"Made In Korea" meets viewers in season 2 with an even more expanded story.
On the 2nd in the morning at the Conrad Seoul hotel in Yeouido, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, a press conference was held for the Disney+ original series 'Made In Korea season 2'. Director Woo Min-ho, Hyunbin, Jung Woosung, Woo Do Hwan, Seo Eun-soo, Won Jian, Jung Sung-il, Roh Jae Won and Cha Hee attended the press conference.
'Made In Korea season 2' is set 9 years after season 1, focusing on 'Baek Gi-tae' (Hyunbin), who has reached the pinnacle of power, 'Jang Geon-young' (Jung Woosung), who has prepared a counterattack, and 'Baek Gi-hyeon' (Woo Do Hwan), whose greater ambition, different from his brother's, relentlessly runs rampant, shaking the board with irreparable rifts.
Director Woo Min-ho said, "This story covers the period from Dec. 6 to Dec. 12, 1979. It is an important event in Korean history. If 'The Man Standing Next' and '12.12: The Day' were works made from the viewpoints of people who were most deeply involved in that event, this series uses fictional characters. Baek Gi-tae, Jang Geon-young, Baek Gi-hyeon and other fictional figures. We focused on looking from the perspectives of peripheral figures who were not directly involved in that incident. So even though it is the same event, it will look different because the characters have changed. I emphasized that point. In fact, Baek Gi-tae and Jang Geon-young have clear objectives of what they want. The problem is Baek Gi-hyeon. He is a character who comes and goes without even fully knowing what he wants. In the whirlpool of such history, depending on his choice, the dynamics of the confrontation between Jang Geon-young and Baek Gi-tae will change," he explained.
Hyunbin plays Baek Gi-tae, acting director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He said, "Compared with season 1, although he has risen to much more wealth and a higher position, Baek Gi-tae is a character with greater desire who wants a higher position and more wealth. At the same time, amid confrontations with forces and figures appearing to stop Baek Gi-tae's reckless solo rise, there are times when he becomes lonely and times when he feels isolated, and at times he makes bold choices that lead to dangerous situations. I tried to show those two sides in combination," describing the difference.
Also, Hyunbin, who won the best actor award at the Baeksang Arts Awards through 'Made In Korea' season 1, when asked about the burden of season 2's success, said, "There is certainly some pressure. Still, season 1 was well received by many people, and because there are many fans, on the one hand I expect they will watch season 2 as well. The story is much deeper than season 1, and while season 1 needed to express characters and explain situations in each episode with various devices, season 2 runs as one continuous story from the beginning of the incident to the end. I dare say it will allow much deeper immersion and enjoyment. Those who watched season 1 will likely enjoy season 2 much more," he said confidently.
Jung Woosung plays Jang Geon-young, a special adviser to the joint investigation headquarters of the Martial Law Command. He explained, "Jang Geon-young was a man who had lost everything and been thrown to the bottom, so in a way his public sense of justice shifted to personal revenge. He does not realize that it is his personal desire for revenge and falls into self-rationalization that it is a way to realize justice, trying to bring down Baek Gi-tae. If the audience observes the direction in which the tiger he has mounted is running, it is a character that can well show the era's image and a human dilemma."
Having directly portrayed the Dec. 12 incident in '12.12: The Day', when asked about the connection, he said, "Of course the historical timeline continues, but 'Made In Korea' is a work that uses that great historical event as a device. The private and public desires that the characters who appear in it hold in this era seem to probe human nature. '12.12: The Day' or 'The Man Standing Next' are stories from the perspective of how the choices, worries and conflicts of those who directly intervened in that incident might have been. In terms of the genre for expressing characters, 'Made In Korea' is fun and liberating for actors. Jang Geon-young and Baek Gi-tae let you feel how valuable an individual's choice can be within a power-oriented structural ecosystem inside a nationalist system and how it can affect that era. Season 2, from that perspective, may be a work that evokes pity for individuals by the time the series ends," he noted.
Woo Do Hwan reprises his role as Baek Gi-hyeon, director of the Security Division at the Republic of Korea Army Security Command's Busan branch, and again faces conflict between family and conviction. Woo Do Hwan said, "After nine years, a slightly more mature Gi-hyeon appears, with a stronger sense of his own convictions and things he wants to protect. In season 1, Gi-hyeon felt like a child. I intended to portray it that way. In season 2 I tried hard to evoke curiosity about what choices Gi-hyeon will make while expressing a feeling of having become an adult."
"In season 1 people often said he felt like a middle schooler with attitude. In season 2, the reasons why Gi-hyeon had to grow that way and what events made him love and cherish our family more are gradually revealed. The more solid Gi-hyeon becomes compared to season 1, the stronger his confrontation with his brother seems to be," he said.
Director Woo Min-ho also said he wanted to show more of Baek Gi-tae's family's story in season 2. He said, "What were families like in that era? In particular, I felt Baek Gi-tae's family was not sufficiently covered in season 1. In season 2, I thought we should show more of this family. So I considered how the relationships and emotions of this family changed after nine years. I filmed with the actors thinking a lot about that. The emotions seem deeper. Emotions that were not visible in season 1: as family they love each other but feel resentful. Isn't it a love-hate relationship? I wanted to express those love-hate feelings. You will probably be surprised when you see this family in season 2," he hinted, increasing curiosity.
