I Will Live As An Actor - Chapter 106:

Chapter 106

“Choi sunbae, do you think scene 37 that we’re filming today will pass the broadcasting commission’s review?”

The broadcasting commission was something that always bothered her when she wrote drama scripts.

They were the ones who could clip the wings of any soaring bird.

And the story she was writing was about Yeonsan-gun, the most tyrannical ruler of Joseon.

His atrocities were so numerous and diverse that they were impossible to list.

Not to mention, his cruelty recorded in unofficial histories was beyond words.

“We’ll make sure the scenes are not too provocative or violent in terms of sexuality and violence, but the problem is the historical verification. I’m sure not only the broadcasting commission but also the general historians will have something to say. After all, this drama is not based on Yeonsan-gun’s diary. But if we keep making historical dramas based on history, then what are they? Dramas or documentaries?”

“If the historians hear what you just said, they’ll probably tear your hair out.”

“Let them. And we also need to make some changes to historical dramas. If we keep pushing for orthodox historical dramas, the materials will be limited.”

He was right.

There were already quite a few historical dramas that used the famous kings of Joseon as their subjects. And.

“History is also the record of the victors. Of course, I also think that Yeonsan-gun was a madman in his later years, but I think history doesn’t reveal the reason why he became a madman.”

“Didn’t he go mad because he found out how his mother, Queen Yun, died?”

“Do you believe that?”

According to unofficial histories, Yeonsan-gun learned the truth from Lim Sa-hong, who gave him a bloodstained silk cloth that belonged to Queen Yun, ten years after he ascended the throne. But Writer Choi Eun-sook had a different idea. Did Yeonsan-gun really not know this fact?

He must have, since the official records described his childhood as extraordinary.

And even after he became king, he helped the poor, repelled the invaders, strengthened the national defense, and was very interested in the lives of the people.

As evidence, he was recorded as a king who carried out good governance until his tenth year of reign.

“It’s too suspicious that he suddenly changed because of a whim. If he had a savage nature from a young age, wouldn’t the ministers who deposed Queen Yun not made him crown prince instead of watching? They would have lost their heads later anyway. But he was given the throne in a situation where none of the court officials opposed. That means there must be a story that we don’t know, that is not recorded in the official records. I filled in that gap with my imagination as a writer.”

Orthodox historical dramas were a setting sun.

They were undoubtedly a great cash cow for the Korean drama industry, but it was difficult to survive in the changing times.

That was why Choi Eun-sook chose fusion historical drama.

Of course, most of the comments were negative.

If historical dramas didn’t follow historical verification, what kind of historical dramas were they?

Some even said that Choi Eun-sook, who was called a ratings machine, had finally gone crazy. But did they know?

“Stop chatting and check the script you wrote in a hurry again. Eun-young, you’ll have to come to the studio on weekends if you keep this up. If the first draft is okay, I’ll let you go home early today, so hurry up. Oh my, look at her face, she’s glaring at me with narrow eyes. The sun is high in the sky and you’re going home, you should be grateful.”

“Seriously, Choi sunbae, stop joking! I came to work yesterday morning and I haven’t left yet, you know? There’s not much left until the finale. Can’t I take a break? It’s been less than two weeks since the shoot started. Just look at my working hours. I’ve only seen my boyfriend a few times in the last six months. How bad is it that he asked me if I enlisted? It’s all because of you, the evil boss, Choi sunbae!”

“Just break up. Being single is better.”

“You’re just saying that because you’re single, Choi sunbae.”

“Do you think I’m doing this for myself? The actors don’t have to worry about the script, the production team has more time to edit, and we don’t have to listen to the nagging to hurry up with the script. And why do you think I don’t have a boyfriend? I’m already in love with writing.”

“Ugh! There’s no addiction like this addiction, a print addict!”

Would there be a better compliment for a writer? But Writer Choi Eun-sook, who was smiling, didn’t know.

The fact that her fusion historical drama ‘Yeonsan, the King’s Secret’ had caused a fusion historical drama phenomenon in the Korean broadcasting industry after it aired.

****

“Let’s start with the eyes of the butcher and tilt down to the blood flowing from his fingers in one shot.”

“Director Yoo, that’s like slaughtering. Even if it’s a fake cow, it’s still creepy to see how the Special Effects Team made it look so alive.”

“We don’t need to jump the screen in the slaughtering scene because of the broadcasting commission’s review. I’ll take care of cutting out any unnecessary images, so let’s be bold. This is nothing compared to the action scenes that will come later. We’ll make it dim by backlighting the light at the end, so don’t worry. Kim sunbae, please tilt up and do a big close-up of Young-guk’s eyes and mouth in the last scene.”

“I get it, you’re some kind of expert. But I don’t know if Young-guk can handle it. I never thought I’d end up filming a cow slaughter scene while doing a drama.”

PD Yoo Myung-han nodded briefly and headed to the waiting room.

There, he saw Young-guk sitting with his hair so messy that it could be called a mophead. His clothes were no better than rags made of elephant skin. If he wore a pingliangzi (a type of hat worn by low-class people in ancient China), anyone who saw him would think he was a beggar, lower than a slave amongst the eight outcasts.

