Superstar From Age 0

“You thought he was a nobody, didn’t you?”

The director, Min Hee-kyung, who had been banging her forehead on the desk, flinched at the confirmation of the planning team leader.

Everyone chuckled at her reaction.

Seo-jun recalled.

“Come to think of it, I only talked about your work back then, Director.”

He didn’t tell Min Hee-kyung which movies he had starred in. She didn’t recognize his face and didn’t ask him about it, so it was understandable that she mistook him for a nobody.

The planning team leader finally realized why Min Hee-kyung had been acting so strangely.

“No wonder… You didn’t even know his name or contact information, so you couldn’t tell us.”

“Yes.”

Min Hee-kyung answered listlessly, still banging her forehead on the desk.

She couldn’t cast a boy whose name and career she didn’t know as the main character, nor could she ask them to find a boy whose name she didn’t know from the Han River.

They understood her behavior now.

She must have been frustrated.

The planning team leader felt relieved.

“So you held the audition to find that boy.”

And that boy turned out to be Lee Seo-jun, the actor.

‘I don’t know what he looked like when you met him at the Han River.’

The planning team leader turned his head to the side. There was Seo-jun, radiating a star aura.

Even if he was a nobody, he had such a presence that it made sense to look for him by holding an audition.

He even thought it would be fine to create an agency for Seo-jun and support him.

While the planning team leader was dreaming of making a second Cocoa Entertainment, Seo-jun blinked.

“You held the audition because of me?”

Min Hee-kyung nodded slightly at Seo-jun’s question. It looked like she just twitched her body.

“To be precise, it was to find an actor whose name I didn’t know… Yeah.”

She felt a bit distant from him now that she knew his identity.

Seo-jun smiled and said to Min Hee-kyung.

“Just speak comfortably, Director.”

“…Should I?”

Min Hee-kyung finally lifted her face.

The redness on her face seemed to have subsided a bit.

“I was prepared for it anyway. To offer an audition to Lee Seo-jun… No other production company would have thought of that.”

From blockbuster series to Academy Award-winning films.

The planning team leader nodded his head repeatedly.

“But you didn’t need to do that…”

He still felt a bit stunned that the boy they had been looking for through the audition was Lee Seo-jun, who had sent his script first.

Min Hee-kyung laughed bitterly at the long way they had come. But she was smiling because she had found the actor she was looking for.

“I thought he would become a famous actor someday… But I didn’t know he was already one.”

And not just any actor, but a world-famous one.

Seo-jun grinned at Min Hee-kyung’s words.

The planning team leader and the director looked at Min Hee-kyung and Seo-jun with a smile.

A director and an actor who met by chance at the Han River. It was a story that would interest the public if they made it into an article.

Not only the audition, but also working with Seo-jun meant endless publicity.

He imagined the happy faces of the publicity team and opened his mouth.

But there was something more important to do first.

“Shall we start the audition then?”

***

Seo-jun’s application form that Lee Yoon-ju brought from the office was placed in front of the directors.

Seo-jun sat in front of them, on a chair that was placed alone.

It had been a long time since he had been in such a situation, so he felt a bit nervous and excited.

He straightened his posture and looked at the judges with a calm face.

Min Hee-kyung read through his neatly organized resume.

From [Shadowman 1], which was his oldest work, to [Survivors (Theatrical Version)(Director’s Cut)], which was his most recent one. They were all works that she had enjoyed watching.

She finally realized it.

‘…He really is Lee Seo-jun.’

She thought that if the boy didn’t participate in the audition, she would film with Seo-jun.

But maybe she had hoped to find the boy in some corner of her heart.

She only thought about filming with him as nobodies, making mistakes sometimes and working hard.

She never imagined it would turn out like this.

Min Hee-kyung’s eyes trembled.

From works that were huge hits as series to works that won Academy Awards.

It was too cool and dazzling for an 18-year-old actor’s filmography.

An actor with such a resume was going to star in her movie.

Her heart raced and her palms got sweaty.

She suddenly remembered her first movie, which had failed miserably.

She didn’t know if this movie would end up like that too.

She felt a bit burdened that such a wonderful filmography might be ruined because of her movie.

The casting director and the art director, who were working with Seo-jun for the first time, felt the same way.

“This movie will be released overseas, right?”

“They released a historical drama… I guess they will.”

They were worried that they might cast an actor who didn’t fit the role or couldn’t act, or create a flaw that didn’t match the work.

It wouldn’t ruin the movie with just one thing, but they might get cursed at for a long time.

And not just in Korea, but maybe worldwide.

“…We have to work hard.”

“That’s right.”

