Chapter 57: Star Maker (3)
After finishing the meeting about Gangster Detective, Kim Si-woo was busy making calls on his way back.
First, he told his YouTube actors to gather at the office.
Then he dialed Park Jun-ho.
“Hello? Jun-ho?”
—Yes! This is Park Jun-ho.
“Nothing big—W Studio is shooting a new movie, and I recommended you for one of the lead roles. They’ll show you the script later, but I wanted to tell you first.”
—Understood! Thank you, Writer-nim. I’ll do my best!
“No, I mean… look at the script first and if you like it—”
—I like it already.
Jun-ho claiming he liked it despite not having seen it made Si-woo laugh.
“Alright. Let’s grab a meal sometime. Thanks again for helping with the YouTube shoot.”
—No, thank you! Thanks to that appearance, my followers increased.
After wrapping up the call, Si-woo found himself at the office of Revenge Film.
“You’re all here?”
“Yes!”
The actors stood in front of him, visibly nervous.
“You all know where I’ve been, right?”
“Yes, we know.”
“And you probably know what I’m holding in my hand?”
“Yes!”
Their unified response echoed through the office.
“Alright. Take these and pick the role you want. Choose carefully—your luck is part of your skill. We’ll hold auditions in a week.”
The actors quickly grabbed the papers and looked over the roles.
[Female Officer #13]
[Male Officer #15]
[Reporter #5]
…
…
[Pedestrian #20]
All extremely short roles, but for them, it was more than enough.
Some actors debut as leads or supporting roles and become famous right away—but those people are the rarest of the rare.
For most actors, even participating in a film at all is extremely difficult.
The Revenge Film actors, full of new determination, took their scripts and left.
From this moment on, the person next to them was no longer a colleague—but a competitor.
Once the actors left, the remaining staff stared at Si-woo.
“What?”
“Writer-nim… is there nothing for us?”
“You wanna shoot YouTube videos? Or go to a film set and get cursed at nonstop while doing grunt work?”
“…We’ll stick to YouTube.”
Watching them deflate, Si-woo tried to think of something else he could do for them. Then he remembered the set of Our Teacher, which he had visited with Yoo-jin.
“Fine. I’ll at least take you to visit a drama set.”
“Huh?”
Actually, Yoo-jin had noticeably improved after visiting that set, so he figured it wouldn’t hurt to take the staff there too.
“You mean that drama with over 20% ratings?”
“It’s over 20% now? They thanked me recently, but I didn’t know it was doing that well.”
“Writer-nim, please show some interest in your own work.”
“What can I do? I’m busy. I’m drowning in work as it is.”
Si-woo immediately called PD Kim Jin-man.
“Yes, PD-nim, this is Kim Si-woo.”
—Ah! Writer-nim! Did you enjoy your trip?
“Eh… it was alright. More importantly, congrats on breaking 20% viewership.”
—Thank you. It’s all thanks to you. All the staff and actors want to see you again.
Hearing the PD’s overly polite flattery, Si-woo cut straight to the point.
“Actually… my YouTube team wants to visit the set. Would it be alright if I bring them?”
—Of course! How many people…?
“If you exclude the actors, it’s about twenty people. I’ll make sure they don’t interfere with the filming. Or you can have them work on set for free.”
…Well, technically not free—their salaries still came out of Si-woo’s bank account.
—In that case, the date…
“Just tell me the day with the lightest shooting schedule. I’ll bring them then.”
—Ah… then two days from now should be fine.
“Thank you. I feel like I’m always asking you for favors…”
—Not at all. We’re just glad there’s something we can do for you. Hahaha. Then I’ll see you that day.
“Yes, thank you, PD-nim.”
Why was PD Kim Jin-man so willing to help?
Simple.
Kim Jin-man’s status was rising sharply.
His CBS drama was crushing every other network in ratings.
And with the viewership still climbing even past 20%, hitting 30% looked entirely possible.
At this rate, he was a strong candidate to become the next network director.
Rejecting a request from the man who wrote the hit drama?
That would make him less than human.
After finalizing the arrangements, Si-woo told his staff the news—and they were just as excited as the actors had been.
He also declared that the YouTube channel would take a short break, then headed home.
When he arrived, his mother—watching TV—greeted him with exaggerated excitement.
“Oh my, our famous writer has returned!”
“What’s with you all of a sudden?”
“Well, there’s a travel package on sale here on TV. Our son went on vacation, so shouldn’t Mom and Dad go somewhere too?”
“…Just use the money I gave you.”
“Ay, it’s not the same unless our son treats us!”
Si-woo had no idea why that would be any different.
It was all his money anyway.
“Fine, fine. I’ll book the package and let you know. Oh, by the way—what’s the jeonse price for an apartment?”
“For an apartment? Hmm… around 200 million won?”
“Ah, okay.”
“Why? Planning to buy a place?”
“Uh… something like that.”
He needed to find a place for Hong Soo-yeon to live once she moved to Seoul.
He couldn’t call her up to Seoul and let her sleep on the streets.
“What’s with the sudden house talk? You planning to move out?”
“No, it’s something else.”
