Tae-ha’s proposal was close to what I had in mind.
It was to try both approaches.
Jeong Myeong-hwan’s idea would be actively reflected in an Action Scene-focused edit, and another edit faithful to the Scenario and story would also be created, so that all cast and staff could participate in Voting.
By doing it this way, we could get an objective result without stoking unnecessary arguments or deepening conflicts.
And even the loser could accept the outcome cleanly.
Of course, that didn’t mean there were no drawbacks.
This method naturally required more time and production costs.
Fortunately, in the case of , the production budget wasn’t much of a worry.
Han Media, the film production company Jeong Myeong-hwan belonged to, already had substantial financial backing,
but once Seon Min-gi was cast and Lee Seok-hyeon filled the remaining spot, with top-tier actors officially joining, investment capital started flowing in even more smoothly.
Jeong Myeong-hwan himself had never once failed to break even, so investments tended to come in easily, and with top actors as leads, it was only natural.
“More than anything, Jeong Myeong-hwan, as an action film director, doesn’t use up a huge budget.”
The reason was simple.
Actors performed nearly all the Action Scenes themselves, and Jeong Myeong-hwan disliked inserting unnecessary scenes.
Every time Jeong Myeong-hwan came up with a new idea for an Action Scene, he’d even suggest cutting out emotional scenes to minimize pointless shots.
It was certainly a different approach from most.
Other directors would usually shoot one and a half to two times the Running Time and then trim it down in the Editing Room.
They thought it was better to shoot a variety of scenes just in case.
But Jeong Myeong-hwan, having already mapped out much of the editing in his head, would shoot only the necessary scenes.
If something was missing during editing, he would gather the bare minimum crew and cast to fill in the gaps.
This habit had developed in his rookie days, when he made action films on shoestring budgets.
That’s also why Director’s Cuts rarely came out for Jeong Myeong-hwan’s movies.
“So, shooting a few extra scenes isn’t a problem. Anyway, the new scenes are emotional ones, not big-budget Action Scenes.”
Though filming had been slightly delayed due to Seon Min-gi, the distributor co-handling the investment had set a reasonably flexible release date.
Because of that, Tae-ha’s proposal was easy to accept.
Of course, it wasn’t as if Tae-ha suggested re-shooting every scene from start to finish.
Just up to the first 30 minutes of Running Time—the portion critical for hooking the audience at the start of the film.
They agreed to proceed with Tae-ha’s proposal for only this segment, making two rough cuts and conducting Voting.
“In 30 minutes, all of Sol-ja’s backstory unfolds, and there are five Action Scenes—plenty to serve as the judging standard.”
With the decision made, filming resumed.
Thankfully, the on-set atmosphere, which some worried would turn icy due to the friction between Jeong Myeong-hwan and Lee Seok-hyeon, wasn’t bad at all.
The cast and staff were seasoned enough to have endured worse.
If anything, the atmosphere became heated in a different sense.
The spirit of competition was palpable throughout the set.
In particular, the rivalry between Lee Seok-hyeon and Jeong Myeong-hwan was something to behold.
Perhaps determined to win, Lee Seok-hyeon poured passion into the story-driven scenes, while Jeong Myeong-hwan went all out on the Action Scenes.
Lee Seok-hyeon went first.
“Cut! Okay!”
“No, director. Can we go one more time?”
“Ah, I thought that was good enough.”
“This scene should be performed with sadness, not anger, but my emotional line broke at the end. I want to try once more.”
“…Fine. Let’s go again.”
In the end, Jeong Myeong-hwan, looking like he was giving in, nodded and took control of the set again, and only after Lee Seok-hyeon shot the same scene three more times did he look satisfied.
Of course, Lee Seok-hyeon wasn’t the only one like this.
Next was Jeong Myeong-hwan.
“Ah! You need to dodge the Molotov cocktail there!”
“…I did dodge it, didn’t I?”
“No! Don’t you know weaving, weaving? Capture that feeling!”
“Yes, sir.”
“No, actually. Instead of dodging, let’s go with punching it away. Use a one-two, then subdue the enemy with both arms and shoulders still on fire.”
“…On fire? Isn’t that a bit forced?”
“If the fire goes out naturally as you roll on the floor during the fight, it’ll be fine. We’ll use 06 treatment anyway. Why do you keep arguing?”
Jeong Myeong-hwan was unstoppable in his own way.
He was overflowing with directing ideas, even more so than usual.
And this competitive mindset between the two also affected Tae-ha.
“Tae-ha, thanks for supporting my opinion earlier. But, you know, in the first scene about Ian’s past, do you really need to cry while killing your foster father? Even if you can’t skip the scene entirely, maybe just don’t cry?”
“Why did you side with him earlier? I thought you agreed with me… Anyway, it’s not too late. If the director suggests any more crazy ideas, just say you’re not confident since you’ve never tried the choreography before.”
Jeong Myeong-hwan and Lee Seok-hyeon, one after the other, each pulled Tae-ha aside to talk.
Of course, Tae-ha didn’t accept all their suggestions.
