In an email interview with Lee Sung Kyung and Kim Young Dae via tvN, the two talked about behind-the-scenes tidbits from their drama “Shooting Stars.”
In the series, Lee Sung Kyung portrays Oh Han Byeol, the Head of the PR team for an entertainment company. While Kim Young Dae portray top star and actor Gong Tae Sung. As the drama is about what happens behind-the-scenes in the entertainment industry, the two were then asked if there were any changes in how they feel about the staff working for the series.
Kim Young Dae said, “Maybe it was because I started to film this drama. [I kept asking myself,] “What is that person sitting there doing?” [and] “What is that person’s role?”. I didn’t know about them previously. I learnt a lot through this opportunity. To our PR team sitting with us here today, I’m also starting to feel very thankful. This drama had instilled a lot of such emotions in me. Not just the PR team but…”
To which Lee Sung Kyung interjected, “Your manager is going to cry,” Kim Young Dae then added, “He is always like that. Managers, and all the staffs who work hard around us, I started to feel how thankful I am towards them.”
Lee Sung Kyung then talked about how she feels toward the staff who always works hard for each project. She said, “I have worked for a long time with the people around me, some of them are still working, some have already left. We would talk to each other on any difficulties since we became closer than just work relationships, staying beside each other when we face difficulties. A lot of such scenes flashed back in my mind; I have also taken them as references while acting. I didn’t experience personally but indirectly beside them; I could relate to them. I’m glad that I could express them through my acting, not just for this occupation, I believe a lot of others could resonate too. This is possible to achieve too. I really like this part.”
Additionally, the two also talked about how they prepared for their roles in drama. Kim Young Dae said, “Actually, I have learnt a lot from my seniors at the filming site. They all have their own comfortable pace of acting. Since I’m not actually a top star in real life, I was a little unsure of what to do at the start, actually Han Byeol [Lee Sung Kyung] helped me a lot. She told me a lot of stories which I can refer to, that helped me a lot. You could even tell the difference in the front part of the drama versus the back part, I have progressed while filming the drama. Apart from this, you mentioned that this is a flawless character just now, actually he has a lot of flaws. I have also worked on how to play out those flaws in an interesting way. It was easy, because I actually have a lot of flaws too. It was like expressing my original self in an interesting way.”
Lee Sung Kyung also discussed her references to be able to portray the role of Oh Han Byeol. She explained, “There were a lot of existing references for Han Byeol’s character based on my experience so I didn’t have to seek for extra advice, I already had a lot of materials to refer to. There are a lot of people at my company whom I have worked with and got close to. I have heard a lot of stories from the senior female staffs and their worries, although I didn’t experience what they went through personally, I could resonate with them a lot. And I incorporated what I resonated with into my acting. It was fun, like my own story and experience. Playing this character brought me such a fresh experience.”
“Shooting Stars” is set to end tomorrow, June 11, via tvN.