Unlike the three who were nervous, the veteran cinematographer smiled warmly at Seo-jun, who had grown a lot since he last saw him.

The planning team leader, who had made [Rebellion] with him, felt the same way.

He was in his first year of middle school back then, so it was already five years ago.

The planning team leader spoke in a friendly voice.

“First, tell us which character you applied for and what you think of that character.”

In this strange situation where the actor was calm and the directors were nervous, the audition for [Working Title: Travel] began.

***

The casting director whispered to the art director as he listened to Seo-jun’s explanation.

“This is not a travel guide, but a character analysis for the audition script.”

He thought Seo-jun would give his character analysis based on [Working Title: Travel]'s script since he had received it, but he had analyzed it anew with the audition script.

“And he did it very well.”

The directors swallowed their saliva at the actor’s thorough preparation.

If this was his level for the audition, how meticulous would he be for the actual filming?

They tried to calm their trembling legs.

“Then let’s see your acting. I’ll read the lines for the other character.”

“Yes.”

Seo-jun’s posture changed at the planning team leader’s words.

He had been talking comfortably until then, but now he sat on the edge of his chair, looking uncomfortable and anxious.

Seo-jun’s eyes wandered around the audition room.

The directors and the planning team leader, who knew the content of the script, saw a clinic in front of their eyes.

They all imagined their own versions of the clinic.

The location of the desk, chair, window, etc. were different, but they had one thing in common.

There was a cold and chilly atmosphere.

It was because of Seo-jun’s acting, which expressed anxiety and discomfort with his whole body.

He started acting without any lines, and the planning team leader was immersed in it. He came to his senses when he felt a tap from the cinematographer, who was familiar with Seo-jun’s acting.

He spat out the lines that he had repeated several times today.

“You have six months left.”

He tried to say it as if he was acting too, but it was different from watching and doing it himself.

He gave himself a minus 100 points for his awkward acting and looked at Seo-jun.

Seo-jun’s eyes, which had been wandering around the clinic, turned to the doctor. Seo-jun blinked.

“Huh?”

The air changed in an instant with that one word.

Min Hee-kyung, the casting director, and the art director, who were seeing Seo-jun’s acting for the first time right in front of them, unconsciously leaned forward.

“…You only have six months…”

The planning team leader, who was looking at Seo-jun’s face directly, swallowed his breath and continued his lines.

It was different from the previous auditions.

He felt like he had become a doctor who was telling a patient his terminal diagnosis.

His heart felt heavy.

“It’s a disease that is still being researched…”

“I’m a sophomore in high school, you know?”

It was a plain voice that sounded like he didn’t understand yet.

“…It could be shorter than that.”

“I’m only eighteen years old, you know?”

“…It would be better to stay in the hospital than…”

“I have to take the college entrance exam next year.”

“…”

“I don’t have any pain. I just came here because I had a cough. It was bothering me when I was studying at the library!”

Seo-jun’s voice got louder.

It was a ridiculous thing to hear from the doctor.

But unlike his feelings, his mind quickly understood. He felt a storm of anxiety and fear that made him lose his footing.

His hands shook uncontrollably.

His legs shook.

His whole body shook.

He couldn’t stand the trembling anymore and got up from his chair.

He looked at his parents, whom he relied on.

He should have turned around, but Seo-jun didn’t forget that he was in an audition.

Seo-jun’s eyes turned to Min Hee-kyung.

It was a look of confusion, full of doubt and denial.

The cinematographer moved his position again.

He found the best angle to capture Seo-jun’s eyes.

Min Hee-kyung thought of various ways to direct the scene.

She didn’t even choose the best one before Seo-jun continued his lines.

“Mom! Mom knows how healthy I am! I never got sick even when I studied late since elementary school!”

“Dad! Let’s go to another hospital. This place is… This place is weird. They’re quacks! Let’s get another checkup at another hospital! They said I only have six… six months left with just a cough! That’s crazy!”

Seo-jun grabbed and shook the arms of his invisible parents.

His shaky voice and ragged breathing filled the audition room with anxiety and impatience.

Everyone forgot to breathe.

“…No. No way…”

Cough.

He covered his mouth with his hands naturally to hide his cough. His hand froze for a moment.

Cough. Cough.

The sound of coughing echoed in the clinic like the ticking of a time bomb.

His parents, who had become silent, approached the doctor and pleaded with him.

They asked if the result was wrong, why there was no treatment, and if they could do another test.

Seo-jun’s expression darkened every time the doctor shook his head and answered.

He knew it was useless, but Seo-jun tried to suppress his cough with both hands over his mouth.

