Chapter 4. I Like It

Facing two actors who had kicked away the opportunity for free acting and insisted on switching and performing the scenes they had been assigned to act, the judges all looked at Director Kwak Sang-pil.

Director Kwak Sang-pil is a director who writes his own scripts and desires full authority in the film production process.

Despite the high risk, his consistent success made such a production style possible. The rare style of audition was also entirely due to Director Kwak Sang-pil's input.

Therefore, to replace the free acting with the actors switching and performing each other's assigned scenes, Director Kwak Sang-pil's approval was essential.

Director Kwak Sang-pil nodded readily.

"Switching and performing each other's assigned scenes... That sounds interesting. Let's do it that way."

Instead of the planned free acting, the situation had changed to evaluating the actors by having them switch and perform the scenes the other had acted in.

From the judges' perspective, this made the judgment easier than free acting. By switching and performing each other's scenes, the superiority would be more clearly determined.

Thus, a real contest was about to unfold.

"How will we decide the order?"

"If 172 agrees, I would like to go first."

"I don't mind the order."

"Then let's have 179 go first."

The one who started the performance was Song Myeong-hyun.

Before starting, he approached An Si-hyun, bowed, and asked,

"Can I borrow the props you prepared? I want to match the conditions as closely as possible, even if not the clothes and hairstyle."

"Of course."

Song Myeong-hyun's intention was clear.

Like An Si-hyun, he wanted to prove that he could deliver a good performance despite the penalties of the toy knife and teddy bear.

Indeed, Song Myeong-hyun's performance was good.

His interpretation of Lee Su-cheol's third scene was somewhat different from An Si-hyun's.

He focused more on expressing the situation rather than the emotions.

He emphasized showing the tragedy of the North-South relations and the inevitable fate of the dispatched agent being driven to a cliff.

And his performance was good.

The judges' expressions were not bad either. Even the stern Director Kwak Sang-pil nodded.

A gesture indicating satisfaction with the performance.

If not for the competitor An Si-hyun, this level of performance would have easily secured the role of Lee Su-cheol.

'He definitely acts well.'

An Si-hyun also acknowledged Song Myeong-hyun's performance.

His deep, husky voice, tall stature, and clear features, along with his ability to adapt any character to his style.

While his emotional expression was a bit lacking, considering his experience, it was above average.

If not for 'that incident' in the future, he would have undoubtedly become a leading actor.

'But I don't plan to lose.'

After Song Myeong-hyun's performance, An Si-hyun stepped to the center of the stage.

He closed his eyes and focused.

'I am Lee Su-cheol. I am a janitor and a dispatched agent. My left hand is the janitor, my right hand is the dispatched agent.'

No matter how good An Si-hyun's acting and experience were, it was almost impossible to perfectly prepare for the audition in just three days. Although he practiced all three scenes just in case, he focused on the third scene.

Therefore, the first scene was less polished.

However, the same was true for Song Myeong-hyun's third scene.

The judges' criteria were likely to focus on the interpretation of the scene and character rather than a perfect performance.

Like Song Myeong-hyun, who interpreted the third scene in a different style, An Si-hyun also interpreted the first scene differently. He was confident that his interpretation was better than Song Myeong-hyun's.

'The role of Lee Su-cheol is correctly interpreted this way.'

When he opened his eyes, An Si-hyun had transformed once again.

"Good morning, sir. Hello, Maru? I don't have anything to give you, but do you want a sausage?"

"Shoes? Yes, I'll do it for you at lunchtime."

"Newlywed! We have good meat at the butcher's today! Don't forget to volunteer with your husband this weekend!"

He was kind to everyone, went to volunteer activities every weekend, and responded with a smile to everyone, regardless of age or gender.

That was the janitor Lee Su-cheol.

The moment he wiggled his left thumb, An Si-hyun's eyes, expression, and posture changed.

It was hard to believe that the man who had just been smiling kindly was the same person. His stern expression and deep, sunken eyes were even chilling.

"Comrade? You're out of your mind? With the surveillance of the South Korean bastards getting stricter every day, you come here? Do you want to die together?"

When he wiggled his right thumb.

"Have more, grandfather. I'll give you more if it's not enough. After eating and taking a walk, come with us for a bath."

