While Disney+'s original series 'Race' is said to be a work that realistically captures the variety of work life, an interview with writer Ruri Kim was released.
'Race' is a K-office drama in which Park Yoon-jo, who has no qualifications but joins a large company due to his passion, gets caught up in a hiring scandal and struggles to survive in a diverse work life. Author Kim Ru-ri, who wrote 'Hyena', has received favorable reviews for its three-dimensional characters and solid structure by capturing the fierce survival stories of lawyers.
Writer Ruri Kim said, “Everyone has their own race in life. Slow, fast, straight or curved. “Some people’s goal is to be first, some people’s goal is to complete the marathon, and some people’s goal is just a half marathon or participation.” He continued, “I wanted to tell a story about how people discover, grow, and develop their own race at their own pace and in their own direction through the lives of ‘publicists’ who have to make ‘communication’ their job. “Rather than providing the right answer to life in this era, I wanted to ask questions about the communication needed in our era through the diverse lives we live in this era,” he said.
Regarding the reason for explaining a specific department called the public relations office of a large company, writer Ruri Kim said, “I wanted to talk about ‘communication,’ not ‘disconnection.’” Author Ruri Kim said, “The means and media for communication have increased, but ironically, because of this, we are living in a more disconnected era. “The company is a place where the generation called ‘oldies’ who shout ‘Latte is’ and the MZ generation are forced to be together, and the department within that that makes a living is the public relations office,” he said. He said, “Especially in the public relations offices of large corporations, the communication and disconnection of our time exists in a compressed form. “Through ‘Promotion Board,’ I wanted to concisely show the dilemma we face living in a chaotic era where disconnection and communication coexist,” he added.
Writer Ruri Kim is said to have made extraordinary efforts in various fields, from preliminary coverage to interviews, to create realistic episodes of 'Race'. Through meeting with various public relations officials and interviewing executives and staff in charge of public relations at large corporations as well as people working at public relations agencies, “I not only asked questions about public relations work, but also heard about the life I felt as an office worker while working at the company. “I tried to listen to their lives themselves,” he said, adding that he went through a thorough preparation process.
Director Lee Dong-yoon, who was in charge of directing, said, “We wanted to depict a realistic company story, show a diverse group of people, and focus on meaningful relationships and the communication that connects those relationships. “I wanted to approach it with sincerity so that viewers would feel like it was my story, my friend’s story, or my family’s story,” he said, adding that he worked through discussions focusing on ‘relationships’ and ‘reality’ within the company. He also emphasized the fun and charm of the characters you can meet in 'Race', saying, "If you follow the emotions of a character similar to me and my boss, you will feel more fun in an office drama."
Actors Lee Yeon-hee, Hong Jong-hyun, Moon So-ri, and Jung Yun-ho appear in 'Race'. It is scheduled to be released worldwide through Disney+ on the 10th.
Kim Ji-won, Ten Asia reporter bella@tenasia.co.kr