Director Jang Hang-jun revealed an anecdote that he initially refused the hit film "The King's Warden".
On the 3rd broadcast of KBS2's "Rooftop Problem Children," director Jang Hang-jun appeared and shared the behind-the-scenes of the work's creation.
That day Jang Hang-jun began by saying, "I inherently dislike competition" when asked about rivals. He continued, "At one time my rivals were directors Jang Jin and Jang Gyu-seong. Director Jang Jin was a classmate at Seoul Institute of the Arts and formerly worked as a variety show writer," he said. He also frankly expressed his feelings toward director Jang Jin, who succeeded earlier. He said, "At first it hurt because he got so far ahead," and added, "But at some point I wanted to become close," which drew laughter.
Yoo Joo-shin joked to Jang Hang-jun, "You became a master director with 'The King's Warden.' I called you a 'mass-market master' when it reached 6 million viewers," but Jang Hang-jun confessed that he initially refused the project. He said, "The producer sent the script and I thought I shouldn't do it," and "When I went out to refuse, I explained why I couldn't do it," he said.
He went on, "At that time historical dramas were a difficult genre to succeed in and investment was not easy," and explained, "The story of Prince Suyang is spectacular, but the deposition and death of King Danjong lack dramatic elements and the ending is already known as a sad ending, so I thought it would be hard to get investment." Instead he suggested revisions, and the production team rather persuaded him more strongly, saying, "That's great."
The decisive factor was his wife, writer Kim Eun-hee. Jang Hang-jun said, "Still, I came home intending to refuse again and consulted with writer Kim Eun-hee," and laughed, "I said, 'How about fixing it like this?' and my wife said, 'That would be fine. Do it.' When a successful writer told me to do it, I immediately ended my 고민."
The result was a great success. Jang Hang-jun said, "'The King's Warden' drew the largest audience among my works and became the piece that generated the most revenue for me as a director."
He also revealed the casting anecdote of actor Yoo Hai Jin. Jang Hang-jun said, "Yoo Hai Jin is originally someone who makes decisions very carefully. He usually deliberates for more than five months," and added, "Because of the shooting schedule we asked for a quicker answer, and he decided in a month. That's extremely fast." He recalled, "When I asked if he trusted me, he said the script read smoothly and the resonance of the ending was good," and "I said, 'Thank you for trusting me,' and Hai Jin replied, 'Let's work hard together.'"
Later Yoo Hai Jin won the grand prize for the work, and Jang Hang-jun also rose to the ranks of hit directors, leaving the film as a meaningful work in both of their careers.
[Photo] '' broadcast screen capture
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