Chapter 42
I’m translating the chapter directly into HTML-formatted prose and will keep the in-universe articles as styled blocks where they appear. The main work here is preserving the scene rhythm and making sure every quoted line stands on its own paragraph.CHAPTER_TITLE: Busan (5)
At the sprawling Cinema Center, An Jihee’s name rang out through the hall.
"Congratulations! Best New Actress in the Short Film Competition!! Actress An Jihee of Gyeollo!!"
Before long, the thousands of spectators in the hall were looking around in confusion. Most of them only knew the name An Jihee in passing. A few remembered the articles about the red carpet, but that was all. There was no reason they would know her face.
Except for the people who did.
All of the Gyeollo team, including Director Kwon Seongmin, Lee Chanhoo, and Yoon Dayeon, stared straight at An Jihee with their eyes wide open. Fresh shock had settled in all of their expressions. An Jihee, on the other hand, only blinked in disbelief.
"...Huh?"
She looked utterly lost. Her body froze and her thoughts stopped working. It made sense. She had never dreamed that her name would be called here, at the Busan International Film Festival, in front of so many famous filmmakers from Korea and abroad.
But it wasn’t a dream. It was real.
The host onstage made sure to remind her of that.
"Haha, Actress An Jihee? Where are you??"
An Jihee, who had been frozen in place, suddenly shot to her feet.
"Y-Yes!! I’m here, I’m here!!!"
She looked exactly like a student bolting upright when the teacher called on them. As soon as she stood, the spotlight hit her, and congratulatory music filled the entire hall. Then came the applause.
-Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap!
But An Jihee had only managed to stand up; the rest of her body still wasn’t functioning properly. In a way, it was practically her debut at the BIFF, and even though it was only the short film section, she had suddenly won Best New Actress there. Of course she was stunned.
"S-Senior, what do I do??"
Yoon Dayeon, clapping softly at An Jihee’s panic-stricken question, answered, "What do you mean, what do you do? Get out there and grab the award before someone else does."
And then the Gyeollo team burst into noisy congratulations.
"Congratulations, Jihee!!"
"Really, really congratulations!"
Lee Chanhoo, his eyes narrowed to slits, clapped along while laughing to himself.
So the captain said she’d be good no matter what, and she really went and grabbed Best New Actress right out of the gate.
Someone else was having much the same thought. It was Han Taeseong, seated a little apart from the Gyeollo team, one leg crossed as he applauded in calm silence. He was looking at An Jihee and thinking of Kang Jaeha.
An idol trainee who had been on the chopping block. He personally turned that girl into an actress, had her debut at this BIFF, and then she won Best New Actress at her very first stage.
Even Han Taeseong, who had been in the entertainment industry for decades, could only think one thing.
Compared to the Blue Dragon or the Baeksang, the impact will be more than twice as big.
It was almost a case he had never seen before.
From discovery to project selection to result, all of it happened in that bastard Kang Jaeha’s hands. It’s almost a shame he’s only starting to move now.
As he murmured to himself, An Jihee’s story was unusual and distinct. She had spent years grinding as an idol trainee, only to be rescued by Kang Jaeha just before being cut loose. She switched abruptly into acting, and before long, she was standing on this stage with Best New Actress in hand.
The public loved stories like that.
Once the press and the public got hold of it, the story would spread fast.
In any case, An Jihee started walking stiffly, each step sounding almost squeaky. She still seemed to be thinking, What the hell is happening right now? But everyone was waiting, so she made her way to the stage. As she went, the photographers’ flashes poured over her, and the large stage gradually drew closer.
Her heart was pounding like mad.
What do I do! What do I do!! Is this real? Really real?? I’m getting an award up there??
Her feelings were written all over her face, which was why the expression captured by the camera looked stiff. No, more like solemn?
At last, An Jihee stepped onto the stage.
She stumbled a little on the stairs, but somehow made it.
"Congratulations."
"T-Thank you."
An Jihee received the trophy.
By this point, the waiting room where Kang Jaeha was watching was in an uproar. Manager Kim Daeyong and the staff were all shouting.
"This is insane!!! Wow, unbelievable!!"
"Ugh! I think I’m going to cry!!"
"Seriously, Jihee’s story is basically a drama, isn’t it?? She switches from idol trainee to actress and then wins a rookie award at the BIFF!!"
"Manager Kang! Congratulations!!"
"Right! Manager Kang must be the happiest of all!"
Attention turned to Kang Jaeha as he watched the monitor. The corners of his mouth were faintly curved. Right then, he was remembering An Jihee’s Déjà vu: An Jihee receiving a rookie award at some huge film festival.
