Jo In-sung I Courtesy of Plus M Entertainment

For director Na Hong-jin, tenacity is the ‘default setting’
Cartoon-like imagination, brought out to the maximum
Prepared Jung Ho-yeon, a global ☆ in the making

Actor Jo In-sung personally confirmed the relentless passion of director Na Hong-jin in directing the film ‘Hope’.

In an interview with Sports Kyunghyang on the afternoon of the 9th in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, when asked about Na Hong-jin’s tenacious style, Jo said, “You can infer that just by looking at the director’s previous works. There are scenes that could not exist unless they were shot obsessively,” adding, “Before we started filming, I went in assuming that Na Hong-jin’s relentless direction was the default setting.” He said, “When I first read the script, there were scenes that made me think, ‘Can this really be realized?’ because there are technically difficult parts to implementing cartoon-like imagination in reality.” He continued, “But director Na knew precisely the maximum of what could be achieved. So he realized it exactly as written in the script, and I was astonished to see that.”

Regarding personally performing the scene where he transfers from a horse to a car during a car chase, he said, “It was a scene everyone suffered together to get. It was not an action you can actually do, and even when we asked the riding instructor or the stunt team, they said it was an action they had never attempted. I thought, ‘Then how am I supposed to do this? Is it not impossible?’” He added, “Even so, what can you do? Since it had to be done, I tried to do it somehow. When the ‘Cut, OK’ signal came for that shot, the staff burst into thunderous applause.”

He went on, “The next day director Na Hong-jin called and said, ‘How did you do that action? I heard it was something that could not be done.’ So I answered, ‘It is something that cannot be done. But since I was told to do it, I did it,’” and laughed, adding, “Then director Na marveled, saying, ‘You are truly remarkable.’”

About his co-star Jung Ho-yeon, he began, “ ‘Hope’ is her first film. I was startled.” He continued, “Jung Ho-yeon is truly a ‘super Korean.’ She is an actor prepared to be deployed at any time in the global market,” adding, “I only just started speaking Korean well myself, so when would I have time to learn English too and communicate? Thinking about that made me feel, ‘Jung Ho-yeon will take that role,’” highlighting her strong potential.

He added, “When I was Jung Ho-yeon’s age, even if you made a project it was either for the domestic market or, at most, for expansion into China or Japan, but now the market has become immensely favorable. In that situation she is one of the few ‘asset-like actors,’” and said, “If you make a good work in Korea now, you become a global star. That will be Jung Ho-yeon.” He also said, “On set she was very endearing. Even when she was having a hard time, she did not show it. I think that too is strong mental fortitude,” adding, “With more experience, I believe she will also develop greater composure.”

‘Hope’ begins when Beom-seok (Hwang Jung-min), the head of the Hopohang branch office located in the Demilitarized Zone, hears from local youths that a tiger has appeared; as the entire village goes on high alert, he confronts an unbelievable reality. It opens on the 15th.