For Jeong Myeong-hwan’s idea, the emotional tearfulness while taking his foster father’s life was key to expressing Ian’s character, who suffered from never receiving love.
The same went for Lee Seok-hyeon’s suggestion.
Ian, unlike Lee Jae-hyun from , was a reticent character, so a flashier Action Scene was needed to highlight that charm.
Thus, it was best to accept as many of Jeong Myeong-hwan’s Action Scene directing ideas as possible.
Just listening to and picturing them in his head, Tae-ha could tell how good they were.
Watching Tae-ha throw himself wholeheartedly into every scene, Jeong Myeong-hwan and Lee Seok-hyeon couldn’t help but feel both amused and a little at a loss.
What could they say to an actor who was doing better than anyone else?
***
In that way, the team was able to focus on filming for over a month without any major issues.
As a result, they finished shooting a third of the planned scenes sooner than expected.
“Now it’s time for editing. I’ll get it done as quickly as possible, so let’s reconvene next week. Dismissed.”
Since producing the rough edits for Voting would take some time, the entire cast and staff were given a sweet one-week break.
Of course, Jeong Myeong-hwan, the Editor, the Editing Assistant, and others were excluded from this rest.
A week wasn’t really enough to make two rough edits.
If anything, they’d need to cut back on sleep to manage the workload.
That’s why, on the fourth day after everyone dispersed, Tae-ha visited Jeong Myeong-hwan’s Editing Room at Han Media’s headquarters.
Knock, knock, knock.
No sooner had Tae-ha knocked than—the door to the Editing Room swung open.
And the one who appeared was,
“Oh… Hyung.”
Surprisingly, it was Lee Seok-hyeon.
“Shh.”
Tae-ha wanted to ask why Lee Seok-hyeon was here, but he couldn’t.
The moment Lee Seok-hyeon opened the door, he pressed his index finger to his lips, signaling Tae-ha to be quiet.
Tae-ha didn’t understand why, but decided to listen to Lee Seok-hyeon for now.
And as Lee Seok-hyeon stepped aside at the door, Tae-ha immediately understood the reason for his silence.
Jeong Myeong-hwan, wearing headphones and sitting at the computer, was reviewing edits with an intensely focused expression.
The Editor and Editing Assistant working alongside him were equally serious.
“Ah, I shouldn’t talk recklessly.”
That thought naturally came to Tae-ha.
So, as quietly as possible, Tae-ha set the Vitamin Beverage he was carrying on the back table of the Editing Room.
Seeing this, Lee Seok-hyeon sat down on the sofa without a sound, patting the seat beside him.
He was inviting Tae-ha to sit.
“Still, I should at least say hello, so maybe I’ll wait a bit.”
Originally planning to just drop off the Vitamin Beverage and leave, Tae-ha ended up taking a seat.
Then he asked Lee Seok-hyeon,
– Why are you here, hyung?
To avoid disturbing the editing, Tae-ha typed the message into his phone’s notes app.
Lee Seok-hyeon took Tae-ha’s phone and replied.
– For the same reason as you.
In other words, he’d come to the Editing Room to encourage Jeong Myeong-hwan.
Visiting someone you’d been at odds with just to cheer them on—
From Tae-ha’s perspective, it was unexpected.
Just a few days ago, they’d been fiercely competing, ready to tear each other apart.
Maybe reading his thoughts, Lee Seok-hyeon took Tae-ha’s phone again.
– To be honest, I’m more surprised by you. You pushed me into this situation, and yet you show up at the Editing Room.
Lee Seok-hyeon frowned as he typed, and Tae-ha could only give a sheepish smile.
He’d been caught out for purposely nudging things along.
– Sorry.
– It’s fine.
With their silent conversation wrapped up, the two waited quietly for the editing to finish.
How much time had passed?
Jeong Myeong-hwan stretched and drank a glass of water, then, eyes fixed on the screen, finally spoke.
“If you’re worried I’ll mess with the rough cut to influence the Voting, don’t be. I’m not the type to stoop to that.”
This was a relief for Tae-ha and Lee Seok-hyeon.
Honestly, they had been a bit concerned that Jeong Myeong-hwan might do something like that.
But with him starting the conversation that way, they were at a loss for words.
As they were both struggling to find something to say,
Jeong Myeong-hwan turned around and continued,
“Well, if you really don’t trust me, you can check the rough cut yourselves. I’ve just about finished.”
“Huh? Already?”
Surprised by how quickly it had been done, Tae-ha blurted out his question.
Lee Seok-hyeon looked equally shocked.
“You two, come over here. 06 hasn’t been applied yet, so it’ll feel a bit rough, but it’s not unwatchable.”
With that, Jeong Myeong-hwan played the rough cut he and the Editor and Editing Assistant had worked on for four days straight.
After checking both versions of the rough cut, Tae-ha thought,
“This… we might actually win this.”
***
And so, the following week—
It was just as Tae-ha had thought.
In the Voting among the entire cast and staff, by a margin of just one vote, the version chosen was Jeong Myeong-hwan’s cut.
The one focused on Action Scenes.