A Genius Director Who Dominates OTT Platforms - Chapter 85

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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 85

* * *

Pi Do-seon on the screen looks at his mother.

Choi Ha-il discovered his past self in those eyes.

How could they be so identical?

-I became a pro gamer in Mom’s world. So… it wasn’t really a job.

-Because my job was being a son.

Pi Do-seon’s mother on the screen sends a look of disbelief.

-Pi Do-seon! What are you trying to say right now? That’s not it, right? Mom misunderstood, right?

Choi Ha-il flinched but didn’t take his eyes off the screen.

At the same time, regret washed over him.

I should have done that.

It wasn’t about box office logic.

Rather, through that work, I should have faced my trauma and moved forward.

Why did I run away even from that moment?

Director Dohyeon-u must have known everything when he offered me the script.

-Either retire, or lift the trophy with this team.

-Now there are only those two options.

Dozens of minutes later, when the drama ended.

Choi Ha-il, who had been deep in thought, called his manager hyeong.

-Oh, Ha-il, what’s up?

“Hyeong, is there any news about Director Dohyeon-u’s next project?”

* * *

Buzz, buzz.

I sighed looking at the vibrating phone.

Who is it this time?

“Yes, this is Dohyeon-u from SSK.”

-Hello! Is this Director Dohyeon-u’s contact number?

“Yes, that’s correct. Where are you calling from?”

-Hello. I’m from ENS Entertainment, which operates both a web drama production company and an agency specializing in supporting actors…

I made an appointment with the ENS Entertainment Promotion Manager who wanted to meet me just once, then hung up.

If they only operated an actor agency, I wouldn’t have agreed to meet, but since web drama production was their main business.

They’re even quite famous.

“Where is it this time?”

“ENS Entertainment.”

“Oh, that place that makes web dramas?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know whether to say you’re working hard or scold you for secretly enjoying this.”

“I’m not enjoying it at all.”

“I know. I know, but ordinary people would probably enjoy it.”

Chae Seo-hui said that and headed to the meeting room.

Recently, Chae Seo-hui has been working hard on developing a historical drama script with assistant CEs.

I tried to help, but she said she wanted to tackle the first draft on her own, so I let her.

I watched Chae Seo-hui in the meeting, saved the ENS manager’s number, and sighed.

Without any exaggeration, I don’t think I’ve bought dinner with my own money in the past few weeks.

If I wanted to, I probably could have eaten breakfast, brunch, lunch, coffee, dessert, drinks, and late-night snacks all on other people’s money.

The reason was simple.

Love calls were pouring in from all kinds of production companies and agencies.

The company names were different, but what they said was pretty much the same.

Production companies would first present scripts.

They’d say it was a project proposal and script for a work they were planning to make, asking me to review it just once.

They’d say SSK seemed to be gradually moving into production apart from the platform, so wouldn’t it be better to share the risk?

They’d say if they worked with SSK, they’d be willing to give up a considerable portion of IP rights.

It was the exact same pitch as if they’d coordinated it.

Meanwhile, agencies would present actor profiles or bring actors directly.

Most were promising newcomers they were pushing or famous actors they’d recruited for big money but who had bombed several consecutive projects.

This side was more uncomfortable because they didn’t have specific goals, just the abstract objective of making an impression.

With scripts and proposals, I could part ways with a smile saying I’d review them, but actor sales pitches were different.

So I was avoiding contact from agencies as much as possible.

Actually, meetings with production companies had benefits for me too.

As they said, I could find partners to share risks with, and I could get good scripts or proposals.

Or…

‘My superpower might activate.’

Seeing how the 【Handtip Crawl】 superpower suddenly activated at MBY Entertainment Studio, it wasn’t impossible.

In contrast, meeting with agencies offered nothing I could do for them or wanted to do.

But somehow my attitude was being read differently, and subtle temptations began pouring in.

They hinted at under-the-table payments, saying they could treat me better than D.P does.

When I politely declined, most of them thought the amount wasn’t enough.

Fortunately, since I was a former actor, there were no dirty sales tactics.

I would have been genuinely angry if there were.

Oh, right. Ridiculously, Haiyen also contacted me.

They said they’d cover the entire production cost if we made Handtip Crawl Season 2 with ROR.

It was such nonsense that I just laughed it off and hung up.

All these things started happening because of three actors.

Kang Min-sik, Oh Ha-eun.

And Luhan.

Min-sik sunbae’s breakthrough was expected.

Though he struggled with daily life scenes in early filming, he showed tremendous acting skills from the middle onwards.

