Chapter 158 : A Master Comes Knocking

In the president’s office of Salamander Studio.

A sharp-looking man greeted a man so handsome that no one could resist his charm.

“Hello. My name is Joo Chan-seong.”

“I’m Kang Tae-ha.”

Their first meeting.

Tae-ha gave a calm greeting, but inwardly he was surprised.

It was really Joo Chan-seong.

He couldn’t believe the situation unfolding before his eyes.

He was utterly dumbfounded.

As Director Han had suggested, Tae-ha had sent the scenario for Ego to countless film directors, but he hadn’t had high expectations.

That was natural, since he lacked confidence in the scenario.

But while Tae-ha was attending the Emmy Awards ceremony,

He later learned that more directors than expected had shown interest in the Ego scenario. Among them were even quite famous film directors anyone would recognize.

“We were planning to deliver the news after you had taken enough rest. Chan-hyeong told us you were busy with the Emmy Awards. But then we got contacted by Director Joo Chan-seong.”

Director Han recounted a short behind-the-scenes story, unable to hide his excitement.

It couldn’t be helped.

Even Director Han hadn’t imagined that Joo Chan-seong would read the Ego scenario.

After all, Salamander Studio was still a production company without solid connections.

It hadn’t been that long since they expanded into the film business.

Because of that, Director Han hadn’t been able to directly deliver the Ego scenario to Joo Chan-seong.

Even if he wanted to, he had no way to do so.

Yet, unexpectedly, Joo Chan-seong ended up reading the Ego scenario.

An unforeseen stroke of luck.

Director Han, watching that luck with a pleased expression, spoke.

“Well, instead of standing around, why don’t you both take a seat?”

Tae-ha and Joo Chan-seong nodded and sat where Director Han gestured.

Meanwhile, Director Han brought out some herbal tea that he seemed to have brewed in advance.

“I saved this for when a special guest comes. If you don’t like herbal tea, I can prepare another drink.”

Tae-ha wasn’t picky about drinks anyway.

Fortunately, Joo Chan-seong didn’t seem to dislike herbal tea either, as he immediately lifted the teacup and took a sip.

Then his eyes widened, and he asked Director Han,

“It’s similar to mint tea, but the depth is different. It’s a taste I’ve never experienced before.”

Director Han smiled satisfactorily and replied,

“It’s Gwakhang tea, brewed with the leaves and stems of Korean mint. Overseas, it’s also called Korean mint tea.”

He added that it warms the body and aids digestion and stomach function.

At that, Joo Chan-seong took another sip of the herbal tea and gave a faint smile.

“It’s good. Thank you for serving such a special tea.”

“To be honest, I said it was special, but it’s not hard to find if you look for it. Most people just aren’t familiar with it. I simply introduced it.”

“You do seem to have a talent for introductions, Director Han. Just like how you introduced Writer Kang here.”

“Strictly speaking, I didn’t introduce him. It was just luck. How could I have predicted that Director Yoo would show Director Joo the Ego scenario?”

The Ego scenario that they had wanted to deliver to Joo Chan-seong but had no way to.

Its delivery to Joo Chan-seong was thanks to Director Yoo Seong-jun, who had just been mentioned.

Yoo Seong-jun, though not on the level of Joo Chan-seong, had presented several good works. He read the Ego scenario and liked it very much.

But he already had a project in progress and even had his next work decided.

On top of that, his health had been poor lately, requiring convalescence.

He simply couldn’t afford to be greedy for the Ego scenario.

After much deliberation, Yoo Seong-jun decided to show the scenario to Joo Chan-seong.

He was confident that Joo Chan-seong would take an interest in the Ego scenario and produce a magnificent film.

That was how the Ego scenario, after going around, ended up in Joo Chan-seong’s hands.

“Actually, even when I received the Ego scenario from Director Yoo, I had no expectations. But after reading it thoroughly, I couldn’t help but think, I was really lucky. So, shall we just say we were both lucky?”

“Yes, let’s do that.”

Director Han and Joo Chan-seong smiled at each other.

Tae-ha watched from the side and felt a little embarrassed.

He never expected to receive praise like this.

Joo Chan-seong observed Tae-ha’s reaction and then straightened his posture.

He opened his mouth.

“I was very surprised when I heard that Writer Kang wrote the Ego scenario. I’ve always been very fond of your dramas and watch them often.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“Yes. Especially when Byeonghwa swept five awards at the Emmys, I thought my eyes weren’t wrong. But I never imagined that the person who wrote Ego would be Writer Kang. The style is too different. The atmosphere alone is distinct.”

