The Face Genius Actor

Episode 104

After “Escape” ended its theatrical run with a record of 10.93 million viewers.

I took a break after a long time and read scripts.

The impact of “Escape” seemed to have been significant.

Many excellent scripts had come in.

Not just for movies, but an enormous number for dramas as well.

It seemed some people thought I would return to dramas at this point.

In my opinion, choosing another movie after attracting 10 million viewers was a burdensome task.

The risk of not reaching 10 million viewers again was considerable.

However, I still had the desire to do something more in the film industry.

Of course, I hadn’t completely ruled out dramas, but I was more drawn to movies.

From the beginning, when I decided to film “Escape,” I had planned to do several film projects in a row.

Among the works I reviewed, there were several outstanding pieces.

Works I had heard of before my regression, of course, and some that had achieved tremendous success.

There were even works that had performed better than “Escape.”

‘All these works have me as the main cast?’

In this situation, I naturally gravitated towards famous works and could easily provide reviews.

‘It’s interesting.’

It wouldn’t make sense for a movie that attracts over 10 million viewers to be uninteresting.

Moreover, each character was charming.

Standing out as the protagonist among such characters was significant.

But clearly….

‘Why am I not drawn to the work?’

Everything seemed perfect.

In fact, with this level of quality, it would be right to choose it even without knowing its future performance.

Moreover, there was no need to worry about finding investors like with “Escape.”

But strangely, I wasn’t drawn to it.

It wasn’t just one or two works.

I didn’t feel moved by any work that guaranteed success.

‘It’s clearly interesting, but….’

I couldn’t imagine myself in the role.

Even I was confused, as this was a first for me.

‘What is this? Have I fallen into a slump?’

It wasn’t that I had lost my enthusiasm for acting.

On the contrary, I was practicing acting more enjoyably than ever before.

I continued practicing what I couldn’t do while portraying Kim Sung-yeon in “Escape.”

And as always, becoming a new character was a happy experience.

It was also interesting to view the work from a producer’s perspective, changing things here and there, as I learned from “Escape.”

‘I haven’t grown tired of acting. That doesn’t make sense in the first place.’

It was clear that I was feeling this way for some other reason.

The problem was that I couldn’t find that reason no matter how much I thought about it.

‘Am I feeling pressured about appearing in a new work? That’s not it either….’

After thinking about this, I concluded that I should try reading works by lesser-known directors.

Somehow, I felt a sense of reluctance towards appearing in works I remembered.

‘Let’s take some time for now.’

I couldn’t focus solely on script selection anyway due to the upcoming schedule.

The Blue Dragon Film Awards ceremony was about to begin.

* * *

Fortunately, “Escape” barely met the judging criteria, so we could participate in the Blue Dragon Film Awards.

With the news of participating in the Blue Dragon Film Awards, Song Jin-ah became busy.

Song Jin-ah was passionately running around to secure clothing sponsorships again.

“Actor! This time, more companies have promised clothing sponsorships than before! The popularity of ‘Escape’ must have been incredible!”

“Is that so? That’s great. Did Designer Lee Si-hoo promise clothing sponsorship as well?”

“Yes! Of course! They seemed to have been waiting to provide the outfit. It felt like it was made for you as soon as I saw it!”

“I’m curious about what kind of outfit it is. Please show me Designer Lee Si-hoo’s work first.”

It was certainly an excellent piece.

As Song Jin-ah said, the outfit seemed perfectly tailored for me.

I felt like I didn’t need to see any other outfits.

Of course, I tried on other outfits that Song Jin-ah had carefully selected.

However, Song Jin-ah and I ultimately came to the same conclusion.

There was no outfit that fit me as perfectly and enhanced my charm as much as Lee Si-hoo’s design.

After choosing the outfit, we also discussed hair and makeup.

Song Jin-ah recommended a more glamorous style than before.

However, I decided to try such a style later.

I didn’t want to stray too far from the feel of Kim Sang-yeon’s character in “Escape.”

Time passed quickly as we made various decisions.

As planned, I finished my preparations and headed to the Blue Dragon Film Awards ceremony venue.

I definitely felt that I was receiving more attention than before.

The enthusiastic reporting atmosphere proved this fact.

It was natural, as “Escape” was a strong contender for the Best Picture award.

No other work had performed better than “Escape” this year.

The closest competitor was “Unexpected Hell” starring Park Jun, which attracted 8.7 million viewers, but it wasn’t a significant threat.

In fact, “Escape” was nominated in all award categories, and the media focused on how many awards “Escape” would win.

Among them, I was aiming for the ‘Best New Actor’ award.

Unlike before, even I thought my chances of winning the ‘Best New Actor’ award were high this time.

As I entered the awards venue, Park Jun spotted me and approached.

“Si-joon!”

“Jun hyung!”

“We end up meeting at the Blue Dragon Film Awards like this. Have you been well?”