So much so that the public often perceived Min-sik sunbae as a veteran actor.

They thought he’d appeared in many movies and dramas before, but this was his first impactful role.

As a result, reporters wrote many articles about Min-sik sunbae’s casting process.

If I were to combine all the article titles into one sentence…

About how a failed theater actor, thanks to a junior colleague he met after 5 years of retirement, debuted in drama and conquered Netflix.

…Something like that.

Damn. Even I think it would be strange not to be interested.

Interview requests poured in, and reporters constantly asked questions.

What criteria did I use to cast Kang Min-sik?

It’s not that I didn’t have things to say to deflect, but there’s no end to deflecting such things.

While I was consistently maintaining no comment…

【That guy who plays the protagonist’s friend? Please call her actor Oh Ha-eun now】

Oh Ha-eun exploded.

From episode 4, people were asking ‘Who is that actor?’, and in episode 8, she properly made her mark.

The scene where she cries while watching Lee Yeong-han being attacked by the public as a traitor, even as she presents him to the public as the promotions team leader, really hit home.

The kiss with Lee Yeong-han at the end of those tears was a common drama technique, but…

-Crazy, I’m dying.

-Heart stopped.

-Are you alive or dead?

-(This comment has already gone to the afterlife)

Common didn’t mean bad.

Without any exaggeration, Oh Ha-eun’s recognition before episode 7 and after episode 8 was as different as heaven and earth.

I don’t know what the logic was, but they said the killing point was that Min Jae-ryul and Oh Ha-eun, or rather Lee Yeong-han and Yu A-yeon, were from the same agency in real life too.

So Surfer Entertainment ambitiously started spreading Oh Ha-eun-related viral content.

“Isn’t this going a bit too far?”

-Sorry, Director. The image is best when we market by pairing you together…

“There’s Min Jae-ryul.”

-Even though drama fans like it, since they’re from the same agency, it’s a bit awkward to pair them too romantically…

Stories related to my casting were always included.

That I came to recruit Min Jae-ryul but took Oh Ha-eun first.

Since she was an actor with too low recognition, even Surfer Entertainment was flustered, but I was adamant.

That even if I couldn’t use actor Min Jae-ryul, I would still use actor Oh Ha-eun.

Surfer Entertainment’s position was that they trusted that professional attitude and entrusted Min Jae-ryul to me as well.

Up to this point was true without any lies, but Oh Ha-eun was lying around on variety shows.

She said that thanks to the appropriate pressure I gave on set, she brought out acting skills she didn’t even know she had.

She probably thought Director Dohyeon-u knew all about acting skills she didn’t even know she possessed.

It’s really unfair.

When did I ever give her pressure?

I always treated her with a smile.

Even Kim Ra-un and Coach, who appeared together, made me out to be a scary person while telling stories about the first long take.

-Dohyun Woo is a dictator lol

-The dictator is way too competent ㄷㄷ

-But honestly, if she really disliked Do Hyunwoo, she wouldn’t have spilled the tea like that ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-That’s true lol kinda feels like teasing too. Seems a bit exaggerated.

-Isn’t Dohyeon-u going on variety shows again?

-Wow but it’s really amazing. He cast Kang Min-sik after meeting him for the first time in 5 years, and cast Oh Ha-eun after seeing her filmography with no significant roles. What exactly is Dohyeon-u?

-I looked up the dramas Oh Ha-eun appeared in out of curiosity? It’s really really really tiny ant booger amounts. I can’t understand what he saw there.

-I’ve been telling you over and over. Do Hyun-woo uses hypnosis lololol hypnosis to make him act well lololol

-At this point, some conspiracy theories should be coming out.

-In conspiracy theories, Dohyeon-u and Kim Ra-un are…

-It’s fake, damn it

It was natural for the interest I had suppressed with no comment to reignite.

And it was Luhan who threw dynamite onto that fire.

Pi Do-seon’s awakening was truly a massive explosion.

At the end of all those events…

【Film It and They’ll Rise? Film It to Make Them Rise?】

A final boss-level article broke.

Since then, I’ve been receiving love calls from agencies and production companies to the point where daily life is difficult.

Of course, I know I could smoothly handle or enjoy this kind of attention.

But I feel subtly guilty.

I’ve thought about it many times, but casting is thanks to supernatural powers.

And this was connected to my real dilemma.

“I think we can remove the temporary label.”

“Team 4. Do you think you can lead it?”

I still haven’t accepted the CEO’s proposal.

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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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