Bae Doo-na and Kim Si-eun, a heavy message for the ‘next Sohee’

Actors Bae Doo-na and Kim Si-eun tell a frustrating and explicit real-life story and send a heavy message through the movie 'Next Sohee.' It's late to tell this story now, but it's because I finally learned the story.

On the afternoon of the 31st, a press screening for the movie 'Next Sohee' (directed by Jeong Ju-ri) was held at CGV Yongsan I'Park Mall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Actors Bae Doo-na, Kim Si-eun, and director Jeong Ju-ri attended the press conference held after the preview.

'Next Sohee', which will be released on February 8th, tells the story of Sohee (played by Si-eun Kim), a confident 18-year-old high school student, encountering an incident while going on field training, and Eugene (played by Doo-na Bae), a detective investigating the case, in the same space but in a different time. A powerful story. Last year, it was the first Korean film to be selected as the closing film of the Critics Week at the 75th Cannes International Film Festival.

On this day, director Jeong Joo-ri said, "I worked hard on filming a year ago at this time of winter. I am happy that a year has passed and I can meet the Korean audience before winter is over."

Director Jeong Joo-ri's feature film debut, 'Doheeya', was invited to the Cannes Film Festival's Un Certain Regard section, as well as the Toronto International Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, and London International Film Festival. He also received the Best New Director award at the Baeksang Arts Awards and Buil Film Awards. ‘Next Sohee’ is the first film to be released eight years after ‘Doheeya’ and has entered the Cannes Film Festival for the second time in a row.

Director Jeong Joo-ri said, "'Next Sohee' is a movie based on real events. I tried to fill it with only realistic things as possible. I hope the audience will see that this actually happened and that the movie was made based on real events. "he said.

He continued, "The reason I have to tell this story now is because I know now, even though it's too late. As I know what happened and what happened before and what happened after, I may become a part of this society that makes me repeat those things. “I thought that was the case. It was like that the whole time I was making the movie, and it’s still like that now,” he confessed.

This is Bae Doo-na's second collaboration with director Jeong Ju-ri. First, director Jeong Joo-ri revealed the reason for casting Bae Doo-na in the role of Oh Yu-jin, who retraces So-hee's footsteps. Director Jeong Joo-ri said, "It's a very difficult role and a very difficult performance. Expressing those emotions required a level of delicacy that was beyond my imagination. I needed someone who was that person from the time I wrote the scenario and must act properly. “I did. It had to be Bae Doo-na from the very beginning,” he explained.

Director Jeong Joo-ri also said, "After I made and released my first movie in 2014, my work ended and I virtually did not contact her. She must have been surprised when I sent this script to actress Bae Doo-na. The next time we met, she said she thought she had immigrated." “I barely wrote the script and sent it to him. When I sent it, I was confident that this person would definitely read the story as I wrote it and would know what kind of movie I wanted to make,” he expressed his affection.

Bae Doo-na said, "I worked with director Jeong Joo-ri on 'Dohee.' Seven years later, he sent me his second work, which was 'Next Sohee.' The director wrote another good story, and if you want to tell this kind of story, “I thought it was great,” he said, laughing, adding, “I once again fell in love with the material and the theme. I decided to do it because I wanted to be next to the director and support him no matter what role he asks me to play.”

Bae Doo-na said, "I would have read the 'Next Sohee' scenario properly no matter who I sent it to. I liked the scenario. I would have done it in any role, but I am glad it came to me." “When he came to me with a scenario, a deeper sense of camaraderie and strong feelings arose. After spending many hours contemplating and meditating on his own, my faith and trust in him deepened as he came to me. I became a fan.”

Kim Si-eun, who entered the Cannes Film Festival with her first feature film, said, "When I read 'Next Sohee', I did not expect that it would receive such international attention while I was filming it. I thought it had a lot of Korean sentiment, but when I went abroad, I found out that it was not only our country. "I thought it was a problem. I realized that there are many Sohees in other countries as well. I would like to say thank you to the director who wrote a good scenario and helped me bring her to the world," he said.

In addition, Kim Si-eun said, "After reading the script, I thought it would be great for me to do such a good work. The script was so good that I wondered if I could do it. I quickly responded to the director and auditioned. When we first met, we had a few conversations. "I became Sohee. It didn't feel real," she said. "At that time, I didn't speak in front of the director. It was just a normal conversation. I was working with director Jeong Joo-ri, and I thought, 'This is the first time I'm doing a project where even senior Bae Doo-na can work together.' “It was a thought,” he said.

Bae Doo-na learned dancing for a month for ‘Next Sohee’. He said, "You might be surprised by the scene in which I appear. You might laugh out loud. Eugene also likes dancing. He is a character who learned to dance later in life as he got older." He added, "I learned to dance for this role. I danced hip-hop while showing off my swag." “I learned how to dance for a month. The director really wanted a character who is serious and immersed in dance. I learned archery, table tennis, and dancing,” he said, making everyone laugh.

Lastly, director Jeong Joo-ri said about the title 'Next Sohee', "In the movie, Sohee is the next friend of the team leader who passed away before that. Eugene's heart is also worried about the friends who will come after Sohee after Sohee is gone. And in terms of the film's format, the main character. "There is also a main character named Eugene who appears after a child named Sohee. I also wondered if Sohee's story, not just one incident, but the previous, next, and possibly the next, should be repeated forever," he said.

Kang Min-kyung, Ten Asia reporter kkk39@tenasia.co.kr