“Well, be careful. There are a lot of rental scams these days.”
“Yeah.”
Si-woo went straight to his room to search for a place for Soo-yeon.
Thanks to Lee Hae-soo, his real estate expert, he didn’t have to worry much about falling for a scam.
***
Two days later, Si-woo led the Revenge Film staff to the filming location of Our Teacher—an abandoned school in the outskirts of Gyeonggi Province.
“As I told you before—do anything that interferes with filming, and you better be ready to face the consequences…”
Gulp.
Everyone swallowed hard as they stepped off the bus, tense with nerves.
“Hello.”
Si-woo approached PD Kim Jin-man first to greet him, then went around greeting the surrounding cast and crew.
“I already warned these guys not to do anything disruptive, so there shouldn’t be any problems. If they cause even a small accident, please tell me right away.”
While he was introducing the Revenge Film staff, a veteran actor stepped out of a van and approached.
“Hello.”
“Oh? Actor Park Seung-hwan.”
He was the actor playing the teacher, Han Young-jin.
“I heard you visited last time, but I had already gone home… I was disappointed, but I’m glad to finally meet you today.”
“Hahaha…”
“There’s quite a rumor going around these days—that every actor you choose ends up becoming successful.”
“What kind of rumor is that…”
“So, do you think this old man will be successful too?”
Seeing Si-woo’s troubled expression, Park Seung-hwan chuckled.
“Then please watch my acting today… and give me some advice, Writer-nim.”
Park Seung-hwan clasped both of Si-woo’s hands in his own—rough, but warm.
Seeing him in person, he looked far younger than his age would suggest, standing firmly with an aura that was hard to put into words.
“This is… a bit awkward.”
As the veteran actor walked away, another actor who had been watching from behind hurried up to Si-woo.
“Writer-nim!”
It was Kim Ji-hyun—the actress whom the PDs had cast instantly.
“Ji-hyun, how’s filming going?”
“Everyone’s treating me well. And the viewers and fans seem to like the character too.”
“That’s good to hear.”
An awkward silence followed their short conversation. Then Ji-hyun spoke carefully.
“Writer-nim…”
“Writer-nim!!!”
Just before she could continue, three actors playing students came running over.
They were the ones who had received Si-woo’s special training—
Kim Moon-sik, Lee Hye-jin, and Jeon Byeong-doo.
“Writer-nim! Why does your face look so thin!?”
“My weight is the same though.”
“Huh? Really? Hahaha…”
The three actors chattered excitedly, interrupting without hesitation. Annoyed, Ji-hyun shot them a fierce glare, and the three instantly quieted down, reading the mood.
“Ah… were you in the middle of talking?”
“Well, kind of.”
“Sorry! We didn’t realize. We’ll come back later.”
After they left under Ji-hyun’s sharp gaze, Si-woo spoke to her.
“Don’t bully your juniors.”
“…Sorry.”
Ji-hyun immediately lowered her head like a scolded cat.
“You should stay on good terms with everyone. When things get tough later, it’s other people who’ll help you.”
“I only need your help, Writer-nim…”
She muttered the last part so softly that Si-woo didn’t hear it.
“What was that?”
“Nothing! Anyway, it’s almost time for my scene, so I’ll go rehearse!”
“Okay. Do your best.”
“Yes!”
As Ji-hyun left, Yoo-jin approached, eager to talk.
“Writer-nim, did you see that?”
“See what?”
“When Kim Ji-hyun glared at them and the three actors ran away…”
“Oh… yeah. That’s why I told her not to bully them.”
“What? You said that to her?”
To Yoo-jin, the fact that he casually lectured a famous actress made Si-woo look even more impressive.
She imagined that maybe one day, as a successful director, she too would speak confidently to big-name actors.
Soon filming began, and the mood instantly shifted as all actors and staff slipped into professional mode.
The Revenge Film staff also scattered, each gravitating toward the position closest to their usual YouTube work responsibilities.
When the actors started performing, everyone watched silently, barely breathing.
Si-woo, too, was fully immersed—especially in the performances of Park Seung-hwan and Kim Ji-hyun.
Playing father and daughter, their acting synced perfectly.
They’ve gotten even better…
And Ji-hyun, using her previous incident as motivation, seemed more composed and confident.
As for Park Seung-hwan… what am I supposed to advise him on?
His decades of experience shined through—his performance was nearly flawless.
Si-woo couldn’t spot a single thing worth pointing out.
“Cut! Good job, everyone!”
With the director’s cut, the tension instantly eased.
“How was it? My acting?”
Park Seung-hwan rushed over immediately, his expression bright and eager—like a boy deeply in love with acting.
It was clear how much he cherished the craft.
“Is there even anything for me to advise? You did everything perfectly.”
“Really? That’s a relief. Actually, I wanted to ask you something.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
“On this part here…”
As Park Seung-hwan showed him the script and asked questions, something else was happening elsewhere—something Si-woo didn’t expect.
“Hoo… finally finished.”
“Se-yeon-ah, are you sure this is okay?”
“Why? Afraid it’ll spark a scandal?”
“…Yeah.”
Jung Se-yeon’s new song was finally complete.