck.
Lee Kyungseong jabbed his side.
Na Hyunggu grabbed his collar and shook him.
It was a completely ridiculous punishment.
About three minutes later—
Kang Woojin, who had nearly died, was finally released.
He collapsed onto the bench.
Kim Daeyoung sat beside him and sighed.
"So? Explain, you crazy bastard."
Lee Kyungseong and Na Hyunggu, sitting on the next bench, nodded as well.
Soon Woojin rubbed his neck and ribs.
"First of all, the lead in the movie you guys watched… was me."
"Ah, shit. Hearing it straight from your mouth makes it even harder to believe."
"Doesn't this just keep getting crazier? The lead from the movie we just watched is sitting right here."
"You idiot, it is the same guy."
Kim Daeyoung scratched his face.
"How long has it been since you quit your job? And now you suddenly started acting? You even shot a short film? Does that make any sense?"
No.
It didn't.
Even Kang Woojin admitted that.
But he couldn't explain everything.
Not the concept.
Not the void space.
Not the entertainment industry.
Either way, his friends had zero chance of stepping into that world.
So Woojin only said what was necessary.
"Well… there were circumstances. Anyway, long story short, I realized I'm actually pretty good at acting."
"…?"
"What kind of bullshit is that?"
"This bastard still hasn't been hit enough."
Woojin hurriedly continued when Kim Daeyoung glared at him.
"The first time I thought I might have talent was when I went with Daeyoung to audition for Super Actor. After that I got interested in scripts and scenarios, and you guys know the rest."
"I lent you the scenario for The Private Investigator."
"Yeah. I read it, liked it, practiced a bit, and auditioned. The Director said I did well and asked me to work with him."
Woojin hooked a thumb behind him.
"That movie was the main screening film at today's festival."
"…."
Silence fell.
The friends simply stared at Kang Woojin.
Woojin remained calm.
Aside from what he left out, he hadn't lied.
Then Lee Kyungseong spoke.
"…Does that even make sense, you bastard?"
"It's right in front of you."
Kim Daeyoung chimed in.
"A guy who spent his life doing design suddenly becomes that good at acting in a few months?"
"Yeah."
"Don't lie. Are you saying you secretly practiced acting for ten years behind our backs?"
Na Hyunggu added,
"Hey Kang Woojin, that's not talent. That's fraud."
Woojin inwardly agreed.
The void space really was fraud.
Still, after hearing the explanation, the three friends gradually accepted it.
The result was right in front of them.
And aside from Woojin's explanation, there was no other way to make sense of it.
Woojin looked at them.
"Anyway, after all that rock-and-roll nonsense, I ended up here. Sorry I didn't tell you earlier."
"So that's why you've been busy?"
"Yeah. I was insanely busy."
Kim Daeyoung scratched his head.
"Huh… filming really is brutal. But I never thought I'd say that to you. So are you going to keep acting?"
"I'm thinking about it."
"…But Kang Woojin, you're seriously good. I was shocked watching The Private Investigator."
Woojin said the most important thing.
"For now this stays between us. Don't tell anyone. Don't brag about it either."
"If you do, you're dead."
Honestly, it wasn't that important.
But Woojin hated unnecessary trouble.
His friends nodded.
Then—
"So Kang Woojin, are you close with Hong Hyeyeon?"
Na Hyunggu asked seriously.
The other two immediately joined.
"Oh right! I was shocked when Hong Hyeyeon showed up."
"Wait, Hong Hyeyeon hugged you from behind?? I'm jealous."
"Do you actually talk to Hong Hyeyeon normally?"
Woojin grinned faintly.
"I have Hong Hyeyeon's phone number."
"Whoa!"
"Holy shit. Hey, call her!"
"Let us hear her voice!"
The rowdy excitement of men in their twenties exploded.
Then Kim Daeyoung suddenly turned serious.
"Kang Woojin, have you picked your next project?"
"Yeah. A drama. But I can't say details yet. It's confidential."
That was true.
His role in Profiler Hanryang was still secret.
Kim Daeyoung asked again.
"A drama? Really? A major network one? When does filming start?"
Woojin answered casually.
"No, it's airing soon."
Once again—
their eyes widened.
Meanwhile—
Over the weekend, crowds flooded the Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival.
Unlike the quiet weekdays, the atmosphere grew lively by afternoon.
As if the media had been waiting, headlines poured out.
[Film Festival] Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival rotates screening lineup, first featured film The Private Investigator starring Hong Hyeyeon
From top actress Hong Hyeyeon to Park Junghyuk restarting his career at the festival… unexpected flood of star appearances
Of course, Hong Hyeyeon and Park Junghyuk were mentioned the most.
Thanks to their star power, the festival's publicity naturally exploded.
But the public became even more curious about the lead actors.
Hong Hyeyeon appears in a short film? Audiences shocked
Park Junghyuk's controversy was interesting too.
But the media focused mainly on Hong Hyeyeon.
Some articles even framed her and Park Junghyuk as rivals.
Hong Hyeyeon VS Park Junghyuk — an unusual matchup
There were a few articles about Kang Woojin as well.