“Of course. I was actually about to contact you to meet up.”

“I know you’ve just started resting after your movie left theaters. By the way, Si-joon, your next project…”

Just as Park Jun was about to say something, someone cleared their throat with a ‘ahem.’ When I turned around, Ji Jung-hyun was standing there.

“Senior, you’re here?”

“Hello, senior.”

Ji Jung-hyun looked at Park Jun and me in turn before speaking.

“It seems like you two have a lot to catch up on. I’ll go to my seat. See you later.”

Ji Jung-hyun moved to his designated seat, exuding an inexplicable presence.

Next to it, my name was prominently displayed.

For some reason, Park Jun frowned while looking at that scene.

It seemed that Park Jun and Ji Jung-hyun didn’t get along well.

I quickly opened my mouth to change the subject.

“By the way, what’s your next project?”

Park Jun finally relaxed his frown and looked at me.

“Ah. I was wondering if you had decided on your next project.”

I recalled my recent experience and answered.

“I haven’t decided yet. There are quite a few good projects, but I’m having trouble making up my mind.”

“Is that so? What are you considering next? Drama? Movie?”

“I’m thinking about movies. I still want to experience more in this field.”

“That’s great. I’m looking at the movie side too. So, there’s a script I’ve been eyeing. Would you like to take a look?”

“Oh. Sure. What script is it?”

“It’s a work called ‘We Are All Miracles’.”

While ‘We Are All Miracles’ didn’t reach 10 million viewers, it was still a movie that recorded quite good results.

It was also one of the works I had been keeping an eye on.

However, I wasn’t interested in this work and originally planned to decline the casting offer.

‘But…’

If Park Jun was appearing, I could change my mind.

I thought that if none of the works were satisfactory, it might be okay to work with someone I knew.

Also, Park Jun and I had good chemistry in “I Will Cast Love.”

“‘We Are All Miracles’… The title sounds good. I’ll read it and get back to you.”

So I answered like this without giving a definite answer.

“Great! Make sure to read it and contact me! Good luck with the Best New Actor award today!”

As Park Jun retreated, I moved to sit next to Ji Jung-hyun.

In the meantime, familiar faces greeted me, so my steps were interrupted several times.

I was finally able to take my seat next to Ji Jung-hyun with some difficulty.

As soon as I sat down, Ji Jung-hyun abruptly asked a question.

“Did Park Jun ask you to do a project together?”

“Huh? How did you know?”

“It’s obvious. I know what that guy is thinking.”

“Haha… Is that so?”

“Anyway, don’t decide on your next project yet. I have something in mind.”

I wondered if he was thinking more about my next project than my own agency.

I didn’t know what he was thinking, but I replied that I understood for now.

By the way, seeing these two showing hostility like this.

I was worried that they might say something strange in their acceptance speeches again.

‘Surely not…’

I watched the Blue Dragon Film Awards begin with these thoughts.

Shortly after.

My name was called by the presenter for the Best New Actor award.

“Lee Si-joon from ‘Escape’!”

The moment of being called was always thrilling.

Thus, I was able to win the Best New Actor award at the Blue Dragon Film Awards, following the Baeksang Arts Awards.

* * *

In conclusion, “Escape” won a total of six awards at the Blue Dragon Film Awards.

First, I received the Best New Actor award, and Ji Jung-hyun won the Best Actor award.

He competed with Park Jun for the Best Actor award, but this time Ji Jung-hyun was the winner.

It was natural since “Escape” had better results.

I had to admit that Ji Jung-hyun’s performance was better this time.

Also, one fortunate thing was that Ji Jung-hyun didn’t mention my name separately in his acceptance speech this time.

In addition, “Escape” won the Best Picture award, the Best Cinematography award, and the Korean Film Audience Award.

And critically, Director Kim Pil-sung won the Best Director award, concluding the ceremony.

Although we missed out on the Best Screenplay, Best Art Direction, Best Music, Best Art Direction, Best Editing, and Best Supporting Actor awards to other works, it was still a satisfying achievement.

Thinking about it, “Unexpected Hell” was also a good work, so it deserved to win some awards.

The same was true for other works besides “Unexpected Hell.”

This year, like other years, many good movies were released.

‘Still, the Best Screenplay was unexpected… To think “High Bird” won…’

“High Bird” was a work that didn’t have very good box office records.

For that reason, when “High Bird” was announced as the winner of the Best Screenplay award, many people at the venue couldn’t hide their surprise.

Above all, “High Bird” was a work that didn’t exist in my memory.

‘I should ask my manager to get the screenplay later.’

As I organized these thoughts and reflected on today’s achievements, the next day I asked Yeo Kyung-chan to get the screenplay for “High Bird.”

And I couldn’t help but be shocked.

While holding the “High Bird” screenplay, I turned on my laptop.