Seo Eun-soo plays Oh Ye-jin, the first female prosecutor in Korea assigned to the Busan District Prosecutors' Office narcotics investigation unit. She said, "I thought a lot about how fiercely she must have lived to become the first female prosecutor after nine years. I wanted her voice and tone to convey strength as she survived in a narcotics unit composed mostly of men, was dispatched to the joint investigation headquarters and moved to Seoul. I wanted Oh prosecutor to be more confident, resolute and audacious than in season 1," describing the character's change.
Asked whether she had referenced anyone in portraying the first female prosecutor given the era's backdrop where women found it difficult to approach power, she said, "When I considered Oh Ye-jin's goal regardless of gender, I thought it was a tenacity to fight the world and secure and build her place. I filmed thinking only about what Ye-jin's desire is and that she is a character who runs forward. I mainly filmed with senior Jung Woosung, and the tone in season 2 is different from the bright cooperative investigations of season 1. Unlike before, there are fights, so please watch for those scenes," she said.
Won Jian, who plays Ikeda Yuji (Choi Yu-ji), the key figure in the Ikeda organization, said, "In season 1 she was a character who built herself up a lot to achieve her goals. In season 2, I hope you look forward to seeing her pursue her goals without restraint through action scenes and external changes." She added, "I discussed this role a lot with the director and built the character focusing on the internal aspects of what she wants to achieve and how much she is willing to choose to realize her desires. To that end, I thought a lot about how far she would rush when her goals stood right before her in season 2, including joining hands with Baek Gi-tae."
She added, "This time Yuji meets Oh Ye-jin and Jang Geon-young, unlike in season 1. Originally I only worked with senior Hyunbin, so in season 2 I for the first time met a character standing completely on the opposite side. Even though I came to season 2 and was filming, it was interesting to newly feel, 'Oh, the other side is like this. Our drama was proceeding with this kind of atmosphere and set,'" she said, sharing her impressions.
Jung Sung-il, who plays presidential chief of staff Cheon Seok-jung, said, "In season 2 the people I meet and my relationships naturally change. The radius in which I move itself has changed. When I met new people I pondered most about the relationships and what to do with Baek Gi-tae," noting the differences from season 1.
Roh Jae Won, who plays Pyo Hak-soo, head of the Busan branch of the Central Intelligence Agency, said, "In season 1 I felt I could play up to director level. But I wondered, through conversations with the director, how I could portray a director general. The director first suggested the wig idea, and as that happened, Pyo Hak-soo in season 2 gradually became three-dimensional," he said.
He continued, "The relationship between Baek Gi-tae and Pyo Hak-soo is very different in season 1 and season 2. I couldn't act from memory in season 1, and I felt that new, strange and uncomfortable frustration while performing. I became less cool, while my senior became cooler. That was a bit painful. My rank went up, but I lost my hair and gained laughter," he lamented, drawing laughter.
Cha Hee, who plays Baek So-young, Baek Gi-tae's younger sister and the mastermind behind Baekho Trading, said, "She is 180 degrees different from season 1. Season 1 ended with her losing the man she loved, Kang Dae-il, and becoming pregnant, and nine years later she deeply enters her brother's business. Please watch how she changes and what desires she comes to have."
When asked why he set season 2 nine years later, director Woo Min-ho said, "After eight years, history was not as immense as it was nine years later. It was an era when the president was assassinated and a power struggle and intrigue to fill the vacant position unfolded. In fact, the story begins with the real history where the head of the Central Intelligence Agency assassinated the president and General Hwang Dae-sik (played by Heo Jeong-do) became the head and tried to seize power, but in 'Made In Korea' we asked, would the Central Intelligence Agency have just stood by? It likely did not remain idle in history. There may have been a counterattack by imagination, and I started thinking Baek Gi-tae would be at the forefront of that," he said.
Regarding the differences from season 1, director Woo Min-ho said, "If season 1 was filled with different stories each episode, season 2 is one story running from episode 1 through episode 6. If this sounds odd, if season 1 felt like kids fighting, season 2 has the feel of adults fighting," he hinted, raising expectations. About the possibility of season 3, he said, "There is '12.12: The Day' for the subsequent story. I hope you watch it," which drew laughs. Asked whether the universe is connected with '12.12: The Day', he replied frankly, "I haven't spoken with director Kim Sung-soo, but the stories seem to follow naturally. After watching this, I think watching '12.12: The Day' would be fun too."
Finally Hyunbin said, "I am grateful to those who showed great interest in and watched season 1. I think this will be a better gift for them. Season 1 has deepened and we are preparing to meet you with a much broader spectrum of stories, so I hope many people keep watching until the end," he expressed.
Then director Woo Min-ho emphasized, "Putting everything else aside, the actors did very well. I guarantee it. They fit the roles as if tailored clothing. This is a work where watching the actors is a real pleasure. Please show a lot of interest."
[Photo] OSEN reporter Ji Hyung-jun
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