Chapter 19
Chapter 19
Translator: Penny
Chapter 19
In the script, Kim Jia was only trembling in the corner of the warehouse until Jin Gang-sik threw open the door.
Kim Jia's mind had already reached its limit since she was kidnapped by strangers a few days ago.
She was locked in a dark warehouse, waiting for the day she would be killed.
She never imagined that Jin Gang-sik, who wasn't related to her by blood, would come to save her.
Therefore, Ha-eun's acting, where she opened the warehouse door and came out on her own before Jin Gang-sik even opened it, needed an explanation.
Looking at the scene captured by the camera alone, it was a flawless and touching moment, but it was an ad-lib that could potentially disrupt the flow of the movie.
For smoother editing of the footage, Kwon Jong-hyuk needed to understand Ha-eun's ad-lib.
"So, Ha-eun. Try to convince me. Why did Kim Jia open the door and come out on her own?"
Kwon Jong-hyuk clearly received the emotions that Ha-eun wanted to convey as Kim Jia.
The confusion stemming from the sight of men knocked out by Jin Gang-sik and scattered haphazardly.
The sorrow, like that of an ordinary child, that she showed for the first and last time after realizing she had been saved by Jin Gang-sik.
It was a bit different from the process Kwon Jong-hyuk had intended, but as a result, there was nothing that didn't resonate.
However, he couldn't accurately grasp the intention behind Ha-eun, who always delivered acting faithful to the script, performing so differently from it.
He sat Ha-eun right next to the director's seat in the center of the set.
Then, he slowly replayed the scene they had just filmed and asked her to briefly explain her acting.
Soon, Ha-eun faced a scene where not only Kwon Jong-hyuk and the various filming staff, but also Kang Seon-woo, who had perfectly matched her ad-lib despite it not being discussed in advance, were intently watching her.
It would be a blatant lie to say that she wasn't at all burdened by the gazes focused solely on Ha-eun.
Still, she didn't think she had acted wrongly.
"I thought this would better convey the precariousness."
"Precariousness... you mean?"
"Yes, precariousness."
Ha-eun began to explain to Kwon Jong-hyuk, step by step, the intention she wanted to capture in the camera.
"It would have been safer to stay inside the warehouse than to go outside. Kim Jia didn't know what was happening outside."
"Well, that's true. All Kim Jia knows is that someone is fighting outside."
As Ha-eun said, the probability of Kim Jia being safe outside the warehouse was very low.
In the first place, it wasn't easy to even muster the courage to go outside.
"But if she stays locked in the warehouse, she'll eventually die. If she doesn't do anything, nothing will change."
"Are you saying Kim Jia made a last-ditch effort? Not caring what her chances of survival were?"
"Yes."
To put it nicely, it's an adventure.
To put it badly, it's a gamble.
As reality often is, the probability of failure is higher than the probability of success.
With the human trafficking gang members swarming outside the warehouse, the probability of Kim Jia escaping safely was, literally, extremely low.
However, when such an extremely low probability is miraculously realized.
People feel catharsis.
"Kim Jia must have felt precarious too. But if she somehow manages to get out of the warehouse and, in the end, miraculously encounters Jin Gang-sik... ."
"...The dramatic atmosphere of the scene will be more clearly revealed?"
"Um, wouldn't it be...?"
Either way, it's a movie that ends with a happy ending.
The more dramatic the atmosphere, the better.
Above all, this scene is an important scene that can be said to be the highlight of the Neighbor.
It's a scene that pierces through the main storyline of the movie, where Kim Jia, who has lived an unhappy life, is saved by Jin Gang-sik, who isn't related to her by blood.
Ha-eun thought that facing Jin Gang-sik after venturing outside, risking danger, would better represent the image of 'salvation' than being rescued while cowering in the relatively safe warehouse.
Therefore, instead of focusing on the feelings of Kim Jia, who is afraid of the impending death.
She focused more on the 'situation of being saved'.
At the same time, she didn't exclude the fear stemming from Kim Jia's dangerous situation and showed it to Jin Gang-sik.
She induced a situation where Jin Gang-sik would make Kim Jia feel safer in his arms than in any other place.
In this way, Ha-eun's acting was no longer limited to adjusting her own appearance.
Another actor appearing in the same scene.
Furthermore, Kwon Jong-hyuk's face briefly showed a meaningful expression at the sight of Ha-eun changing even the overall atmosphere of the filming scene to her liking.
"I understand Ha-eun's thoughts."
What Ha-eun faced next was Kwon Jong-hyuk, who had returned to his usual lukewarm expression.
However, the words that soon came from Kwon Jong-hyuk, whose poker face was beyond lukewarm, were.
"Then, let's do one more take."
"...Yes?"
