Chapter 36
Chapter 36
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: Psychometry Her (3)
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“The phone call scene with Kim I-seo will go in as an intercut, so we'll film that later. Right now, we're starting from after the call, with Helena arriving at the station. Just sync up your movements with the extras once, and we'll jump right in.”
“...Yes!”
*Intercut: A directing technique that combines scenes shot in two different locations into a single screen. Waiting for the previous shot to wrap, I mentally replay the phone conversation between Helena and Kim I-seo.
Filming it separately for the intercut is just a stylistic choice.
When acting, I have to carry the emotions forward from that call.
Because to the audience, Kim I-seo and Helena will meet at the station right after the conversation ends.
Of course, ever since turning into this body, I didn't need to prep emotions in advance anymore.
Like a machine that activates at the flip of a switch.
Acting pours out instantly, without any groundwork...
But habits are hard to shake. Especially ones ingrained over twelve years.
-...Helena, I'm really sorry, but could you help me out?
-Kim I-seo asking me for a favor? That's kinda scary..., So what's up?
-There's this case our team's investigating... It's getting messy. I'll send you the details—could you take it on?
Usually, she'd review the case files first before responding, but she was on a break anyway.
And it was a request from Kim I-seo, her one and only friend from her time living in Korea. She'd even put off work in the States for that.
Kim I-seo might not know it, but this was the first favor she'd ever asked since they became friends.
That alone was reason enough to fly back to Korea.
To Helena, it'd feel like a fun vacation—catching up with an old friend, grabbing some meals.
-No need for that. I'm heading out now.
-...Huh?
-To Korea. Right now.
-...What?
-See you soon. Or tomorrow, maybe.
At a single call from Kim I-seo, Helena jets off to Korea.
The moment she lands, she heads straight to the Seocho Station Violent Crimes Unit to meet her friend—and that's where she encounters the detectives from Violent Crimes Team 2.
Kim I-seo had already briefed the captain and the chief about Helena.
The chief figured she was above his paygrade and reported up the chain about her visit.
An FBI crime psychologist and profiler like Helena wasn't exactly welcome with open arms by the Korean police.
But given her authority and reputation in the U.S., they couldn't just turn her away.
In the end, Helena got appointed as an advisor to the Seocho Station Violent Crimes Unit in a single day.
As I run through the backstory of Helena coming to Korea and her emotional arc...
The previous shot wraps up.
Let's do this. I can nail it.
The assistant director beckons me over with a wave, leading me out of the Violent Crimes set and into the station hallway.
They'll shoot the click-clack of heels approaching from inside the station, then close-up on the cop's surprised face when he spots Helena.
The screen fades smoothly into a shot of Helena's bright, smiling face.
Then, she follows the cop's lead to Team 2, where Kim I-seo is.
“Let's run the path! Gyeowol, match the camera director's cue and walk slowly, leisurely, relaxed. This is the cop you'll greet first when you meet.”
“Ah, nice to work with you.”
“N-No, the pleasure's mine!”
I sync up with the extra—who's stuttering suspiciously—and we run the path.
Then the real shoot begins.
“Get ready and... Action! Cue!”
The set's energy shifts in an instant.
The extras playing cops and criminals move along the marked path.
The camera director tracking my walk flashes an OK sign.
Click-clack—
I stroll forward leisurely, heels echoing.
I'd never formally trained in walking, but I'd mimicked runway models plenty of times.
Plus, I'd practiced heels at action school, so no issues there.
(Not that those male coaches over there walk better than me in heels. That's our little secret.)
Action school for the win.
A few steps in, I cross paths with the cop walking down the hall.
The camera catches his startled reaction at the sight of me.
I need to hold the shocked expression for about two seconds, then snap out of it and ask how I got there...
“Uh.... Uh.... Um...”
Five seconds in, and he's still tongue-tied.
This is definitely heading for an NG.
Script has the cop greeting me first, but I have to improvise.
If he can't roll with this much help, we'll have to cut and NG anyway.
“Hello? Nice weather we're having, right?”
“Y-Yes... Nice... I mean! Ah, hello!”
The extra playing the cop looks like he's in full meltdown mode.
Story-wise... it doesn't look bad.
A cop freezing up at Helena's beauty.
Hell, it feels more authentic than the script.