He had planned to have her receive one within the year, but it had come sooner than expected.
That’s how it should be.
Kim Daeyong approached Jaeha, his face full of emotion.
"Jaeha, congratulations. Dayeon too, of course, but Jihee is basically something you made yourself."
"I just set the road. The ones who put in the effort were the actors."
"There you go again with that dry tone. Honestly, you must be happy too."
"I’m not unhappy."
At that moment, An Jihee, now alone on the monitor in her dress, stood in front of the standing mic, fidgeting. She looked down at the trophy in her hand for a few seconds. Then, with a face that said she could hardly believe it, she finally spoke.
"H-Hello, I’m rookie actress An Jihee. Um... First of all, this is so amazing. Since this might be a dream, can I pinch my arm a little?"
Laughter broke out all over the audience.
She had started her acceptance speech in a rather odd way, but in fact Kang Jaeha had given her a warning in advance. He had told her to prepare something, since she didn’t know what might happen. So she had roughly thought about what she would say, but the moment she stood onstage, she forgot everything.
It wasn’t strange.
The enormous stage, the heat, the flood of lights and flashes, the many cameras lined up in front of her, the famous people sitting in the thousands of seats before her—wasn’t the whole sight unreal to begin with?
So An Jihee continued her speech in a half-dazed state.
"I... I was actually an idol trainee. I did it for years, but I never got the results I wanted. I was almost ready to give up, honestly. That’s when Manager Kang Jaeha saved me. I still remember every word he said to me. He asked if I wanted to try acting, and said he’d help me. I did what he told me, and now here I am."
The details were a little romanticized by memory, but still, Kang Jaeha’s name echoed through the entire hall.
"F-First, I want to thank Manager Kang Jaeha, who opened my eyes to the path of acting, gave me direction, and told me I had talent and could do it! He’s just... he’s really an incredible person! Ah! Am I talking too long? I’m sorry."
When the host signaled that it was fine, An Jihee began speaking faster.
"My parents, who believed in me, Senior Yoon Dayeon and Director Kwon Seongmin! The Gyeollo team, whom I’m so, so grateful to, and so many others I have to thank! I’m truly grateful!"
She kept bowing again and again, unable to stop herself.
A little later.
Having finished her speech, An Jihee asked something like, "Can I go now?" and stepped down from the stage. The applause came crashing back down around her.
-Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap!
Her speech had probably moved the audience. Quite a few foreigners looked touched as well. As soon as she returned to her seat, Yoon Dayeon gave her a thumbs-up.
"You’re a bear with fox guts, huh? You were clunking around like a robot, and then you get up there and talk like a stream of water?"
An Jihee covered her face and let out a thin scream.
"Aahhh... I don’t remember a single thing I said. Did I mess something up? I talked way too long, didn’t I??"
"No, it was fine. That’s all that matters."
While An Jihee was receiving yet another wave of congratulations from the Gyeollo team, the host onstage announced the next award. This time, it was an Indian music director who stood up. What was interesting happened after his remarks ended.
"And now for a newly established award!! Congratulations!! The Scene Stealer Award in the Short Film Competition!! Actress Yoon Dayeon of Gyeollo!!"
Gyeollo won its second prize in the short film section. This time it was Yoon Dayeon. Once again applause swept the hall, and An Jihee bounced in place with excitement. The waiting room, of course, was even more chaotic. In the end, Manager Kim Daeyong’s eyes grew red around the edges.
Kang Jaeha, smiling faintly, clapped inwardly.
Nice.
The woman in the black dress, Yoon Dayeon, rose smoothly to her feet. She definitely moved toward the stage far more naturally than An Jihee had. Standing at the microphone after receiving the award, the first thing she said in her acceptance speech was this:
"Hah. Took long enough to get here."
Yoon Dayeon’s speech carried a fitting touch of wit, and she thanked the people who had helped her, including Manager Kim Daeyong. It wasn’t very long.
"I’ll become an actress who only hungers for acting."
The name Kang Jaeha came out of her mouth near the end of the speech.
"And Manager Kang Jaeha, who brought me down to the bottom and then made me rise back up to this stage. Thank you."
It was a slightly curt line, very much like her. Whatever the case, perhaps because the names of two award-winning actresses had both invoked Kang Jaeha, murmurs spread through the hall.
"Kang Jaeha? Didn’t An Jihee mention him too? If you just listen to the speeches, it sounds like that manager Kang Jaeha was the one who put both actresses here."
"Hm. Must be a capable manager."
