Do not become too alarmed by the close-up shots of actor Ji Sung. He has had make-up put on to create chapped lips and dark circles under his eyes for the role of a Kim Su-ro who is currently sick in bed in MBC TV series "Kim Su-ro." But even if we met with Ji Sung on a different day, it seems unlikely we would have been able to see him bright and cheerful.
Up till the current first half of the traditional epic drama, about the myth of King Kim Su-ro, founder and ruler of the state of Gaya state in the 5th century, the show dominantly tells about the hardships that Kim Su-ro goes through. He loses his father who gets killed by an assassin, which is when he finds out he was not his real father. Then his real mother considers him a nuisance while her political rival also wants to get rid of him. Hence, Kim Su-ro's life is threatened every other episode but he is a young man who must overcome it all and become a king one day.
10Asia talked to the actor, also of hit dramas including his debut screen appearance "Kaist" (SBS, 1999) and "All In" (SBS, 2003), to ask him what it means to have to endure through such difficult acting with both his heart and body.
10: It seems you often have to put on make-up that makes you look like you have a cold sore, just like you did for today's shoot. Did you know you'd be playing such a role that is so physically straining?
Ji Sung: I had heard from the screenwriter and director from when I first got to look at the synopsis.
10: You must've had to prepare for it a lot then.
Ji Sung: I had exercised regularly and although there was rumor that I was preparing for a skin-baring scene, I actually didn't have time to [work out] once we started filming. Other than that I had a lot of action and horse-riding scenes so I had to prepare for those a lot.
10: When it comes to the action scenes, not only are they tough but can also be extremely dangerous, right?
Ji Sung: I got injured many times while shooting the action scenes. It's covered by the make-up right now but I got poked near my eye with an iron stick so it left a scar and a bit of skin came off when my fist got striked by a sword. So I'm a bit sad. (laugh) And I usually fight not with just one or two people but several so I get hurt whenever I do action scenes. For the action scene that'll go on air this week, we were fighting on a rainy day so everybody was slipping. And then if you end up falling but are not in synthesis with the other person, you could really end up getting hurt by the sword. It's work that requires a lot of caution.
10: Being able to move your body in the way that you want to is probably part of one's acting skills. Do you think you're good at doing that?
Ji Sung: It's not to the point that I can move in the very way that I want to. That's why actors have to prepare a lot when they're on a break rather than actually working on a movie or drama. Because they don't just play single characters. One may end up playing a martial arts expert or do a dance drama. That's why I think you're already late in getting prepared for a role if you start to prep upon taking a new role. I think that's why when you're on a break, you need to study both physically and psychologically.
10: Does that mean you should always be in a state of tension?
Ji Sung: I think you have to be in a peaceful state rather than tense. I think you have to learn to naturally express situations that you would normally only experience in dramas and undergo a variety of experiences.
Ji Sung: Don't people usually say that they travel? I think one learns to become more at ease by going outside his or her limited boundaries, in the process of experiencing and feeling new things. That's why after "Swallow the Sun," I travelled a lot and went back to school. I haven't graduated yet but I studied hard earlier this year and also took my mid-term exams. (laugh)
10: Welll you said you try and relax yourself and prepare yourself for whatever might happen with the character but Su-ro is a character that you have to show various sides to. He's the bully of the village one moment then become serious the next moment. And the drama itself is about how he grows and matures into an adult so you constantly have to show changed aspects to him.
Ji Sung: I think he's in a confused stage right now -- at a lost stage. If the tragic events that Su-ro experienced occured to a normal person, wouldn't they be in shock and be having a hard time? That's why I have to think a lot. Because I can't always sound the same for when I'm in shock or hurt. Paint piles up and you become distressed. But you still have to get back on your feet. You want to let go of everything but if you think again, you're mother is being held and this week, another person gets held. Then what do you do? You save them.
10: Isn't it more agonizing when you take on roles like this?
Ji Sung: When I have a lot of scenes that I'm sick in, I get really lonely. That's why when I'm done, rather than thinking 'Wow, I'm done. I'm going to take a break,' there's a long lingering feeling. And that's why I tend to become depressed too. I don't know what I'll do next but I want to do sort of a romantic comedy. Something without a big and serious incident.
10: Then I think this is a job which also requires one to have a healthy ego in order to not fall under being in such a state of depression.
Ji Sung: Acting is just acting. I don't think an actor should substitute oneself to his or her character. If you over-do the emotions, it could lead to an unexpected outcome. If you pass on emotions A and B and raise it right to C, you can't lower it back to B.You can only keep going up from there. I think that's what you have to be careful about. Especially if you're thinking of acting for more than a year or two.
Ji Sung: He rather has fun with it. We set Su-ro as a character who is always at ease, no matter what situation he is in. He would have such a hard time if he took every single situation seriously. It's not even a life that he wanted for himself. However, you'll be able to tell once you watch the show this week but he again changes in the way he expresses his emotions. The way he accepts emotions changes so the way he expresses them changes too.
10: Because the story will be about his awakening from now on.
Ji Sung: He's someone who has received an oracle, he is a king sent from the heavens. We've been thinking hard about how to show this in a dramatic way because this could easily come off as seeming infantile.