Indeed, Ego was different from Tae-ha’s other works in many respects.

Not just the content of the work itself, but also the target audience.

Unlike his previous works that focused on mass appeal, Ego tended to emphasize artistic quality.

Of course, Byeonghwa struck a balance between popularity and artistry.

That balance was why it achieved good results at the Emmys.

As many had pointed out, even though Byeonghwa didn’t perform as well at the box office as Dabanggu Game, it still won five awards largely due to this factor.

So, there was no dispute that it focused more on popularity than artistry, however subtle that difference might be.

But Ego was the opposite.

It focused on artistic quality rather than mass appeal.

The balance was even tilted heavily toward artistry.

Given that, it was natural for Joo Chan-seong not to have guessed that Tae-ha was the writer of Ego.

Tae-ha nodded and explained this point.

“Indeed, Ego is a work focused more on artistry than popularity. But for me, I couldn’t write this scenario any other way. No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t find a more entertaining way to write it.”

The purpose and direction of Tae-ha’s writing had always been one thing:

“Fun.”

That was why he had thrown away the very first work he wrote after possessing Virus.

‘Because the work I wrote with Baek Seung-chul’s sure-win method had significantly lower entertainment value.’

The same went for Your Brilliant Sparkle and Byeonghwa that he wrote later.

Tae-ha planned those two works solely with an emphasis on fun.

If something was less fun, he cut it; if something was more fun, he made sure to include it.

And Ego was no different.

He wrote the scenario solely pursuing fun.

But the reason Ego focused on artistry rather than popularity, unlike his other works, was none other than:

‘The fun in a work isn’t limited to popular fun.’

That was it.

The fun Tae-ha pursued in Ego came from artistry, not popularity.

And this made third parties think that Tae-ha had written a work in a completely different style.

But that was just how it appeared; nothing had changed for Tae-ha.

It was simply that the way fun manifested differed, just as the way ingredients bring out flavor differs.

And Joo Chan-seong, true to his reputation as a world-class cineaste, understood Tae-ha’s words immediately.

“You mean you only pursued fun, but the result felt like a different style.”

Tae-ha nodded, once again feeling how remarkable Joo Chan-seong was.

“Yes. That’s exactly what I meant. Did that bother you?”

At Tae-ha’s question, Joo Chan-seong immediately shook his head.

“As the fact that I came here of my own accord proves, I was very impressed by your work. It’s among the best scenarios I’ve ever read in my life.”

Tae-ha was extremely surprised to hear such high praise from Joo Chan-seong.

He wasn’t alone.

Director Han, who had been listening beside him, was also stunned.

That was how weighty the compliment from a world-renowned master was.

But Joo Chan-seong continued, unperturbed.

“To be honest, I had a heavy heart coming here today. I suddenly felt anxious that I might ruin the masterpiece Ego with my own hands. That’s how excellent its quality is. So I’d like to ask you something here. Are you really okay with me being the director of Ego?”

For a world-renowned master, it was a remarkably humble question.

When even such a question came, Tae-ha, usually good at controlling his expression, felt like his composure might crack.

That was how unexpected the stream of conversation was.

But at this point, even Tae-ha had to admit it.

That Ego was a brilliant scenario, just as Joo Chan-seong praised it without reserve.

If someone like Joo Chan-seong praised Ego sincerely, and Tae-ha kept belittling his own work, that wouldn’t be humility.

It would be nothing but self-deprecation.

So Tae-ha acknowledged that Ego was a good work and seriously considered whether Joo Chan-seong was the right director to helm it.

And a moment of silence passed.

Watching this, Director Han unconsciously gulped in tension.

If Tae-ha gave a negative answer, it would have been a huge disaster.

But thankfully, no disaster occurred.

Finally, Tae-ha replied.

“Yes. I sincerely hope Director Joo will take on the direction of Ego.”

As soon as Tae-ha finished, Director Han let out a sigh of relief.

Joo Chan-seong, who had seemed slightly tense, also looked relieved.

Then he spoke with a smile on his lips.

“I’m glad to have your permission. Let me just confirm—you’ve thought this through properly, right?”

“Yes. I considered it objectively and carefully. I thought that was the courtesy owed to the director who asked the question.”

“Then I have no worries. I can devote myself to producing Ego. But there’s one thing I’d like to clarify before we proceed…”

“What is it?”

“Does the main character of Ego absolutely have to be played by Writer Kang?”

Another unexpected question from Joo Chan-seong.

With that question, their first meeting entered a new phase.