Actor Cho Yeo-jeong reacted with humility to being chosen by master directors who represent Korean cinema.
Attending an interview for the film "Possible Love" held in Samcheong-dong, Seoul, on the afternoon of November 10, Cho Yeo-jeong spoke about her path—starring in director Bong Joon-ho's "Parasite" and director Lee Chang-dong's "Possible Love," and being cast in director Hwang Dong-hyuk's upcoming film "K.O. Club." She remarked, "Why is that? I'm curious too. I didn't ask each of them individually, but I think the directors' answers were mostly similar. They said, 'Because you're good at it.'"
Cho Yeo-jeong smiled and said, "Actors have a childlike side to them. The relationship between a director and an actor is also somewhat like a teacher and a student. An actor always wants to hear from a director why they like them and why it had to be them."
She added, "Director Bong Joon-ho gave examples of my acting in past projects and told me what different aspects he saw in me. Director Lee Chang-dong didn't really say much, so this time I looked up his interviews. I also asked director Hwang Dong-hyuk, and he simply said, 'Because you're a good actor.' I wanted to hear more details, though..."
She also shared the casting process behind "Possible Love." Cho Yeo-jeong stated, "One day while resting at home, I received a call from director Lee Chang-dong. It felt like something out of a movie. The next day, I met with the director and received the script."
She revealed that although she read the script right away, its lingering emotional impact was so deep and intense that she could not bring herself to call back immediately. Describing the moment she embraced Ye-ji as her own character, Cho Yeo-jeong said, "Three days later, I contacted director Lee Chang-dong and told him, 'The story is wonderful, but the character is difficult. Of course I want to do it so much. I will do my best.'"
"Possible Love" follows the story of two couples—a laid-off worker and his wife, and a documentary director and her husband—who meet for the production of a documentary and confront their contrasting lives and hidden desires. It marks director Lee Chang-dong's first new release in eight years. In the film, Cho Yeo-jeong plays Ye-ji, a documentary filmmaker who reflects director Lee Chang-dong himself.
The film was released worldwide via Netflix on November 6.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kim Ji-hye)
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