10: Viewers have to be able to nod to the fact that he is worthy of being a king, even if it's his destiny.
Ji Sung: We know that he has no choice but to be a king but we now have to show why that is the case. I think we'll have to show how he matures depending on the experiences he has. As of now, whoever he meets, I want him to be like the 18-year-old kid that he is. I think it's too much for an 18-year-old to have the charisma of a king.
10: Then do you think he should be at the point where he doesn't cower? (laugh)
Ji Sung: That's right. Him not being a coward yet being able to control everyone with a look in his eyes? I don't think that's quite right. I should explain it to the extent that he comes from a background where he cannot help being a king, and then gradually express him beyond the issue of age.
10: Isn't it more difficult to keep your emotions at mid-point than being able to fully show your emotions and ability?
Ji Sung: It's tough, extremely. But I wanted to take the style factor out of it. That's why I sometimes also have to hold myself back from trying to sound cheesy when I act out my lines. Because I think I'm not the type [that can pull it off]. But I'm going to have to see the script to see what other sides we'll get to see to Su-ro. I'll make him become that Su-ro [in the script].
10: I'm guessing it probably becomes increasingly important to communicate with other actors or the crew the more difficult the acting is. Just like how Su-ro continues to make people join his side by opening himself up to them.
Ji Sung: I think being genuine is important. Being unaffected. You have to be able to ask someone if there's something you're worried about, you have to be able to say you're having a hard time when you are and when you're confident about something you have to be able to express that too. A lot of actors and crew members help me because I tell them honestly about such things.
10: Did you learn to do that through working?
Ji Sung: It something that everybody learns. You can't know it from the very start. And it's probably different for each person but I'm guessing they all learn in a way that suits them. You upgrade yourself and show a better side to you.
10: Do you have a desire to become better?
Ji Sung: This is what I feel. I don't want to be going in a circle. I'm not asking for a shortcut but I at least want to take a normal path. And a wrong judgement could lead you to go the long way around. I think that would take too much time and be very tough. I think this happens less for people with experience because they anticipate the result and are prepared for it.
10: Then you must need a lot of advice from others in order to reduce trial and error since you're a young actor.
Ji Sung: There are people do that [for me]. And actors and producers are not the only ones that give advice. People who actually know less are sometimes more realistic because they tell you from the perspective of an audience. That's why actors have to keep their ears fully open. We can't be stubborn and only do what we want to do. We have to be able to accept and embrace it and make it ours. That's why I seek a lot of advice and consult a lot too. I also look at the criticism that viewers leave on message boards. I can't take everything into account but if I work on certain points based on the thoughts that people have about my acting, I think they'd be responsive to that.
10: Was there any criticism in particular that was very helpful to you?
Ji Sung: There's so much that I don't know... This is my second time taking on a historical drama but it's true that young actors avoid them. They're difficult to relate to, the tone is different... But it's true that they're also as much help for one's acting. Even while working on "Kim Su-ro" this time, I realized that I don't know so much. That's why I go around smiling because I tell myself I lack in many ways. I wanted to fill up a clean slate with new things. And this happens whenever I play a new role but I'm drawing one thing after another onto it. I probably haven't even filled it up halfway but I'm thinking of acting until I fill up the blank space completely.
10: But isn't it easier to see the picture from far away than up close? For example, after you're done with a role.
Ji Sung: But I want to be able to see the whole picture right now too, so I don't know if I lack the skills to do so but I can't do it. Yet I should still keep trying. Because I play the main character. I can't play my role properly if I can't see the complete picture when half of the script are my lines. But if you ask me whether I'm looking at the entire picture, I'm sure I'm not doing a perfect job of it.
10: You seem to put more meaning into playing the main character.
Ji Sung: That's why playing the main character is a lot of pressure. So my first task is also to rid myself of that pressure... How can one start being under pressure? That's why I try to make some aspects of Su-ro a way of my life. For example, when I'm practicing swordsmanship, I think how Su-ro would do it. Of course, since he's from a historical drama it's difficult to live his way of life in reality but making an effort to focus on him as much as possible has helped me rid myself of the pressure. I don't know how that will come back to me later but as long as I do my best, won't people see it? When I was doing MBC's "New Heart," I tried to regard the supporting actors as actual patients which I think that's a basic quality an actor should have.
10: If you put in that much effort and then look forward to as much compensation for it, there must be a lot that you end up being disappointed about. What do you feel more after you're done with a role -- satisfaction or disappointment?
Ji Sung: More of the disappointment but if that's the case, the I try harder not to think about it. When you're acting, there are many things one wants to do but if you become disappointed over not having done all of that, you'll start having regrets. And that could lead to a drop in confidence so sometimes, it's just better to let go. Even with Kim Su-ro right now, if there's something I wanted to do more of or am disappointed about, I try to shake those thoughts from my head whenever I have a break. This applies for Su-ro too but you can't constantly cope with being in a tough situation. That's why I try to rid myself of the pains that he experiences when I'm acting him. The story develops quickly too so I can't stay in a state of being in pain and being concerned. I think that's who Su-ro is.
Reporter : Wee Geun-woo eight@
Photographer : Lee Jin-hyuk eleven@
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@, Lee Ji-Hye seven@
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Source 10.asiae.co.kr
