(continuing from interview ①) Actress Baek Seora clarified the misunderstanding that writer Im Seong-han personally gave her stage name.
Recently, at the OSEN office in Mapo-gu, Seoul, an end-of-run interview was held with Baek Seora, the lead actor of TV CHOSUN's weekend drama Doctor Shin.
Doctor Shin is a medical thriller drama about a genius doctor who challenges the realm of God and a woman whose brain is damaged overnight and who loses her soul. In the drama, Baek Seora is a top-tier popular actor, but she played the role of Momo, whose brain was damaged in an accident.
Writer Im Seong-han is known to extremely avoid external exposure to the point that even 공개된 사진조차 are counted on one hand. When asked about her impressions of working with the mystique-known writer Im Seong-han, Baek Seora said, "I first met her at the audition. She is small in stature, and she watched us through the camera from behind a large monitor. I was nervous at my first impression because of the aura she gave off, which you couldn't see but could feel."
She added, "After doing long readings and seeing her repeatedly, I felt she was a very affectionate person. Each character is truly precious, and I felt she treated each of us assigned to those characters with care. Meeting the writer and rehearsing became the driving force for me to perform diligently on set."
When asked what feedback she received from writer Im Seong-han after watching the filmed footage, she said, "Actually, the writer changed her number, so I didn't have a chance to receive direct contact. Still, during the dubbing I heard that she said, 'It seems Momo is a hardworking friend,' and 'She certainly worked harder as it went on, so it came out well.' I'm grateful," expressing pride.
After news of Baek Seora's casting, rumors circulated that the person who gave her the new stage name "Baek Seora" was writer Im Seong-han, since when she was active in the girl group Hot Issue she used her real name, Kim Hyeong-shin. In response, Baek Seora said, "We don't know how that story started. I originally used my real name when I was an idol, and when I transitioned to acting it was a new start. The day I met the company CEO was the first day it snowed. The CEO remembered that moment and image fondly and said the image of first snow fit me well and that she wanted to keep that feeling. So we shortlisted a few names that had the image of first snow and voted with the company to decide the name," explaining the birth of the stage name Baek Seora.
She continued, "When an article came out early on, something seemed to be derived from somewhere and that story emerged; at that time we were in the middle of script readings. I thought I should ask the writer about it and was preparing to ask, but the writer asked first, 'Where did the story that I named you come from?' So I said, 'I was just going to ask you,' and we both laughed it off. That was the kind of happening that occurred."
[Photo] OSEN reporter Ji Hyung-jun
[OSEN]