Chapter 7. Audition Begins

"Ah! Why did I have to be number 1? I'll be right back."

"Good luck, bro!"

"Alright, man."

One of the students from the College of Fine Arts stood up, exchanged a fist bump with his friend, and entered the audition room. About three minutes later, he came out with a somewhat gloomy face.

"Well done. We will inform you of the results via the contact information you provided. I'm sorry, but you cannot talk to other participants; please proceed directly to the exit."

A staff member standing by the door guided Na Seungjin to the exit.

"Next participant, number 2, Jeong Su-yeon."

Jeong Su-yeon, who had gained some recognition among the younger generation through web dramas, entered and came out a short while later, her face just as gloomy as the previous participant.

"Ah, what should I do?"

Sighing involuntarily as she left the audition room, Jeong Su-yeon's words were heard.

'If I continue like this, I'll end up on the same path as Unnie Juyoung.'

Jeong Su-yeon left the audition room with a gloomy face. An actor standing next to Yeonwoo noticed and spoke to her.

"Phew, the atmosphere seems quite intense, doesn't it?"

"It seems so. It's my first time, so I'm nervous."

Yeonwoo smiled slightly at the actor who had spoken to her first.

"Just act as you normally do in front of the camera, and you'll be fine. Though, I'm not in a position to give advice. Phew!"

The actor, who had given advice to Yeonwoo, who was new to auditions, seemed to be getting nervous himself and took a deep breath.

"Regardless, let's aim for a good result. I'm An Junho. This would be my third time if I get a role in this project, but I've only had minor roles so far, so I'm essentially unknown."

An Junho extended his hand for a handshake.

"Yes, I'm Ryu Yeonwoo. Senior. This is my first time."

Yeonwoo shook the extended hand and smiled brightly.

"Ah, don't call me senior. Still, looking at your face, I think you'll become famous soon."

"Thank you for your kind words."

At that moment, a staff member called out to An Junho.

"Number 4, An Junho? An Junho, please come in."

"Ah, why did I have to be number 4? Maybe this isn't my destiny. I'll go in first, Yeonwoo."

An Junho got up and greeted Yeonwoo. After that, several more people went through the audition, and it was soon Yeonwoo's turn.

"Let's see who's next. Ryu Yeonwoo? There's no photo in the profile?"

"That's him. A few days ago, Jeong Cheolmin called and asked me to include one of his students in the audition. I just had him send a simple personal information form."

Director Kim Hansu spoke, and screenwriter Choi Mihyun replied as if she were happy.

"Ah, Cheolmin. It's been a long time since I last saw him. Was it when we shot 'End of the Line'?"

"Ah, Cheolmin appeared as a supporting actor in one of Choi's works?"

"Yes, Director. He was a perfect supporting actor. The project failed, but Cheolmin did a great job back then."

As Kim Hansu and Choi Mihyun reminisced about Jeong Cheolmin, casting director Jung Yoonseok added:

"However, that actor. His own acting is impeccable, but his teaching skills are lacking. I've seen him send actors to commercial film auditions several times, but none have been selected."

"Hmm. Perhaps he hasn't discovered a gem yet. Cheolmin is probably in a regional area now, right? In this industry, the talent pool in Seoul and regional areas is different."

At that moment, Ryu Yeonwoo walked in confidently and stood in the center of the audition room.

"Hello! I'm a new actor, Ryu Yeonwoo, here for the 'Summer Wardrobe' audition."

His appearance was like a chiseled sculpture, and his face gave the illusion of a halo behind him.

"Wow. We found him."

Screenwriter Choi Mihyun, who had been holding a pen, dropped it on the desk and said.

The production team, who had been lost in thought, snapped back to reality.

"Cheolmin asked us to take a good look at his student. His visual appeal is excellent."

"Thank you, Director."

Yeonwoo recognized that the person mentioning Jeong Cheolmin was Director Kim Hansu.

"You don't have any acting experience yet, and you're still a minor, hmm... How long have you been acting?"

"Yes, I've been learning acting for about six months."

Casting director Jung Yoonseok smiled slightly, showing both interest and disappointment.

"Your appearance is that of a future star, but six months... Let's see. Shall we start, Director?"

At Jung's words, Director Kim Hansu nodded and asked Yeonwoo to perform a free acting scene.

"Can you act out any role from the script?"

"Yes, if we want to see a specific role, we'll ask for a directed performance. For now, you can act out any role or scene from the script you brought."

"Understood. I will start with scene 16 from episode 2 of the script."

As the young man prepared to start acting, screenwriter Choi Mihyun silently prayed for him to do well.

If his acting skills matched his perfect appearance, it would be a stroke of luck.

Yeonwoo put down the script he had brought, and the production team flipped through their scripts to find scene 16 of episode 2.

The role he was to play, 'Cha Wooju,' is the son of a wealthy family.

