30-Year Veteran Actor Lee Jung-jae's Directorial Debut
'Cheongdam-dong Couple' Jung Woo-sung Reunites After 23 Years
"Sharp Audience Insight, More Meticulous"
'Hunt' Opens August 10
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Isul] "Director Lee Jung-jae had a lot to check and care about on set. Seeing him work hard until the end but still look exhausted was touching and beautiful."(Jung Woo-sung)
Actor Lee Jung-jae (49), who rose to global stardom last year with 'Squid Game,' is stepping into the role of film director, holding hands with his 23-year close friend Jung Woo-sung (48).
Lee Jung-jae, who debuted in 1993 with the drama 'Gongryong Teacher' and has been active as an actor for 30 years, is making his directorial debut by taking charge of directing, screenplay, acting, and production. He spent four years writing the script, meticulously crafting a distinctive Korean-style spy action film.
At the production presentation of the film 'Hunt' held on the morning of the 5th at Megabox Seongsu on Wangsimni-ro, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, Director Lee said, "Although I have been in the film industry for a long time, writing a screenplay and directing felt like different tasks, so I hesitated. I wondered if I was fit to direct, but I wanted to try other roles related to film, so I took the helm."
Invited to the Midnight Screening at the 75th Cannes Film Festival held in May, 'Hunt' depicts the story of National Intelligence Service agents who suspect each other while trying to root out a spy hidden within their organization, facing South Korea's first assassination operation.
Director Lee emphasized, "I wanted to create a new kind of spy film unique to 'Hunt.' Working with excellent actors, I wanted to keep the identity of the spy within the organization completely unknown. I focused on building suspense that grows in the middle and leads to a bigger incident in the latter part, with the agents constantly suspecting each other."
Director Lee Jung-jae, who put special effort into the action scenes, said, "Based on my experience as an actor and memorable scenes from existing films, we prepared extensively in advance. From the storyboard stage, the martial arts team, special effects team, art team, and props team all held meetings together. They said it was the first time they had such team-based storyboard meetings," he laughed.
He added, "Since audiences have sharp eyes, they catch even the slightest effects appearing in the corners of the screen. I thought adding effects to detailed parts would make it more vivid."
Regarding his directing focus, he stressed, "It was important to decide how much to push the emotions right before the action and how naturally to make it feel." He said, "We had many meetings about the action scenes, and on set, it was crucial to work safely based on thorough preparation."
Jung Woo-sung, who played the National Intelligence Service agent tracking down the spy within the organization under orders from above, said, "I had to act out the action while showing the conflicts arising within the behavior."
Actors Lee Jung-jae and Jung Woo-sung, known as the 'Cheongdam-dong Couple' for their deep friendship, reunited after 23 years since 'No. 3' (1999). Jung Woo-sung joked, "We even went on a honeymoon together to Cannes."
Lee Jung-jae began by saying, "Casting Jung Woo-sung was the most difficult part." He continued, "He declined about four times. I showed him the early draft of 'Hunt' from the beginning. Every time there was a major revision, I showed it to him and consulted."
He added, "We talked privately about meeting again in another project after 'No. 3,' and we have always been looking for a project we could do together, but it was not easy to find a two-lead structure script that suited us. Many audiences must be looking forward to a film with us together after a long time, and I didn't want to disappoint them. I thought it would be better not to produce it than to disappoint, so it took a long time and the process was lengthy."
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