He returned to being the janitor Lee Su-cheol.

An Si-hyun's performance was similar to Song Myeong-hyun's but different.

Both freely switched between the janitor and the dispatched agent, but the interpretation of the two roles made their performances different.

While Song Myeong-hyun interpreted the two roles as one personality, An Si-hyun interpreted and performed them as completely different personalities.

Not a janitor disguised as a dispatched agent, but the janitor Lee Su-cheol and the dispatched agent Lee Su-cheol as entirely different personalities.

He performed it as if playing two roles in one.

In just a few seconds, An Si-hyun's performance seamlessly switched. In a short time, he became a completely different person.

Swallow.

The judges held their breath.

The performance of the third scene he had shown earlier was impressive.

But the performance of switching personalities in just a few seconds was on a different level. It was not something anyone could do with practice alone; it required experience or talent.

'Is wiggling the thumbs the switch? Although the completion is a bit lacking, considering it wasn't the scene he prepared, this is already incredible.'

That's how it was.

To perform the first scene, An Si-hyun created a button. By wiggling his left and right thumbs, he alternated between the performances of the janitor and the dispatched agent.

Before the regression, his experience of playing a serial killer and performing a split personality was a great help. It allowed him to grasp the character's framework in a short time.

Although he couldn't achieve the desired level of completion, it wasn't a bad performance.

Especially, the act of wiggling his fingers to switch personalities was enough to make a common thought appear in the judges' minds.

'Is this actor really 21 years old?'

Unlike when he performed the third scene, his presence wasn't particularly special. His voice tone was lower, and he didn't show any emotion when playing the dispatched agent. He only revealed the character through sharp eyes and a dialect.

It was hard to believe that this was the same actor who had shown a chilling emotional performance earlier.

It might look like a lack of acting skills...

'Did he do it on purpose?'

Director Kwak Sang-pil judged that An Si-hyun intentionally lowered his tone and restrained his emotions. He thought An Si-hyun interpreted the characters in the first and third scenes differently.

And that interpretation aligned with the Lee Su-cheol character Director Kwak Sang-pil had imagined while writing the script.

Immediately after An Si-hyun's performance, Director Kwak Sang-pil, with a stern expression, asked,

"May I ask one question?"

"You can ask multiple times."

"One is enough. Why did you interpret Lee Su-cheol in the first and third scenes so differently? I'm not asking about the different expressions of personality, but about intentionally lowering your presence."

"Living as a janitor while constantly fearing exposure, thinking several times before speaking to avoid accidentally using North Korean dialect, and striving to be an ordinary person—this is the Lee Su-cheol I envision. To express this, I intentionally tried to lower my presence. A person trying to hide their true identity wouldn't reveal their presence."

"Hmm. Yes, I understand your answer."

The third scene is about Lee Su-cheol resisting fiercely after his identity is exposed, while the first scene is about showing the contrasting sides of a dispatched agent living as a janitor.

Lee Su-cheol does his best to hide his identity.

Every morning, he shaves his hair, memorizes the names and details of the villagers, always shows a smiling face, and is kind to everyone. He starts his day the earliest and ends it the latest in the village. He never misses a weekly volunteer activity.

A good neighbor that everyone likes.

That is the disguise Lee Su-cheol wants.

So he intentionally lowered his presence.

Even from the script, Lee Su-cheol's presence is concentrated in the third scene. As a supporting role, a dispatched agent sent five years before the protagonist, he doesn't have many opportunities to show his presence in the film.

His role is small but impactful. It's a suitable role for a successful debut.

A moderate level of importance, a memorable presence for the audience, and a filmography that includes a supporting role in a major director's work—nothing is missing.

After hearing An Si-hyun's answer, Director Kwak Sang-pil finally smiled.

"Good interpretation. Well done."

"Well done."

With those words, An Si-hyun faintly felt it. He felt that he had outperformed Song Myeong-hyun in the audition and was closer to the role of Lee Su-cheol.

As soon as they left the audition room, Song Myeong-hyun approached An Si-hyun.

"Do you really have no acting experience?"

"Yes, I have no significant filmography."