His body shuddered as he swallowed his cough.

“…I’m just… I’m just a sophomore! I’m only eighteen! Why me! Why me… Cough!”

The cough was unbearable and it felt like it was hitting his heart and head.

In the end, Seo-jun collapsed as his legs gave out.

He curled up as if to protect himself from everything. His frail body trembled.

The sound of sobbing from a child who couldn’t bear the despair, injustice, and fear filled the room.

***

“Is it over already?”

Ahn Da Ho got out of the car and headed to the audition room.

He wanted to go straight to the waiting room after finishing his work, but he got a call from SBC about the light stick model.

He left a text message on Seo-jun’s phone and told one of Dahong’s staff before heading to SBC.

It took longer than he expected because SBC had a lot of things to say.

He walked quickly as he sighed.

“There won’t be any design for Working Man…”

[We Are Now/In The Sea], which SBC aired, was good for making models, but they couldn’t do it because the rights belonged to ABS in America.

MBC made models for [Spring Has Come], KBC for [The Royal Physician], but SBC only had [Working Man!].

They seemed anxious as if they had nothing else.

“Dramas would be bought by ordinary people too, but variety shows would only be bought by Seo-jun’s fans…”

He shook his head as he walked and ran into the planning team leader who was coming out of an office.

“Oh! Team leader…?”

He was about to call the planning team leader, but he paused for a moment.

The planning team leader’s eyes were a bit red.

‘Did something bad happen?’

Ahn Da Ho was hesitating when the planning team leader noticed him.

And he walked up to Ahn Da Ho in an instant.

The worry in Ahn Da Ho’s eyes turned into confusion.

“Team leader? Are you feeling unwell…”

“Seo-jun.”

“Yes?”

The manager’s eyes changed.

They became sharp and piercing.

The planning team leader, who didn’t notice the manager’s eyes, continued.

“Seo-jun doesn’t have any illness, right?”

“…Excuse me?”

“He didn’t get diagnosed with a rare disease or something…”

As the planning team leader went on, Ahn Da Ho’s eyes softened.

‘Oh right, the main character of this movie had a terminal illness.’

He had forgotten because it had been a long time since he did this.

He explained to the planning team leader that he was fine and healthy.

He sighed lightly.

‘I should prepare the health checkup results in advance.’

He thought there would be more people asking him this question after the movie was released.

“You thought he was a nobody, didn’t you?”

The director, Min Hee-kyung, who had been banging her forehead on the desk, flinched at the confirmation of the planning team leader.

Everyone chuckled at her reaction.

Seo-jun recalled.

“Come to think of it, I only talked about your work back then, Director.”

He didn’t tell Min Hee-kyung which movies he had starred in. She didn’t recognize his face and didn’t ask him about it, so it was understandable that she mistook him for a nobody.

The planning team leader finally realized why Min Hee-kyung had been acting so strangely.

“No wonder… You didn’t even know his name or contact information, so you couldn’t tell us.”

“Yes.”

Min Hee-kyung answered listlessly, still banging her forehead on the desk.

She couldn’t cast a boy whose name and career she didn’t know as the main character, nor could she ask them to find a boy whose name she didn’t know from the Han River.

They understood her behavior now.

She must have been frustrated.

The planning team leader felt relieved.

“So you held the audition to find that boy.”

And that boy turned out to be Lee Seo-jun, the actor.

‘I don’t know what he looked like when you met him at the Han River.’

The planning team leader turned his head to the side. There was Seo-jun, radiating a star aura.

Even if he was a nobody, he had such a presence that it made sense to look for him by holding an audition.

He even thought it would be fine to create an agency for Seo-jun and support him.

While the planning team leader was dreaming of making a second Cocoa Entertainment, Seo-jun blinked.

“You held the audition because of me?”

Min Hee-kyung nodded slightly at Seo-jun’s question. It looked like she just twitched her body.

“To be precise, it was to find an actor whose name I didn’t know… Yeah.”

She felt a bit distant from him now that she knew his identity.

Seo-jun smiled and said to Min Hee-kyung.

“Just speak comfortably, Director.”

“…Should I?”

Min Hee-kyung finally lifted her face.

The redness on her face seemed to have subsided a bit.

“I was prepared for it anyway. To offer an audition to Lee Seo-jun… No other production company would have thought of that.”

From blockbuster series to Academy Award-winning films.

The planning team leader nodded his head repeatedly.

“But you didn’t need to do that…”

He still felt a bit stunned that the boy they had been looking for through the audition was Lee Seo-jun, who had sent his script first.

Min Hee-kyung laughed bitterly at the long way they had come. But she was smiling because she had found the actor she was looking for.