“Do you happen to know Detective Kim I-seo from Violent Crimes Team 2?”
“Ah... Detective Kim. Head that way for Team 2... No, let me escort you!”
“Hehe, thanks.”
I follow the flustered cop to the Team 2 office.
The camera tracks our backs for a few seconds.
“Cut! Okay! Wow! Jeong Gyeowol! You saved it!”
“Ah... Was it alright? I improvised without checking first...”
“You covered the NG, right? It's fine. Totally fine. I love ad-libs. Feel free to throw them in anytime something comes to mind.”
Of course, it was an ad-lib to cover the extra's flub.
Some directors despise improv.
Even if they allow it, they rarely look kindly on rookies doing it.
Seeing Yoon Jong-pil PD looking satisfied, I finally relax.
Then the cop extra comes over, bowing repeatedly.
“I'm sorry! Truly sorry!”
Bowing to me, Yoon Jong-pil PD, and the rest of the crew.
I know exactly what he's feeling.
Even a short line means more pay.
A few lines become resume fodder.
Sometimes they just grab extras whose faces fit the role.
-Hey, any extras with line experience? Bring 'em over.
Lots of directors seek out seasoned background players.
But screw up like this? You're done.
Competition's fierce—dozens to hundreds vying for spots. One shot only.
He got that shot and blew the line from the start.
If it weren't for me, definite NG...
Classic self-preservation move.
Back when I hustled as an extra, I once NG'd on one line and knelt before the director.
I get it completely.
But I'm a rookie too—no clout to cover for him fully.
“My ad-lib caught you off guard, huh? Thanks for rolling with it.”
“N-No... Thank you!”
That's the most I can do to help him.
What Yoon Jong-pil PD does next is out of my hands.
Luckily, no on-the-spot firing.
Shooting continues.
I head to Violent Crimes Team 2, meet Kim I-seo.
S skim the case files in five minutes flat, then start the briefing.
I pin up Kwak Du-pal, Doo Man-sik, and Hong Du-gwang's cases on the whiteboard in order.
Recite their wounds, the traces left by the perp.
Figure out the killer's left-handed along the way.
Childhood: started with insects, moved to animals—killing and dissecting like toys.
Gradually desensitized to taking life.
Local rep: “Someone who lives by the law without needing it.”
Yes. This serial killer is a psychopath, 99% certainty.
“I'd need to see the scenes myself for more details, but... Meticulous personality, perfectionist. High chance he's a respected civil servant... or in a professional field.”
“You get all that from a few photos?”
Kang Min-hyuk, playing Kim Du-han, glares.
His character clashes with Dr. Helena constantly.
Early on, he dismisses her, insists real detectives pound pavement, ignores her profiling.
But she always stays ahead, until he raises both hands and trusts her fully.
For now, though, they're butting heads.
Team leader or not, Helena never backs down from a power play.
“Our team leader's got a lot of gripes piling up, huh?”
“Frankly, yes. Profiling? Real criminals get caught in the field, with your body. Not your brain.”
“Wow, even the former FBI director wouldn't say something that outdated. You're something else.”
“...What? Calling me outdated?”
“No, that'd be insulting to outdated people. Scratch that.”
Helena shrugs, palms up.
Classic American gesture.
That grates on Kim Du-han.
“This woman's really asking for it!”
“Asking for it? Does seeing me mean you wanna see me?”
“Why're you suddenly pretending not to speak Korean!”
“Hey, Team Leader! Cool it!”
“Eyes are everywhere... This is gonna be trouble!”
Team 2 members Kang Ho-soo and Song Soo-chan grab his arms.
Kim I-seo steps beside Helena, shielding her.
Helena smirks and thumbs-up; Kang Ho-soo and Song Soo-chan grin sheepishly.
“Damn, you guys really doing this? I'm your team leader, you punks! Stop her, not me!”
“C'mon, Team Leader, we're all cops here—no sides.”
“Be honest, you're smitten with her face, right?”
“Ahem! Never.”
“Argh! These 'team members'!”
Kim Du-han's freakout shows no sign of stopping.
Kim I-seo leads Helena out of the station.
Time to treat her friend to a meal, pick her brain on the case privately.
Helena links arms with Kim I-seo as they exit the station.
“Cut! Okay! Wow! Perfect shot!”