"It's a shame you didn't debut earlier; you could have built a decent filmography. It's also a shame that we're competing for the role of Lee Su-cheol. Don't be disappointed if you don't get the role. With your acting skills, you'll have a bright future."

You acted well. But the role of Lee Su-cheol is mine.

An Si-hyun knew the words were not sincere.

He probably understood intellectually.

That An Si-hyun's performance was better than his, that he received better evaluations from the judges, and that the role of Lee Su-cheol would not be his.

But his heart couldn't accept it.

His pride in his acting and his self-esteem from more experience prevented him from accepting the defeat.

After saying words that were clearly insincere and lightly patting An Si-hyun's shoulder, Song Myeong-hyun left with his manager.

An Si-hyun smiled as he watched him go.

"Kid, you're cute."

* * *

The audition for "I Am a Spy," which had 411 participants, finally ended in the late night.

Now it was time to make the evaluations.

Two lead roles and four supporting roles.

The actors who would work together on the film were gradually decided. Although they had to select everyone except the lead Song Gang-sik, it didn't take as long as expected.

It wasn't difficult to distinguish between good and bad actors, and those who fit and didn't fit the film.

The casting was quickly decided.

The last remaining role was Lee Su-cheol.

"Now only the role of Lee Su-cheol is left. The candidates are..."

"Only 172 and 179."

Song Myeong-hyun and An Si-hyun.

Naturally, the two were the final candidates.

"179 was enthusiastic enough to participate in the audition even though we didn't send him the script. He also showed a good performance and a good analysis of the Lee Su-cheol character."

"His career is also good, so he will meet the expectations for the role of Lee Su-cheol."

"But in terms of the performance itself, I think 172 was better than 179."

"I agree. When 172 performed, we held our breath. I even thought the sound of breathing might interfere with the performance."

"Especially, the tearful performance was chilling. Ah, the split personality performance was also the best."

"Hmm... What do you think, Director?"

The judges' gazes all turned to Director Kwak Sang-pil. Although he talked a lot, the casting authority ultimately belonged to Director Kwak Sang-pil.

Of course, they had predicted which of Song Myeong-hyun and An Si-hyun Director Kwak Sang-pil would choose.

"I like 172, An Si-hyun."

He had been hesitant during the first performance, but after the second performance, his hesitation disappeared.

Both the acting and the interpretation of the character were better with An Si-hyun. Although Song Myeong-hyun also showed a good performance, An Si-hyun's was a clear win.

While Song Myeong-hyun might meet the expectations, An Si-hyun seemed likely to exceed them.

Most importantly...

'His presence was overwhelming. Even in a performance that required suppressing presence, his presence overflowed. It felt like watching a performance by an outstanding actor with 20 years of experience.

* * *

March 1st, morning.

The day before the opening, Kim Jin-mo, who was busy preparing the stage at the theater, received a call on his phone.

A moment later.

"Wowwwwwww!"

Kim Jin-mo jumped up and shouted.

"Don't shout, you crazy guy!"

"Senior, senior, senior! I passed the audition! I got cast as Kang Seok-woo in Director Kwak Sang-pil's 'I Am a Spy'!"

At that moment, the gazes of the theater members, who were busy preparing the stage, all focused on Kim Jin-mo. They then approached him in a group and patted his back and head.

"Kid, congratulations!"

"You crazy guy! You finally made a big move!"

"Wow! Jin-mo is debuting before us! What kind of magic did you use?"

"Ah! It hurts! It hurts! I'll report you to the police!"

It was none other than Director Kwak Sang-pil.

Casting a supporting role in a film by a director known as a box office guarantee in the Korean film industry. It was an incredible achievement that warranted stopping work to celebrate.

Exactly five minutes later, An Si-hyun's phone rang.

Kim Jin-mo, who guessed who the call was from, patted An Si-hyun on the shoulder after the call ended and asked,

"You too?"

"Me too!"

"Seniors! Si-hyun also got cast as Lee Su-cheol! Hit this guy too! It's so unfair that only I got hit!"

Kim Jin-mo and An Si-hyun.

The two were cast in the roles of National Intelligence Service agent Kang Seok-woo and dispatched agent Lee Su-cheol in the film "I Am a Spy."

The day before the opening.