“I thought he would become a famous actor someday… But I didn’t know he was already one.”

And not just any actor, but a world-famous one.

Seo-jun grinned at Min Hee-kyung’s words.

The planning team leader and the director looked at Min Hee-kyung and Seo-jun with a smile.

A director and an actor who met by chance at the Han River. It was a story that would interest the public if they made it into an article.

Not only the audition, but also working with Seo-jun meant endless publicity.

He imagined the happy faces of the publicity team and opened his mouth.

But there was something more important to do first.

“Shall we start the audition then?”

***

Seo-jun’s application form that Lee Yoon-ju brought from the office was placed in front of the directors.

Seo-jun sat in front of them, on a chair that was placed alone.

It had been a long time since he had been in such a situation, so he felt a bit nervous and excited.

He straightened his posture and looked at the judges with a calm face.

Min Hee-kyung read through his neatly organized resume.

From [Shadowman 1], which was his oldest work, to [Survivors (Theatrical Version)(Director’s Cut)], which was his most recent one. They were all works that she had enjoyed watching.

She finally realized it.

‘…He really is Lee Seo-jun.’

She thought that if the boy didn’t participate in the audition, she would film with Seo-jun.

But maybe she had hoped to find the boy in some corner of her heart.

She only thought about filming with him as nobodies, making mistakes sometimes and working hard.

She never imagined it would turn out like this.

Min Hee-kyung’s eyes trembled.

From works that were huge hits as series to works that won Academy Awards.

It was too cool and dazzling for an 18-year-old actor’s filmography.

An actor with such a resume was going to star in her movie.

Her heart raced and her palms got sweaty.

She suddenly remembered her first movie, which had failed miserably.

She didn’t know if this movie would end up like that too.

She felt a bit burdened that such a wonderful filmography might be ruined because of her movie.

The casting director and the art director, who were working with Seo-jun for the first time, felt the same way.

“This movie will be released overseas, right?”

“They released a historical drama… I guess they will.”

They were worried that they might cast an actor who didn’t fit the role or couldn’t act, or create a flaw that didn’t match the work.

It wouldn’t ruin the movie with just one thing, but they might get cursed at for a long time.

And not just in Korea, but maybe worldwide.

“…We have to work hard.”

“That’s right.”

Unlike the three who were nervous, the veteran cinematographer smiled warmly at Seo-jun, who had grown a lot since he last saw him.

The planning team leader, who had made [Rebellion] with him, felt the same way.

He was in his first year of middle school back then, so it was already five years ago.

The planning team leader spoke in a friendly voice.

“First, tell us which character you applied for and what you think of that character.”

In this strange situation where the actor was calm and the directors were nervous, the audition for [Working Title: Travel] began.

***

The casting director whispered to the art director as he listened to Seo-jun’s explanation.

“This is not a travel guide, but a character analysis for the audition script.”

He thought Seo-jun would give his character analysis based on [Working Title: Travel]'s script since he had received it, but he had analyzed it anew with the audition script.

“And he did it very well.”

The directors swallowed their saliva at the actor’s thorough preparation.

If this was his level for the audition, how meticulous would he be for the actual filming?

They tried to calm their trembling legs.

“Then let’s see your acting. I’ll read the lines for the other character.”

“Yes.”

Seo-jun’s posture changed at the planning team leader’s words.

He had been talking comfortably until then, but now he sat on the edge of his chair, looking uncomfortable and anxious.

Seo-jun’s eyes wandered around the audition room.

The directors and the planning team leader, who knew the content of the script, saw a clinic in front of their eyes.

They all imagined their own versions of the clinic.

The location of the desk, chair, window, etc. were different, but they had one thing in common.

There was a cold and chilly atmosphere.

It was because of Seo-jun’s acting, which expressed anxiety and discomfort with his whole body.

He started acting without any lines, and the planning team leader was immersed in it. He came to his senses when he felt a tap from the cinematographer, who was familiar with Seo-jun’s acting.

He spat out the lines that he had repeated several times today.

“You have six months left.”

He tried to say it as if he was acting too, but it was different from watching and doing it himself.

He gave himself a minus 100 points for his awkward acting and looked at Seo-jun.

Seo-jun’s eyes, which had been wandering around the clinic, turned to the doctor. Seo-jun blinked.

“Huh?”

The air changed in an instant with that one word.

Min Hee-kyung, the casting director, and the art director, who were seeing Seo-jun’s acting for the first time right in front of them, unconsciously leaned forward.

“…You only have six months…”

The planning team leader, who was looking at Seo-jun’s face directly, swallowed his breath and continued his lines.

