[HanCinema's News] Director Kwak Jae-yong Talks About "A Year-End Medley"
By William Schwartz | Published on
On December 28th director Kwak Jae-yong was interviewed about his upcoming film "A Year-End Medley" which will be released in movie theaters and the streaming platform TVing on December 29th. The famed director is best known for his aughts-era romance "My Sassy Girl", "The Classic", and "Daisy" among others. But unlike those past films, "A Year-End Medley" is a romantic omnibus featuring a large number of interconnected characters.
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One of these storylines is a bromance between Seo Kang-joon and Lee Kwang-soo. In regards to this storyline, Kwak Jae-yong mentioned the deliberate use of understatement. To keep the two from overacting, Kwak Jae-yong told them to work with minimal overt expression, using meaningful eye movements over dialog to convey subtext. Seo Kang-joon's approach was likened to that of a handsome Cha Tae-hyun, based on an idea inspired by the actor on set.
Lee Kwang-soo, by contrast, expressed his character's nonverbal feelings through costuming. Kwak Jae-yong said that Lee Kwang-soo exceeded expectations in that regard. Kwak Jae-yong also had strong praise for Kang Ha-neul. In a kiss scene where young actor Jo Joon-young was having trouble, Kang Ha-neul came out and calmed the situation, putting everyone at ease. Kwak Jae-yong described Kang Ha-neul as an excellent professional, friendly with staff and full of great ideas.
Written by William Schwartz
William Schwartz
Staff writer. Has been writing articles for HanCinema since 2012, having lived in South Korea from 2011 to 2021. He is currently located in the Portland metropolitan area. William Schwartz can be contacted via william@hancinema.net, and is open to requests for content in future articles.