Director Yeon Sang-ho's 'Yeon Universe': Bae Hyun-sung's 'Madness' Born Amidst -17°C Cold

Director Yeon Sang-ho of the movie 'Paradise Lost' and actor Bae Hyun-sung shared intense moments from the film production process and their first impressions of each other. This meeting, revealed through Cho Jung-seok's YouTube channel 'What Should I Do With You?', captures director Yeon Sang-ho's working methods, having built a unique cinematic universe, and Bae Hyun-sung's transformed appearance in the new work.

The gaze created by the -17°C cold of Taebaek, a record of 'Paradise Lost'

Director Yeon Sang-ho recalled the time of filming at the Taebaek coal mine, the main setting of the movie 'Paradise Lost'. Scenes revealing the intense emotions of the characters in the movie were filmed amidst harsh cold reaching -17°C. In particular, he shared a behind-the-scenes story that the weather at the time of the first shoot, when the first snow fell, contributed to creating the actor's gaze. The madness of the characters in the movie was completed in conjunction with this extreme weather.

Bae Hyun-sung talked about his completely different image from what was shown in the movie trailer. Director Yeon Sang-ho highly evaluated Bae Hyun-sung's acting skills, noting that unlike his appearance of waiting quietly behind the monitor when they first met, he showed extraordinary immersion even in short scenes. The director added that Bae Hyun-sung's immersion in acting was so high that they did not even need to take many takes.

From 'Visual Master' to 'Yeon Universe', Yeon Sang-ho's spectrum

Since 'Train to Busan', director Yeon Sang-ho has built an independent cinematic universe by presenting various works such as 'Hellbound' and 'Parasyte -the maxim-'. Along with the nickname 'Yeon Universe' used among fans, a pleasant conversation continued regarding the nickname 'Visual Master' that was proposed during the distribution company's marketing process in the past. It was shared as an episode that while the 'Visual Master' nickname ambitiously proposed by the distributor at the time did not become a trend, the term 'Yeon Universe' emerged among fans through the expression 'Yeon-tainer' used by a reporter later.

Director Yeon expressed his wide spectrum of works, describing himself as "in the process of coming out after being immersed in the realism genre." Cho Jung-seok commented on director Yeon's flexible world of works, saying, "The spectrum is incredibly wide." Director Yeon revealed the reason he started YouTube to communicate with fans, stating that instead of using SNS normally, he is using it as an opportunity to communicate with fans.

From 'Hellbound' to 'Paradise Lost', a continuing connection

The connection between Bae Hyun-sung and director Yeon Sang-ho goes back to the drama 'Hellbound'. Bae Hyun-sung, who appeared as the son of actor Kim Shin-rok at the time, had a brief encounter with director Yeon, but they are working together again through this 'Paradise Lost'. Bae Hyun-sung recalled that he wanted to speak to director Yeon at the time, but could not easily approach him due to the situation on set and other factors.

Mentioning the process of casting Bae Hyun-sung, director Yeon added that his acting was impressive enough that they did not need to take many takes thanks to the actor's immersion. The two confirmed their past connection through this meeting and concluded the conversation in a pleasant atmosphere.

Source: original video (YouTube)