"Why are you so surprised? Ha-eun convinced me, so she naturally has to take responsibility for convincing me."
It was the kind that couldn't be described as lukewarm, even as a euphemism.
"The part where Ha-eun comes out of the warehouse wasn't captured on camera. We'll reshoot only the scene from when she's contemplating inside the warehouse to when she comes out."
As a result, she had no choice but to head back to the cold warehouse once again.
Unlike before when she was alone, this time a cameraman accompanied her.
Thus, starting with Kim Jia's nervous appearance as she looked outside the warehouse she was trapped in through the narrow gap in the door.
She showed the camera everything up to the point where she finally decided to venture out of the dangerous warehouse and turned the doorknob with her trembling hand.
"Cut! That's a wrap~."
Afterward, Ha-eun went back to Kwon Jong-hyuk's side.
She silently watched the video of the scenes filmed today, rearranged in order.
｢Ah, Mister…. I wanted to, wanted to see you….｣
The feeling of facing her own tearful self on the screen was unique in many ways.
One way or another, she was a little embarrassed, but it seemed that the emotions she wanted to convey were well expressed.
"Is there any scene you want to reshoot?"
"...No. There isn't."
She shook her head at Kwon Jong-hyuk's question of whether there was any scene she didn't like.
Because everything from start to finish was the best Ha-eun could do.
"Good work."
"Yes, well. You too, Ha-eun."
Strictly speaking, there were still a few more scenes that Ha-eun had to film.
She only felt a sense of accomplishment from the fact that she had satisfactorily finished acting in the scene she had prepared for the most diligently.
She felt like she had accomplished something for the first time.
And that feeling was also a feeling she was experiencing for the first time.
'...Huh. I definitely... smiled just now?'
For a brief moment, she showed a pure smile that wasn't acting.
A smile so soft that Ju Jeong-yun, who was watching Ha-eun from afar, doubted her own eyes for a moment.
"...Time really flies. It's already June."
"That's what I'm saying."
It was around the time when all the filming for The Neighbor was finished, and the editing process was also nearing its end.
As the release date of The Neighbor approached, meetings for the success of The Neighbor were held again today.
The trailer, which briefly summarized the highlights of the movie, had already been broadcast on TV several times.
The reactions circulating on the internet weren't too bad either.
However, they knew that another form of promotion, such as a production presentation, was also necessary.
"First of all, let's have the director and Kang Seon-woo attend no matter what. For the remaining spot, Ha-eun would be the best, right?"
"It's definitely best to have Ha-eun attend. However, she's still a child. I wonder if she'll be able to answer the reporters' questions properly..."
The public relations team staff at The Neighbor's distributor, "MakeFuture," were once again agonizing over selecting the attendees for the production presentation.
It was after that that the names of actors who could replace Ha-eun were brought up.
"It might be better to have Kim So-hyun or Jeong Gwang-hyeon attend instead. They're both supporting actors, but their characters are definitely distinct."
"Hmm, but Ha-eun is the lead. It would be strange not to show her face at all."
"If she stutters, it could backfire. We need to be as careful as possible."
As a result, no conclusion was reached today either.
So, they eventually contacted Kwon Jong-hyuk to ask for his opinion.
[What kind of strange worries are you having? Of course, the leads should attend the production presentation.]
"But Director Kwon. Kang Seon-woo aside, Ha-eun is only seven years old..."
[Ha-eun's age is not a problem at all. I want the production presentation to be conducted with me and the leads.]
For some reason, he emphasized Ha-eun's attendance at the production presentation with a slightly excessive firmness.
As a result, they had no choice but to reluctantly fold their uneasy premonitions and crumple them somewhere in their hearts, then decided to have Ha-eun participate in the production presentation.
However, about two weeks later.
On the day they met Ha-eun for the first time for the production presentation rehearsal.
"I tried to act in a balanced way so that I wouldn't look too pitiful or too assertive."
"Ah, I, I see. Those parts were definitely well expressed in the trailer."
They felt as if they had been hit in the back of the head by the vocabulary and tone that were completely unlike that of a kindergartener.
It was a bonus that they were reminded of what they were doing at that age.
However, from Ha-eun's perspective, she was only saying what she thought as it was.
Her attention was focused only on the fact that she would soon be appearing in front of people as a full-fledged child actor.
📝 Translator’s Note:
You may notice that certain lines or phrases in this novel appear both in their original Korean (or Hanja) form and in English translation.
This is intentional — these phrases are classical idioms, divine titles, or poetic expressions that carry layered meanings.
To preserve their original tone and authenticity, the raw text has been kept for reference, while the English interpretation is provided right before or after it. This helps convey both the literal and cultural nuance of the original work.
but if you guys dont want tha raw for future chapters or my future other novels u can just text me on discord and say so discord name Mr.Penny