A Genius Director Who Dominates OTT Platforms - Chapter 73

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Director Who Dominates OTT

Episode 73

Action 9. In Earnest

After Go Hak-su and Ju Yeong-hun left, Go Team Leader seemed a bit flustered.

I understand.

One of the frequent discussions when making dramas was ‘let’s not create overly obvious villains.’

But those obvious villains exist in reality, don’t they?

And there are two of them at that.

It’s understandable to be flustered.

“Hyeon-u, were you always like this?”

“What? Don’t tell me you’re flustered because of me right now?”

“No, you didn’t do anything wrong, but I was surprised that you beat down those two without even blinking an eye.”

“I didn’t beat them down though?”

Wasn’t it just a reasonable level of verbal sparring?

“No, no. I was watching from the side and it really felt like you were looking down on them contemptuously. It seemed like Go Hak-su came to provoke you but ended up getting worked up instead.”

Did I really do that?

“Now some puzzle pieces are falling into place. Why the trainers were so afraid of you… Why the management team disliked you…”

“No. I was purely a victim in those situations.”

“You must have endured a lot. You probably kept enduring. But the moment the other party crossed the line, you wouldn’t let it slide, right?”

“That’s true, but it was just healthy verbal sparring!”

“Those eyes of yours could never be healthy.”

“Stop saying weird things and hurry up and apologize to me.”

“Me? Why should I?”

“You’re both surnamed Go.”

“…Hey, damn it.”

After bickering with Go Team Leader, we put our heads together and searched for Go Hak-su’s ancestral clan.

He’s quite a famous director so he shows up in searches, but he was different from Go Team Leader.

Thank goodness.

My affection almost dropped a bit.

Just then, Seo Jae-yeon, who had finished the red carpet, joined us.

“What are you two doing with your heads together?”

Go Team Leader and I exchanged glances and kept our mouths shut.

If Seo Jae-yeon found out what had just happened, he wouldn’t stay still.

* * *

The premiere venue was glamorous.

As the world’s most successful OTT company had ambitiously prepared it, many stars were filling the seats.

In the past, I rarely went to such events even when invited.

No matter how detached I had become from failure, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being shabby.

But now, seeing myself frantically checking out actors in person, I’ve really become a producer.

Just as I was thinking that, the host came up and the full-scale premiere and production announcement began.

It’s rare to hold a major premiere for a drama rather than a movie, but this work had good reason for it.

【The CEO I Created】.

This work starring Jae-hyeok was a remake with a global fanbase of the original.

But the original wasn’t a Korean work.

It was a work that remade the 1982 American hit drama 【Remington Steele】 with Korean sensibilities.

In other words, it was a unique attempt to purchase American work rights and turn them into a K-drama.

The original 【Remington Steele】 is a story that begins when a detective with the best skills but no clients because she’s a woman creates a fictional character named ‘Remington Steele.’

A romantic mystery that unfolds when she opens a detective agency and a mysterious handsome con man appears claiming to be Remington Steele.

Netflix flipped this into a Korean legal drama.

A story that begins when a female lead with the best skills but unfairly stripped of her lawyer’s license creates a fictional law firm for revenge, and encounters a man claiming to be the CEO.

It was such a bold attempt that Jae-hyeok had many concerns, but I recommended it after seeing the proposal and script.

No matter how I looked at it, it seemed like it would do well.

Sure enough, the premiere that compressed episodes 1 and 2 into 70 minutes was very entertaining.

Thank goodness.

I can smell the scent of a big hit.

After that, the lead actors came up and a talk show-style production announcement began.

While the conversation was in full swing, the host asked Jae-hyeok a question.

-The subject matter and work environment are quite unique. Was there a special reason that made you decide to appear?

Then I saw Jae-hyeok grinning at me.

He’s not going to talk about me, is he?

-There was no difficulty in the decision. I was worried about whether I could satisfy the original fans, but just the script I read was enough to decide to appear.

Thank goodness.

As expected, Jae-hyeok is different from Seo Jae-yeon.

I was satisfied with his textbook answer when I heard a voice from beside me.

“Just as I heard?”

It was someone I’d never seen before.

Wearing a blue suit with his hair slicked back, he clearly gave off the impression of being a businessman.

Was he talking to me?

“We talked on the phone before, right? Though I got thoroughly rejected.”

“Are you the one who made the scouting offer…?”

“I’m Cha Seong-u. I’m in charge of Netflix Original Series.”

“I’m Dohyeon-u CE from SSK.”

We politely exchanged business cards.

And for good reason – this person is really high up in the OTT industry.

I knew he was a high-ranking person during our phone call, but I was even more surprised after searching about him afterward.

