Life, Once Again!

After Story 62

Maru sat down in row A, which was closest to the screen. Yoonseok sat right next to him, while Jiseon and the others were seated behind them.

“The people next to us must be directors of the other works, right?” Yoonseok said as he looked to his left.

Maru nodded. Usually, during GVs, the directors and actors were seated at the front. This was done because they would have to go on stage once the screening was done. This was also for the sake of the audience who invested their time and money to come to the cinema.

“Hello.”

A woman wearing an orange knitted sweater greeted Yoonseok. From how she was right next to him, she seemed to be related to the works being screened. Was she a director, or an actress? He didn’t know yet.

Next to the woman was a young man. He had some folded tissue against his nose as though he had a terrible cold.

While the people seated in the A row greeted each other, the lights on the ceiling started dimming and the doors at the front opened. A man entered with a smile and greeted the audience.

“Hello, everyone. I’m in charge of procedures for ‘Rising Rain’, the Melo section. Please call me Mister Park. Those of you coming in should be careful as you go to your seats, and over there, the one drinking coke with a straw, I hope you can listen to me first.”

People’s heads turned according to the MC’s gestures. The man in the audience drinking coke widened his eyes and took his mouth off the straw.

The MC then smiled and told him that there would be big trouble if he kept staring like that, so he should just look forward.

The stiff atmosphere in the theater soon became lax.

The MC checked the time and looked at the back door. A helper for the program closed the doors.

“It’s time to begin. I’m going to move out of the way after telling you some necessary information, so don’t worry. First, as it says on the ticket, you’ll be watching four films in a series. Those of you who have bought the program book will be able to enjoy it a little more if you read the synopses before they begin. This program will last about 90 minutes in total, and of that, 65 minutes will be the films. During the rest, we’ll dig deeper into the profundities of the minds of the directors and actors involved,” the MC said as he pointed at the A row. Some of the audience at the back applauded.

“Thank you for the applause. We should repay such applause. Helper, could you please hand the two people who clapped some prizes?”

The MC showed that this was not a strict assessment place, but a festival they could enjoy together.

The audience applauded. The two people who received prizes stood up and bowed in embarrassment.

“I’m sure all of you are here because you love film. Please don’t forget about the questions you have as you watch the four films and keep them in your mind. Don’t forget to ask them when you talk to the directors. Otherwise, we’ll all have to sit in awkward silence for about 30 minutes. That sounds terrible, doesn’t it?”

Hearing the MC, the audience also chimed in, saying that they would keep that in mind.

“I love that we have so many cheerful people here. We’ll start the first film now. Please enjoy.”

The MC stepped down amidst applause. He was quite proficient. Talking to the audience would become a lot easier with him around.

The lights shining down on the stage were turned off. Along with some motor rolling sounds, a black screen rolled down on top of the screen.

After the top masking was done, some white noise could be heard. The electronic noise of the beam projector tickled the back of Maru’s head. The film was finally starting.

He looked next to him as he drank the green tea that he bought from the convenience store. Yoonseok was looking at the screen, his face filled with nervousness. He should be more nervous than ever, and also uneasy. The inevitable time that all directors had to experience was upon him.

“Would you like some?” Maru offered him the green tea bottle. Yoonseok shook his head, saying that he wasn’t in a state to put anything in his mouth right now.

The first film started. It was a film that Maru could feel a youthful passion from. It was about a love between a man and a woman working at a convenience store.

The producers did not get hung up on a dramatic plot and just displayed plain love. It used eye-level shots throughout the beginning sequences to maintain a sense of objectivity, and during the latter half, it used over-the-shoulder shots a lot.

The subjectivity on top of the objectivity increased the immersion, but it didn’t suck him in.

The director kept putting up a wall. It was thin, but was definitely there, and was asking questions to the audience instead of allowing them to accept the psychology of the main character — What would you do?

After the film ended, the ending credits rolled.

Leaving aside the technical aspects of filming, it was quite satisfactory in terms of plot. Just because it was plain didn’t mean that they didn’t put much thought into it. A film like this was probably born because they held onto it for a long time, shaving it down and putting things aside.

“Should I ask them to not screen my film?” Yoonseok muttered.

Maru pressed down on the back of his neck with his thumb. “Your film isn’t crap. Don’t panic.”

“The actor isn’t crap, but I feel like it’s crap because of my story.”

“The last line of defense a creator can have is their confidence. The other directors are the same. On public occasions, they will always say that they got a lot of help from those around them, but when you look inside, everyone thinks that their film was successful because their story was the best. The degree might be different, but everyone thinks that. Personally, I think that those who lack that confidence will never be successful as an actor, or last a long time.”

“Really?”

“This is something you wrote. Even if everyone else insults it, you of all people must be supportive of it. The moment a director gives up expressing his affection for his work, that work becomes nothing. Well, there are cases where works are labeled masterpieces even after the director throws them away, but that’s because the films are just that good.”

“You’re saying that if I give up on our film, it’ll be put in the trash, right?”