It was different from the previous auditions.

He felt like he had become a doctor who was telling a patient his terminal diagnosis.

His heart felt heavy.

“It’s a disease that is still being researched…”

“I’m a sophomore in high school, you know?”

It was a plain voice that sounded like he didn’t understand yet.

“…It could be shorter than that.”

“I’m only eighteen years old, you know?”

“…It would be better to stay in the hospital than…”

“I have to take the college entrance exam next year.”

“…”

“I don’t have any pain. I just came here because I had a cough. It was bothering me when I was studying at the library!”

Seo-jun’s voice got louder.

It was a ridiculous thing to hear from the doctor.

But unlike his feelings, his mind quickly understood. He felt a storm of anxiety and fear that made him lose his footing.

His hands shook uncontrollably.

His legs shook.

His whole body shook.

He couldn’t stand the trembling anymore and got up from his chair.

He looked at his parents, whom he relied on.

He should have turned around, but Seo-jun didn’t forget that he was in an audition.

Seo-jun’s eyes turned to Min Hee-kyung.

It was a look of confusion, full of doubt and denial.

The cinematographer moved his position again.

He found the best angle to capture Seo-jun’s eyes.

Min Hee-kyung thought of various ways to direct the scene.

She didn’t even choose the best one before Seo-jun continued his lines.

“Mom! Mom knows how healthy I am! I never got sick even when I studied late since elementary school!”

“Dad! Let’s go to another hospital. This place is… This place is weird. They’re quacks! Let’s get another checkup at another hospital! They said I only have six… six months left with just a cough! That’s crazy!”

Seo-jun grabbed and shook the arms of his invisible parents.

His shaky voice and ragged breathing filled the audition room with anxiety and impatience.

Everyone forgot to breathe.

“…No. No way…”

Cough.

He covered his mouth with his hands naturally to hide his cough. His hand froze for a moment.

Cough. Cough.

The sound of coughing echoed in the clinic like the ticking of a time bomb.

His parents, who had become silent, approached the doctor and pleaded with him.

They asked if the result was wrong, why there was no treatment, and if they could do another test.

Seo-jun’s expression darkened every time the doctor shook his head and answered.

He knew it was useless, but Seo-jun tried to suppress his cough with both hands over his mouth.

His body shuddered as he swallowed his cough.

“…I’m just… I’m just a sophomore! I’m only eighteen! Why me! Why me… Cough!”

The cough was unbearable and it felt like it was hitting his heart and head.

In the end, Seo-jun collapsed as his legs gave out.

He curled up as if to protect himself from everything. His frail body trembled.

The sound of sobbing from a child who couldn’t bear the despair, injustice, and fear filled the room.

***

“Is it over already?”

Ahn Da Ho got out of the car and headed to the audition room.

He wanted to go straight to the waiting room after finishing his work, but he got a call from SBC about the light stick model.

He left a text message on Seo-jun’s phone and told one of Dahong’s staff before heading to SBC.

It took longer than he expected because SBC had a lot of things to say.

He walked quickly as he sighed.

“There won’t be any design for Working Man…”

[We Are Now/In The Sea], which SBC aired, was good for making models, but they couldn’t do it because the rights belonged to ABS in America.

MBC made models for [Spring Has Come], KBC for [The Royal Physician], but SBC only had [Working Man!].

They seemed anxious as if they had nothing else.

“Dramas would be bought by ordinary people too, but variety shows would only be bought by Seo-jun’s fans…”

He shook his head as he walked and ran into the planning team leader who was coming out of an office.

“Oh! Team leader…?”

He was about to call the planning team leader, but he paused for a moment.

The planning team leader’s eyes were a bit red.

‘Did something bad happen?’

Ahn Da Ho was hesitating when the planning team leader noticed him.

And he walked up to Ahn Da Ho in an instant.

The worry in Ahn Da Ho’s eyes turned into confusion.

“Team leader? Are you feeling unwell…”

“Seo-jun.”

“Yes?”

The manager’s eyes changed.

They became sharp and piercing.

The planning team leader, who didn’t notice the manager’s eyes, continued.

“Seo-jun doesn’t have any illness, right?”

“…Excuse me?”

“He didn’t get diagnosed with a rare disease or something…”

As the planning team leader went on, Ahn Da Ho’s eyes softened.

‘Oh right, the main character of this movie had a terminal illness.’

He had forgotten because it had been a long time since he did this.

He explained to the planning team leader that he was fine and healthy.

He sighed lightly.

‘I should prepare the health checkup results in advance.’

He thought there would be more people asking him this question after the movie was released.