Son Ye-jin's Devout Mind Control and Ji Chang-wook's Promise to His Mother

Actors Son Ye-jin and Ji Chang-wook shared their serious attitudes toward the profession of acting and the personal growth processes hidden behind it. Appearing on the tvN variety program "You Quiz on the Block," the two had a calm conversation about their respective works, the struggles they feel as actors, and the driving forces that have sustained their lives.

"The front of the camera is a lonely battlefield"... The acting philosophy revealed by Son Ye-jin

Son Ye-jin mentioned her dream of becoming an actor, which began in middle school, and the emotions she felt during that process. She revealed that she chose acting as a profession through which she could release her many emotions and thoughts that she wanted to express at the time. Along with an anecdote about being popular enough to have people stare at her when she rode the bus during her school years, she shared a memory of being around five or six years old, hearing people on a bus say she was pretty, and looking in the mirror wondering, "What does it mean to look pretty?" as she sought out the meaning for herself.

Quoting past interviews, Son Ye-jin said that before filming an emotional scene, when she washes her hands in the bathroom, she feels as if she has become a doctor entering surgery. She explained that because emotions are spontaneous and live, she approaches the set while performing mind control on herself. She added that starting a few days before filming, she wakes up early in the morning and listens to music at a neighborhood playground, fighting the fear of "what if the emotions don't come out on set" while disciplining herself.

She also poured out her honest feelings regarding the loneliness felt as an actor. Son Ye-jin said, "The moment the camera turns on, it is truly lonely," noting that while there are times she feels like running away, she is in a repetitive process where she must perform brilliantly. She stated that she approaches this process with the thought that she is "fighting a battle in a great war."

"Failure is not the end"... The time of growth faced by Ji Chang-wook

Ji Chang-wook recalled the times of pressure and worry he experienced as an actor. He confessed that when the results of past works did not meet expectations, he felt the stress and pressure of "wondering if I am disappearing." However, the conclusion he reached as time passed was that "failure is not necessarily the end." He said he learned through the experience of failure that the effort itself does not disappear, and realized that such experiences become the foundation for growth.

Ji Chang-wook revealed an anecdote about how he and his current CEO have been close friends but fought intensely for three years. He stated that they experienced intense conflicts, such as having a big argument in a parking lot in the early morning after a schedule ended, or driving in silence the next day, but they maintained their relationship through a process of reconciling naturally while eating meals. He also shared realistic difficulties that those around him faced to walk the path of an actor, recounting a difficult episode where a friend who served as his manager in the early days obtained a driver's license and was deployed to the set, moving while sleeping at rest areas because they could not overcome fatigue during filming in the provinces.

Ji Chang-wook cited his "mother" as the driving force that made him who he is today. He shared that after his father passed away early, seeing his mother struggle, he thought from a young age, "I must grow up quickly to protect my mom." He revealed his deep feelings for his mother by calmly recounting memories of helping at the small restaurant his mother ran by wiping grill plates or cleaning fish tanks, and his experience working part-time in a delivery service to earn tuition.