"Has anyone heard of him?"
"I haven’t."
"Which agency is he with?"
Kang Jaeha’s name rippled through the audience. But that wasn’t the end of it. The finale of the Short Film Competition was still to come.
The host called out that finale.
"Now there’s only one final award left in the Short Film Competition! The Short Film Award!!"
Each section of the BIFF competition had a prize that was effectively equivalent to the grand prize, and the Short Film Award was the grand prize of the festival’s short film section. It wasn’t just a gateway for a new director; it was the kind of thing that strapped a rocket to their back.
"The Short Film Award!! Wow, three wins for the same film! Congratulations!! Director Kwon Seongmin of Gyeollo!!!"
The grand prize of the short film section went to Gyeollo. In the end, Gyeollo had taken three awards in the short film category. Three trophies in all. Thanks to that, the thousands of spectators rose to their feet and applauded.
-Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap clap!!!
Director Kwon Seongmin, who went onstage looking dazed, only had tears in his eyes after receiving the trophy. A panorama of the past flashed through his mind, and then Kwon Seongmin adjusted his glasses and began to speak.
"I think this is a miracle."
After steadying himself, Director Kwon Seongmin continued his speech with a surprisingly weighty posture and tone for someone so young. It was short, but he had grown through the filming of Gyeollo, and as the director, he needed to thank everyone who had helped make it possible.
He began with MEG.
"First, thank you so much to Chairman Lee Chanhoo of MEG for recognizing Gyeollo, which was nothing more than a short film script at the time, and for investing in it."
When the investment company MEG was mentioned, the audience murmured faintly to itself. The name was unfamiliar. Regardless, once his name was called, Lee Chanhoo, sitting in the audience, lifted his shoulders for no particular reason.
The captain was the one who dug it up, not me, but still, this feels good. So this is what being a figurehead chairman is like!
Unaware of that, Director Kwon Seongmin slowly named the people he was grateful to: producer Jeong Taewoo, the staff, the actors including Yoon Dayeon and An Jihee, his parents, Leon Entertainment, and so on.
At the end, someone who had already been mentioned twice in the speech was called out again.
"I also want to thank Manager Kang Jaeha for seeing the potential in Gyeollo and connecting me with actresses Yoon Dayeon and An Jihee!"
Manager Kang Jaeha. It was already the third time his name had been mentioned. By this point, Jaeha’s name was starting to spread.
"Huh. So this manager Kang Jaeha spotted the work and cast the two actresses?"
"Looks like he really has an eye for things. Most short film scripts get ignored outright..."
"Doesn’t seem like it’s just an eye for things. The project he found took three awards at the BIFF."
"Come to think of it, he got a rookie actress her award, debuted her here, and brought that forgotten Yoon Dayeon back onstage in style. If he pulled off results like this, he’s not just good. He’s a monster."
The name had stuck in the minds of quite a few people in the audience.
After that, once the short film section’s awards ended, the BIFF closing ceremony moved on to the main course. Though when you looked at the ceremony as a whole, the short film section was practically dessert.
Still, Gyeollo’s three wins were by no means a small thing.
It was almost unprecedented at the BIFF. On top of that, the story behind the triple crown was interesting: Yoon Dayeon’s return from obscurity after being forgotten by the public, An Jihee’s debut after being about to be cut from idol training, and the grand prize for Kwon Seongmin, the only one in his twenties and still an unknown director.
As a result, everything and everyone was turned upside down.
For one thing, the waiting room where Kang Jaeha was had been full of shouting and cheers for quite a while now.
"Wooooah! Triple crown! Triple crown!!"
"How does this even make sense??! How does this make sense?!!"
"Hahaha, it does make sense!!"
"We tore it up!! Wow, this is my first time seeing something like this!!"
Manager Kim Daeyong was so excited he kept grabbing Jaeha by the shoulders and shaking him.
"Jaeha! Jaeha!! What in the world is happening, seriously!"
Kang Jaeha simply let himself be shaken.
Even in Seoul, outside Busan, chaos was breaking loose. Leon Entertainment in particular, of course, since two actresses had won awards side by side. And Munbak Film, the production company behind Gyeollo, was also buzzing.
By then the BIFF was still ongoing, but the related articles had already started exploding.
The hot topic, naturally, was Gyeollo. It wasn’t just a three-award sweep; it had done so by beating out a host of domestic and international short films, which made the result even hotter. Of course, photos of Yoon Dayeon and An Jihee were also being pushed out nonstop.
What was unusual was this.
Kang Jaeha’s name had plenty of firepower too.