Chapter 12
Chapter 12
The lesson fee Baek Seungchan had in mind was, at most, between 1 million and 2 million won.
But the amount Nam Siwoo mentioned far exceeded his expectations.
“Isn’t 6 million won too much?”
And that 6 million won was just the minimum.
He had even said he might pay more depending on the results.
“It sounds like a lot when you just hear the number, but if you actually calculate it, it’s not that outrageous. Private lessons vary depending on the teacher, but they’re usually around 40,000 to 60,000 won per hour.”
Unlike the shocked Baek Seungchan, Nam Siwoo calmly explained.
“So if we take 60,000 won per hour, and consider the remaining filming period is 10 days with an average of 10 hours per day, that’s 100 hours, so 6 million won. It’s not expensive, right?”
“Even so, isn’t it still expensive?”
Baek Seungchan couldn’t readily agree.
Even if he wasn’t very familiar with it, he didn’t think people usually took lessons for 10 hours a day over 10 days.
Thinking about it that way, 6 million won was definitely a large amount.
Well, that didn’t mean he intended to refuse the offer.
He felt a bit guilty, but he wasn’t foolish enough to reject such a good opportunity in his current situation.
I’ll just have to teach him properly so it’s worth the money.
It was the only way for Baek Seungchan to ease his conscience.
Not knowing this, Nam Siwoo thought his offer might be rejected and added anxiously.
“Hyung, famous instructors can charge over 2 million won for a single private lesson.”
“They charge that much?”
Baek Seungchan was genuinely surprised.
That a single lesson could earn as much as a typical monthly salary.
“So honestly, I think this price is actually cheap. In my opinion, you’re much better than those instructors.”
It wasn’t flattery.
Nam Siwoo meant every word.
Even now, whenever he recalled Baek Seungchan’s acting from the first time he saw it, he would get chills and feel his body tremble.
He had seen senior actors with long careers and strong skills, but he had never seen acting that left such a deep impression.
“So I hope you won’t feel burdened.”
“Alright.”
Baek Seungchan completely let go of his hesitation.
As Nam Siwoo said, he believed he was far better than those expensive instructors.
He didn’t know who those famous teachers were, but he was confident he could teach better than them.
So the price didn’t feel high to him anymore.
It wasn’t arrogance or conceit, but confidence born from skill.
“So that means you’ll do it, right?”
“I was planning to from the start.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah. I’m not in a position to be picky right now.”
Nam Siwoo realized he had worried for nothing.
“But are you really okay with it?”
“With what?”
“I’ve never actually learned acting. So I don’t really know how to conduct lessons. I’ll be doing it my own way.”
“That’s fine. From what I’ve seen, you’re great at acting.”
Nam Siwoo answered without the slightest hesitation.
And having already improved through a few days of feedback, he trusted him completely.
At that firm trust, Baek Seungchan smiled with satisfaction.
“I’ll promise you one thing.”
“What is it?”
“At the very least, you won’t feel like the money you paid was wasted.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
Nam Siwoo’s eyes sparkled.
If someone else had said it, it might have sounded arrogant, but coming from Baek Seungchan, it felt like a promise he would truly keep.
Early the next morning.
On his way to morning training, Baek Seungchan arrived in front of Dongincheon Station.
At that moment, he heard someone calling his name from afar.
“Seungchan hyung, over here!”
He saw Nam Siwoo waving in front of a black van parked by the roadside.
Baek Seungchan shook his head as he walked over.
“You didn’t have to come all the way here.”
The day before, Nam Siwoo had insisted on picking him up.
Baek Seungchan had told him not to bother, but Nam Siwoo had already come anyway.
In the end, he couldn’t just ignore it.
“You don’t have to feel burdened. I wanted to help during your commute too. Hyung, get in.”
“Alright.”
Nam Siwoo smiled as he spoke, and Baek Seungchan got into the car.
There was no reason to refuse when he insisted.
To be honest, it was convenient.
“Manager, you must’ve had a hard time coming out this early. Thank you.”
When Baek Seungchan greeted him, the manager smiled and replied.
“It’s early, so there’s no traffic. And it helps Siwoo too, so don’t feel uncomfortable.”
Just like before, it was clear how much the manager cared about Nam Siwoo.
“Then you’re both wearing your seatbelts, right? We’ll head out now.”
After the car started moving, Baek Seungchan called out.
“Siwoo.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s start right away. We don’t have much time.”
Since he had decided to teach him, Baek Seungchan had no intention of doing it half-heartedly.
He wanted him to reach a level where he wouldn’t be looked down on anywhere.
But ten days was a very short time for that.
“What should we start with?”
Nam Siwoo’s eyes were full of curiosity.
What kind of lesson would this be?
“First, hand me your phone.”
“My phone?”
“Yeah. I’m going to record your acting from now on, but my phone’s too old.”
The recordings would serve as learning material.
It was better to use a newer phone.
“Okay.”
Nam Siwoo handed over his phone, and the lesson began in earnest.