But none were explosive.
Most mentioned his striking acting and the fact that Hong Hyeyeon wasn't the lead.
Short film The Private Investigator stars Hong Hyeyeon, but the lead is an unknown actor?
Because two famous actors appeared in the lineup, the festival's popularity surged.
And the weekend energy amplified it.
A YouTuber's review video about the festival filled with comments.
"I went today. Watching all ten films took about three hours."
"How long is each film?"
"Looks boring."
"Wow… Hong Hyeyeon really did a short film??"
"I watched it. Except for The Private Investigator and a couple others, the rest were trash."
"The Private Investigator was seriously fun."
"Should I watch it too? But three hours sounds long."
"It's called The Private Investigator. Hong Hyeyeon is supporting and an unknown actor is the lead, but his acting is good."
"Is that a spoiler?"
Meanwhile—
film communities began mentioning Kang Woojin more and more.
"I need info on Kang Woojin, the lead actor in The Private Investigator."
"My thoughts on the films at the festival.jpg"
"Who is Kang Woojin? Nothing comes up."
"So this unknown actor is suddenly blowing up lol"
"I went to see Hong Hyeyeon but fell for Kang Woojin…"
·
·
·
Woojin's recognition slowly began to rise.
May 5.
Children's Day.
A public holiday.
Many office workers were off.
But for major figures in the film industry, Tuesday was unusually busy.
Master Directors from the judging panel.
Top actors serving as honorary judges.
Invited Directors.
Overseas Directors.
Actors and celebrities.
Various industry insiders.
They had all gathered.
Because today was the day when the key figures related to the Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival would attend.
Naturally, the festival committee had arranged this separately.
If ordinary citizens watched films together with those figures, it would be impossible to control the situation.
Today was also the day the films and actors would be judged.
So the screening venue was not a normal theater.
It was the Seoul Film Arts Hall.
At a glance it looked like a theater.
But in reality it functioned more like a museum dedicated to film.
Old film materials were preserved there.
Sometimes they were opened to the public.
It functioned almost like a cinémathèque.
It usually screened art films and short films rather than commercial movies.
There were two halls.
They weren't huge, but they were still spacious.
Around thirty key figures gathered there.
In the lobby, they greeted each other warmly.
"Oh, Director Park, long time no see."
"Yes, Director Jung. Have you been well?"
"Haha. Always the same. Why haven't you been working lately?"
"I'm still planning my next project."
Many familiar faces were present.
Director Kwon Gitaek.
Actor Jang Taesan.
Even GGO Entertainment CEO Seo Guseob.
Among the foreign Directors, Japanese master Director Tanoguchi Kyotaro stood out.
Meanwhile—
CEO Seo Guseob smiled outwardly.
But inside he was furious.
'Choi Seonggeon isn't here?'
He had already learned that BW Entertainment's Choi Seonggeon invested in The Private Investigator.
'How dare he come at me?'
About an hour later—
everyone moved into the hall with about three hundred seats.
Each seat had a name card prepared by the festival.
The left side facing the screen was for Directors, judges, and actors.
The center and right were for invited guests.
As they took their seats—
the judge Directors, including Kwon Gitaek, grew solemn.
The invited guests flipped through the festival guidebook.
From the front, the scene was impressive.
Many influential figures from the film industry had gathered.
Compared to major film festivals the scale was smaller.
But it was definitely larger than the previous year.
Then—
Whoosh.
The hall darkened.
The signal that screenings were starting.
♬♪
The short films began.
Their running times ranged from five to ten minutes.
Whenever one ended—
Clap clap clap.
Applause followed.
Comments spread through the audience.
"I think the quality is higher than last year."
"I heard that ten-minute film was made by a college student."
The mood remained calm but positive.
"The acting was a little disappointing."
"But the direction wasn't bad."
After about five films—
The Private Investigator.
Finally, the film everyone had been talking about began.
Interestingly—
about ten minutes after it started—
everyone's expressions changed.
The calm atmosphere vanished.
Surprise filled the hall.
'Wasn't Hong Hyeyeon supposed to be the lead? But that unknown actor is really good.'
'Wow. Who is that actor?'
'So… this is the actor people were talking about online?'
Most of the audience began focusing on the lead actor.
Of course, CEO Seo Guseob grinding his teeth was no exception.
'This is insane. Why is that unknown actor acting like this?! Who is he?!'
He was shaken.
The unknown actor's performance was overpowering even Hong Hyeyeon.
At that moment—
many famous figures were thinking the same thing.
That actor is the biggest blue-chip in Chungmuro this year.
I can barely feel Hong Hyeyeon's presence.
His screen presence is overwhelming.
Look at that acting. It's so natural.
Where did they find him? Theater actor?
I want him.
Naturally—
they were all talking about Kang Woojin.
Then—
Japanese star Director Tanoguchi Kyotaro asked himself a question.
Is this really over?
That actor is completely different from the others.
Who is he?
Do Korean short films usually feature actors at that level?
He began to doubt his own eyes.
TL Note:
"Blue-chip of Chungmuro" refers to a highly promising and valuable talent in the Korean film industry.