In the previous scenario, he defies his father's opposition to enter a modeling program and is kicked out of his home, left with nowhere to go, and spends his time aimlessly on a campus bench.

At that moment, a basketball hits his motorcycle, breaking the mirror, and the scene Yeonwoo was to act out was the one immediately following this.

In this scene, the drama's male lead, 'Kang Seojun,' who threw the basketball, is asked to compensate for the damage by letting Cha Wooju stay at his place.

Choosing this scene for free acting had a strategic reason.

Scene 16 of episode 2 is the scene in the audition script that shows the most diverse range of facial expressions.

And that is the strongest weapon Yeonwoo can showcase at the moment.

'Alright, it's my first audition, but I'll show what I've practiced.'

Yeonwoo began his performance.

"Ah, I don't care. You broke my motorcycle, so I'm staying here. Besides, you have two rooms, right?"

Yeonwoo pretended not to hear and lay down on the stage.

Then, after a short while, he suddenly stood up and, in a coaxing voice like a street vendor, delivered the next line.

"Hey, I have nowhere to go, you know? And do you know how much that motorcycle costs? This is a bargain. What kind of world do we live in these days?"

Perhaps because they didn't expect much from someone who had only been learning acting for a short time, the production team showed interest in Yeonwoo's surprisingly natural delivery of the lines.

"No! Hey, let go! Don't drag me away! Look at how strong this guy is?"

Yeonwoo delivered his lines in an urgent voice, as if he were really being dragged away, even though no one was in front of him.

"Hey, are you really going to kick me out in this freezing cold?"

"Ah, it's spring. No, do you not know about spring chills?"

Yeonwoo delivered his lines in a somewhat whiny and comical manner, one after another.

While his performance wasn't outstanding, it was hard to believe he had only been acting for half a year.

However, the production team's gaze on Yeonwoo seemed to reflect that exact thought.

'To get a role, I need to make an impression... I guess I have to do it.'

Yeonwoo began to control his mind.

'I am Ryu Yeonwoo. I'm eighteen, so I can be cute. I can be very cute.'

He seemed to have made up his mind, as he opened his eyes wide and intentionally looked at the production team.

"Hey, friend, think about it again. We've known each other for a day, so we're friends, right? Look at my rabbit-like eyes. Doesn't it change your mind?"

He covered his face with both hands and blinked his eyes naturally.

With his chiseled appearance and large, beautiful eyes that could be mistaken for a girl's, the continuous blinking was itself an act of cuteness, melting the hearts of the production team.

"Thank you for watching."

Yeonwoo's cheeks, which trembled as he bowed, were surely a hallucination.

He returned to a neutral expression and stood back in the center, where he had placed the script.

Several seconds of silence had already passed.

"Your diction is pretty good, isn't it?"

"Just a little fine-tuning, and you'll improve quickly."

"It's only been six months. If you've improved this much at an acting school, you'll do well on set."

Hearing the murmurs of the judges, Director Kim Hansu, who had been lost in thought, nodded as if making a decision.

"Good job. Let's see, scene 32 of episode 3? Let's do this one as well. You can take your time to read it."

Director Kim pointed to the script Yeonwoo had placed on the floor and asked for another scene.

'Scene 32 of episode 3, hmm. It's a Cha Wooju scene, isn't it?'

After a moment's thought, Ryu Yeonwoo spoke.

"I'll start right away."

The production team looked puzzled at Yeonwoo's words.

'Start right away? It's not even a supporting role. Could he have memorized the entire script?'

"Go on, pick one. That sweater? It really suits you. Your face is so pretty, anything looks good on you."

Yeonwoo's natural acting made it seem as if there was a girl in front of him trying on a sweater.

"There's a fitting room over there. Try it on and come out. I'll look, okay? Miss."

He smiled and spoke to a customer on the right, then immediately turned to the left with a neutral expression.

"Hey, Jung Yeoreum. You said it. If we sell twenty of these today, you'll get a room in your new home."

Yeonwoo, as if annoyed by Jung Yeoreum's words, waved his hand and continued.

"Ah, I don't care. Whether you're newlyweds or childhood friends, it doesn't matter. Are you going to let me stay? If so, that's fine."

Cha Wooju, with his ever-changing expressions, smiled brightly when looking to the right to serve a customer and looked annoyed when looking to the left to deal with Jung Yeoreum.

'This is something we planned to shoot separately twice. If he can do it this perfectly, we could shoot it in one take with a full shot. If that's possible, the scene would look even better.'

Director Kim Hansu, who had been nodding continuously while watching Ryu Yeonwoo's performance, kept taking notes.

"Thank you for watching."

Yeonwoo, who had finished his performance, bowed again in the center.

Clap, clap, clap!

Screenwriter Choi Mihyun, who rarely clapped in an audition room, smiled widely.

Casting director Jung Yoonseok, who had been curious from the beginning, asked a question.