“What is up with all your negativity neurons today? Why are you so dejected? Our film wasn’t even screened. If you want to cry, it wouldn’t be too late to do it once your name appears in the credits.”

It wasn’t that Maru couldn’t understand what Yoonseok was feeling. During the first screening, the only ones that watched were the people who had participated in the production. They knew everything already.

However, today, the ones that came to watch it were those who paid their own money for it. Because of that, Yoonseok must have the urge to go to the bathroom, and his ears might feel ticklish.

The second film began. Unlike the first film, it didn’t leave that big of an impression. Not bad – that was it. It wasn’t that the emotions were dry. Maru just didn’t have any interest because the plot and the production style were something he was used to seeing.

He had participated in and even produced hundreds, thousands, if not tens of thousands of films. He had an enormous amount of data related to film in his head. When he looked at films, he could think of similar films even if he didn’t intend to recall them.

With things to compare, the freshness of it naturally fell behind. It was really difficult for him to enjoy a film even if he tried to put in the effort. Though, the moment ‘effort’ came into play meant that it was no good.

In retrospect, he usually watched movies and dramas to use as reference material, not for enjoyment.

On one hand, he felt slightly relieved. At least, he didn’t get fed up with acting. If even the fun of participation had withered away, he would never have dreamed of becoming an actor.

The third film began. Maru leaned back and raised his chin. Just because he could no longer easily enjoy film didn’t mean that he could throw his focus out the window.

The title came up. It was Water Fog. Like the two films before it, it painted an ordinary picture of love and separation between a young man and a woman. Now, he could tell the preferences of the judges for the melo section in the festival.

‘The Form of Love’, in which he played the main character, was very different from the other three, starting from the intention of the production. Maybe they chose Yoonseok’s piece in order to display other types.

He organized his thoughts and focused on the film. He was impressed for the first time as he watched the male lead’s acting. It wasn’t that the actors in the previous two pieces were bad. They properly displayed the story and transmitted the emotions.

However, that was it. They lacked the charm to shake the minds of those watching. It was a so-called ‘lack of character.’ Though, as they were young actors, this would be resolved naturally with some time, so there was no need to point it out as a mistake.

It was just that the actor in the third film had already found his character which made it a contrast. The act was tasteful. It was bold, yet delicate. He seemed to know what his charms were. Maru turned his head around.

Next to the woman wearing an orange sweater was the man who was still blocking his nose with some tissue. A man with curly hair and a dazed expression was acting nonchalantly inside the screen.

What a talented fellow – Maru looked at the man with goodwill. He always felt good when he found a junior with talent.

“He’s pretty good,” Yoonseok said.

Acting was something abstract, and being ‘good’ couldn’t be defined properly, but for some curious reason, the people watching were usually able to make accurate assessments. The phrase ‘you’ll know whether it’s porn or art if you watch it’ was also an example of this.

It wasn’t just Yoonseok. The majority of the people seated here must have watched the actor for the third film with focus, curious about who that actor might be, the one who nonchalantly acted so naturally.

The ending credits for the third film started rolling. Contrary to the first two works, there was applause. Although it didn’t last long, it was very significant. It meant that they liked it to the point that they wanted to break the silence to express it.

Maru looked at the man again. He made eye contact with the man who was sniffing while blowing his nose lightly. Maru smiled and raised his thumb.

The man nodded slowly in response. His eyes were very calm.

“It’s starting, it’s starting. Oh my god, this is driving me crazy.” Yoonseok said as he clasped his hands.

The fourth film, ‘The Form of Love’, was starting.

* * *

He rolled up the tissue. He then stuck it up his nose after it became about the thickness of a fingernail. It was a perfect fit.

Good – Park Joohwan put the used tissue in the trash can by his feet.

“You should’ve taken some medicine,” said Moon Jungah.

“I’m okay.”

“Pollen allergy?”

“Yeah, I’m like this every year.”

“I told you to wear something warm.”

“Maybe I should’ve listened.”

“You’re good at answering.”

Joohwan looked at the orange knitted sweater that Jungah was wearing.

“Is that warm?”

“Should I take it off for you?”

“No, it’s okay.”

He blew his nose and looked ahead again. He quite looked forward to coming here, but honestly, it was quite boring. Both the first and second works were below his expectations.

He did not care about the plot or the production quality at all. What he looked at was the acting of the actors. Jungah told him that they would be good since they managed to win the competition, but in his view, they were all below his standards. It was hard not to yawn.

The film he acted in ended. He thought that he would be fed up with it because he had watched it over and over again, but unexpectedly, he was quite absorbed.

Just as he thought that a large screen sure did make a difference, he made eye contact with the man sitting next to him. He had neatly styled hair and a pair of glasses. He wasn’t a pretty boy, but he had a masculine beauty about him.

The man gave him a thumbs up. Did that mean he enjoyed it? Joohwan nodded for now. He knew that his acting was good, even if he wasn’t told it. At least, he should be better than every other actor in this place.

Just as he was putting away the used tissues, the fourth film began.