“How do you feel about going from playing a king to becoming a beggar?”

“I feel so grateful. I never realized how much of a blessing it was to sit comfortably in the waiting room. I used to frown so much from the stress of the audition. But now that I can relax my head, my blood circulation is much better and I feel so good.”

This was a scene from the filming of Yi-yung’s twin brother, Yi-gyeol’s childhood life.

To the outside world, it was a fall from grace, from a king to a beggar, as PD Yoo Myung-han said. But the comfort Young-guk felt on the set was indescribable.

Living in the palace, wearing elaborate costumes every day, was like walking on thin ice.

If he wrinkled his clothes or a strand of hair peeked out from under his hat, he had to go back to the makeup and costume teams for another touch-up. Compared to that, playing a beggar role was less stressful.

“By the way, aren’t you nervous?”

“What do I have to be nervous about? Thanks to the person you hired, I’m feeling much better. Where did you find such a teacher? He said he would come to the set today and watch me slaughter someone.”

“Majang-dong.”

PD Yoo Myung-han was a director who pursued realism.

He had prepared a platform for Yi-gyeol, who played the role of a beggar, to perform his role.

Young-guk spent a good two weeks wandering around Majang-dong for this reason.

He had to learn about drama filming and find an expert on the slaughterhouse business. What was it? Wisdom is in Gamcheon. He ended up finding a Majang-dong butcher who used to be a drama extra.

“PD-nim, can I ask you something?”

“You can ask me ten things.”

“I’ve been reading and thinking about the script. Yi-yung knew that Yi-gyeol existed from the beginning, right? And he knew that he was living as a commoner. Why didn’t he kill him then? He could have become a threat to his throne later. I tried to come up with my own conclusion, but I wonder if you, the PD, agree with me.”

“That’s something that Choi, the writer, should explain. So what do you think, Young-guk?”

“Because he was lonely.”

Yi-yung knew that his twin brother Yi-gyeol was alive.

And he knew where he was and what he was doing. Yi-yung in the script was a cold and ruthless person.

He hid his true feelings while sharpening his sword in the court surrounded by enemies.

Why did such a being abandon his twin brother?

In the end, all he had left was loneliness.

According to the script, he would sometimes sneak out in disguise to inspect the people and look at his brother who had become a prince.

“How do you feel about appearing as a young prince for the first time today, instead of a dragon?”

“I’m excited and I think it will be fun. He’s a completely different character from Yi-yung.”

‘He’s amazing.’

He had to act as a character with a totally different personality.

If Prince Yeonsan Yi-yung was as cold as ice, Yi-gyeol was a person with a fiery temper like a blazing furnace.

Even in that gap, the young actor Jang Young-guk was able to pull it off as if he had two personalities.

That was why PD Yoo Myung-han was looking forward to it.

What kind of Yi-gyeol would he show today?

How much time had passed?

It was only after PD Yoo had given a long list of instructions about the filming that I heard the voice of the assistant director.

“Ready to go!”

His booming voice echoed in the waiting room. At that, Young-guk with a buzz cut got up from his seat, grabbing his prop sword.

“Scene number 37, Gil-sam of Gyeolsan-gol!”

According to the records, nine out of ten of the most heinous criminals in the eight provinces of Joseon were baekjeong and jaein.

They were treated worse than the eight thousand commoners.

Even when they were flogged, they had to lie on the dirt floor instead of the wooden platform.

How miserable they must have been. Gyeolsan-gol was a small village where such baekjeong lived.

The reason why Yi-gyeol, the twin of King Yeonsan Yi-yung, became Gil-sam was simple.

A baekjeong named Gil-seok from Gyeolsan-gol went up the mountain to chop some wood and found a newborn baby under a sacred tree called Sam-juk.

He adopted him as his son.

He had made up his mind. His eyes were fierce, not showing any hesitation. He was going to perform the slaughter that he had learned from his late grandfather.

The banner was lowered at the slaughterhouse door, and he sprinkled holy water on the cow that was tied to a pillar, as if he was sowing seeds.

The large cow’s eyes were filled with tears, as if it had resigned to its fate.

He put a ghost mask on it, hoping to ease its pain for a moment. Then he recited a prayer, wishing it a rebirth in paradise.

“Even though you are a mute beast, your pain is no different from ours. May your suffering give birth to compassion, and may you be reborn as a human in your next life…”

It was a fake cow made by the Special Effects Team, but it looked as real as a live one.

The cinematographer Kim Deuk-yoong was sweating profusely on his forehead, as he alternated between filming the fake cow with the ghost mask and the scenery of Young-guk.

It was not a real slaughter, but the atmosphere was solemn. And even more so.

‘How ruthless.’

The eyes of Gil-sam, who was performing the slaughter, were not joking.

He swiftly stabbed the cow’s vital point with a short knife, ending its life. Then he chopped off its head with a large axe, called a candlestick.

His movements were so natural that a butcher from Majang-dong, who was watching the scene from a corner of the set, secretly admired him.

As the fake blood splattered everywhere, the staff’s faces turned pale. But Gil-sam, who was standing in the center of the set, did not flinch at all.