“From now on, what I’ll focus on teaching you is emotional delivery.”
“Emotional delivery?”
“Yeah. It’s the most important part of acting, in my opinion. Perfect emotions bring realism to the character, and that draws the audience into the performance.”
“Ah……”
Nam Siwoo nodded in admiration.
He had always thought emotions were important, but he had never considered them in such detail.
“Then what do you think is the most important thing in conveying emotions?”
“Hmm… clear delivery of lines?”
After thinking for a moment, he answered.
“That’s important too, but there are two things I consider even more important.”
“What are they?”
“The eyes and facial expressions.”
They were the core elements that, in Baek Seungchan’s view, made up the largest part of emotional acting.
“So in our lessons, I’ll make sure to train those two—your eyes and your expressions. If you can properly do what I tell you, it won’t just help your acting, but your stage performances too.”
“Yes, hyung! I’ll work hard!”
Nam Siwoo’s enthusiasm burned even brighter.
“Alright, let’s begin. Act out this scene.”
Baek Seungchan opened the script and pointed to a scene.
It was one of the scenes they would be filming that day.
“Focus on delivering emotions through your eyes and expressions as much as possible.”
“Yes, hyung!”
Nam Siwoo was slightly flustered at the thought of acting in a moving car, but he quickly prepared himself.
He trusted Baek Seungchan and was ready to do whatever he was told.
“Ha……”
Thinking through the situation in the script and immersing himself, he steadied his breathing and began.
“Why… why did it have to go this far…”
The scene he was acting was one where, because of Kang Hyuk, the bullies couldn’t torment him anymore, so they instead caused trouble at his parents’ restaurant. After finding out, he asks Kang Hyuk to teach him how to fight.
“Hyuk… could you teach me how to fight…”
After finishing, Nam Siwoo glanced at Baek Seungchan.
“It must’ve been hard to focus, but you did well.”
“Thank you.”
He felt pleased at the praise, but only for a moment.
He tensed again at what came next.
“Let’s watch it first.”
Baek Seungchan played the recorded video.
It was framed tightly on his face.
“Hyung, there’s no sound.”
As Nam Siwoo said, there was no audio.
“I turned it off on purpose. From now on, focus only on the eyes and expressions.”
“Okay.”
“What emotion did you feel here?”
He paused the video after the first line and asked.
“Sadness.”
“Alright.”
He nodded and played the video again.
With his blunt demeanor, Nam Siwoo wondered if he had made a mistake and watched more closely.
“What emotion do you feel here?”
He paused it again.
“Anger.”
Without saying anything, Baek Seungchan nodded and handed him the phone.
“Now film me. Just capture my face like before.”
“Okay.”
Nam Siwoo pressed record, his expression tense, and Baek Seungchan began acting.
“Why… why did it have to go this far…”
Nam Siwoo’s eyes trembled as he held the camera.
It was the exact same line he had just performed.
But the weight was completely different.
Baek Seungchan perfectly portrayed the despair and confusion the character must have felt.
The person before him was no longer Baek Seungchan.
It felt as if the protagonist of The Real Legend, the one he had imagined while reading the script, had come to life.
“Did you get it all?”
Baek Seungchan ended the performance casually.
“Ah, yes.”
Snapping out of it, Nam Siwoo stopped recording.
“Let’s watch it.”
Baek Seungchan played his own video.
“What emotion do you feel here?”
It was the same question as before.
Nam Siwoo answered after thinking deeply.
“……Guilt and sadness.”
Even though it was the same scene, the emotions felt completely different.
“And here?”
“Anger… and determination to see it through.”
Again, a different answer.
“Then between your acting and mine, which felt more like the protagonist? Don’t think about skill, just the emotions conveyed.”
“Yours.”
“Why?”
“I think the emotions you portrayed resonate more with the protagonist.”
“That’s right. Then why do you think that difference exists?”
“Because of interpretation of the character.”
At that answer, Baek Seungchan smiled in satisfaction.
“Correct. There’s a saying, ‘the eyes are the window to the soul,’ right?”
“Yes.”
Nam Siwoo nodded seriously.
“Just like that, to properly convey emotions, you need to go beyond imitation. You have to understand the character itself and become that character, understand their heart. Only then can you deliver realistic emotions—huh?”
Baek Seungchan stopped mid-sentence.
Nam Siwoo was staring at him with wide eyes, mouth slightly open in shock.
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Puzzled, Baek Seungchan asked.
Nam Siwoo shook his head as if snapping out of it and smiled.
“I just realized you’re really a genius.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“What you just described is basically the essence of method acting.”
Nam Siwoo explained excitedly.
There might be slight differences in detail, but the core—understanding the character’s emotions and connecting with their heart—was essentially the same as method acting.
“Oh, really?”
Baek Seungchan fell into thought for a moment.
He had heard the term before, but this was the first time he truly understood what it meant.
And he thought to himself.
So there were people in this world who actually knew how to act.