If Seong Tae is Tivic’s ‘Korea General Manager,’ then Cha Seong-u is Netflix’s ‘Original Series General Manager.’

In other words, he’s someone who can be involved in all original series made by Netflix.

Of course, his 100% authority would be limited to Asia.

I know Netflix has multiple series managers.

Nevertheless, when this person firmly says NO, even headquarters listens carefully.

The OTT market these days is worldwide, so they don’t target just one region.

He was someone with that much power.

“Jae-hyeok told me. That he chose the work thanks to Director Dohyeon-u, but you probably wouldn’t want to be known for it.”

“I just added a few words. Since we’re close, I think Jae-hyeok spoke well of me.”

“Is that so?”

If he chose the work based only on my words, what would that make D.P’s planning team staff?

Jae-hyeok’s manager would be hurt too.

“Do you still have no interest in being scouted?”

“I’m sorry, but I think I’ll be working at SSK for a while.”

“May I ask the reason?”

“It’s not easy to get full authority over a drama worth over 10 billion won in my career.”

“Even if I promised, it would likely be an empty promise, right? Netflix has a strong system.”

“I’m sorry, but I think the same.”

“Then should I contact you again when you’ve become someone capable of handling hundred-billion-won projects?”

I felt puzzled.

When even Netflix Korea’s general manager scouting me would be strange, why is the Original Series general manager doing this?

Last time, I thought my story came up coincidentally since Jae-hyeok was in England…

But sending love calls even at an event like this – isn’t this serious?

“May I ask what you like about me?”

“I believe in that saying. That to succeed, you must value people who can do what you can’t.”

“Are you referring to Accomplice’s box office success?”

“No. While Accomplice was interesting, it wasn’t a work that no one else could have created. If dozens of writers had been brought in, wouldn’t at least one of them have thought of a time loop?”

That was true enough.

If only there had been a reason to bring in dozens of writers.

“Then what?”

“What surprised me was that there were no traces of wear in the drama.”

“Wear?”

When I reflexively asked back, General Director Cha Seong-u added an explanation.

“Most content begins creation when someone receives strong inspiration. Unless it’s a planning work rushed by deadlines, that is.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“That inspiration is usually interesting. Surprisingly, the points where consumers find entertainment in popular culture are quite similar. The problem is that inspiration gets worn down as it comes out into the world.”

It was an obvious story.

It was impossible to extract 100% of what’s in your head and convey it to others.

“Of course, there are works where inspiration is preserved. Works where masters threw everything they had into it, or works shot in run-and-gun style without scenarios.”

This was a story I knew too.

Director Wong Kar-wai’s 【Chungking Express】 was a film shot in just 23 days with the cast when the filming wait for a martial arts film he’d worked on for 3 years became too long.

This film, shot with page scripts the director wrote every morning at a cafe, caused a Hong Kong syndrome worldwide in the 90s.

That wasn’t all.

【Léon】 was a film where the script was written in 3 weeks and shot in 3 months when another film’s set stopped due to budget issues, because it seemed wasteful to dismiss the assembled staff.

“Outputting inspiration as-is is nearly impossible. It always gets worn down as it comes out into the world. But watching Accomplice, I felt that someone’s inspiration was completed without any wear.”

“…”

“When I investigated, that someone could only be Director Dohyeon-u. Script revisions, casting, actors’ acting direction, even the director’s directing – everything consistently went through Director Dohyeon-u’s hands.”

Honestly, I was a bit surprised.

I’d never thought about it this way, but there wasn’t a single wrong word.

I was someone who had struggled to recreate the world within the script that I had directly experienced.

If superpowers could be called inspiration, then while others’ inspiration was hazy like a dream, mine had the clarity of 4K.

“I would have been surprised if it were a movie, but a drama? That’s nonsense. That’s why I wanted to bring Director Dohyeon-u on board.”

“I see… I’m convinced.”

He’s someone with remarkable insight.

Is this the kind of eye you need to have to be a Netflix series general director?

While I was thinking that, Cha Seong-u looked at me with interested eyes.

“How curious?”

“Pardon?”

“I didn’t expect you to show no reaction at all.”

“I was lucky. Truly.”

Well, it was thanks to my superpower.

I don’t intend to belittle my efforts in bringing that into the world, but what surprised Director Cha Seong-u wasn’t my ability.

“Luck… Then what about 【Caught at Fingertips】? Was that also good luck?”

“Yes. Somehow I was lucky there too.”

Cha Seong-u burst into laughter.

It wouldn’t reach the preview stage, but it was laughter loud enough for nearby people to turn around.

“Director Dohyeon-u. May I make you a proposal?”

“Please go ahead.”

“Caught at Fingertips. How about making it a Netflix Original?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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