'Death Game' producer Kwon Dae-hyun spoke about commentator Jang Dong-min, not a 'player'.
On the 5th at the TEO (TEO) headquarters in Mapo-gu, Seoul, an interview was held between Netflix variety show 'Death Game' producer Kwon Dae-hyun and OSEN.
The Netflix (Netflix) daily variety show "Death Game" (directed by Kwon Dae-hyun, produced by TEO), which premiered on the 28th of last month, is a one-on-one brainy final match decided by a single game each week. It is a new-concept survival that excludes politics and alliances and decides outcomes solely by brainpower, featuring cast members representing each field such as Lee Sedol, Hong Jin-ho, Pannibottle, Yurisa, Sevenhigh, Park Sung-woong, Napoli Mafpia (Chef Kwon Seong-jun), Pengsoo, and attorney Yang Na-rae.
The winner of "Death Game" receives 10 million won in prize money and at the same time advances to the next match to have the opportunity to accumulate prize money. The loser, meanwhile, is immediately eliminated, a rule that maximizes tension.
In particular, with caster Park Sang-hyun and commentator Jang Dong-min handling live commentary for the one-on-one death matches and adding vivid immediacy, producer Kwon Dae-hyun explained the background for introducing the "broadcast system."
Producer Kwon said, "What we wanted 'Death Game' to be consumed as was like watching a sports broadcast, like watching a game broadcast. For example, like League of Legends or StarCraft. Games also have broadcasts. Even when you watch an unfamiliar sport, if you hear the commentary and analysis you can tell who is winning or who did well. I wanted viewers to become immersed following the lead of the commentators."
When asked whether he had given "broadcast guidelines" for Jang Dong-min, who heightened immersion in the game with his outstanding interpretive skills, producer Kwon said, "We gave him the same level as the players. The players have the 30 minutes allotted for strategy time and even have time to think about the game through pregame interviews, but Mr. Jang and the caster were given no more time than that. They had to watch the game in real time and commentate. If there were insufficient lines, I thought they could add them after, but there were few such cases. I felt why he is called a 'god' in the survival world."
Asked about the consideration of Jang Dong-min as a player rather than as a member of the commentary team, producer Kwon said, "It wasn't that we hadn't thought of that direction, but since it's a survival that only does one-on-one matches, there isn't a narrative to fill reactions. To serve that function and to heighten viewer immersion within the short 30 to 40 minutes, we decided to introduce the concept of a caster. There were many candidates, but I couldn't think of anyone other than Mr. Jang for the commentator position."
He added, "Mr. Jang was so overwhelming that I thought if he didn't do it there would be no point to the broadcast. So we offered Mr. Jang the commentator position, and he readily accepted."
He then laughed and said, "It's not that Mr. Jang wants to play the game himself; he said, 'If I did it, I wouldn't do it that way.' If he were a player, his skill would be overwhelming, but if he met people like Pengsoo, I don't know what would have happened. Survival shows have many variables and are often influenced by external factors, so I can't say for sure, but he seems to have the skill that matches a commentator's authority."
(Continued in interview ②)<
[Photo] OSEN DB
[OSEN]