Aura of a Genius Actor

"An acting... survival show?"

"Yes. It's called Casting Vote, a new reality program that TW is preparing very aggressively. They'll be holding regional qualifiers across the United States, but to add tension, they're planning to seed in actors who are already known in other countries but haven't yet become known in America. That's what this proposal is."

Ah!

The moment he heard the title, a memory from his previous life surfaced.

Right.

So this was when Casting Vote happened.

In the early 2000s, the English speaking entertainment industry experienced a boom in reality television, producing countless audition programs.

Yet acting survival shows had failed again and again.

Among them, Casting Vote was the only one that achieved truly major success.

And the grand prize had been extraordinary.

Namely—

"The winner is guaranteed the lead role in Director Kyler Unshaw's next film."

That's right.

Kyler Unshaw.

A director famous even in Hollywood as a star maker.

He possessed a highly distinctive artistic style and happened to be one of Yu Myeong's favorite directors.

"As you know, unlike singing competitions, no acting audition survival show has ever been a major success."

"That's true."

"Do you know why?"

"Yes."

There was a fundamental difference between singing and acting.

People sang all the time.

At karaoke bars.

At drinking parties.

Even while walking down the street.

Everyone had heard bad singing before.

Their ears were accustomed to it.

A poorly sung song rarely created outright rejection.

Acting was different.

Most audiences only encountered finished, polished performances.

Their standards were far higher.

There was another difference.

Singing appealed directly to emotion.

Even an amateur could move people if they successfully conveyed their own feelings.

But with acting, if the performance was awkward, the audience's mind reached a conclusion before their emotions could engage.

This is bad.

That was why acting audition programs featuring ordinary people had failed one after another.

"That's why TW appears to be trying a different approach. First, they've excluded amateurs entirely. Applicants must have earned money through acting before. In other words, professionals only."

Yu Seok tapped the proposal.

"They want people with meaningful acting experience. People who are serious about the craft."

"So established actors are eligible too."

"Exactly. As long as they're willing to accept the contract terms for the eventual film, even actors already signed to agencies can participate."

His memories from his previous life were vague.

It had been too long ago.

But he remembered something like that.

It was a surprisingly bold approach.

Using the lead role in a Kyler Unshaw film as bait to attract established actors recognizable to the public—

It also meant abandoning the traditional audition show formula.

The usual emotional narrative of ordinary people finally receiving an opportunity.

Casting Vote was discarding that entirely.

"And the second strategy is the seeded overseas contestants. Skilled actors from other countries who can raise the overall level of the competition. One of those actors is you."

"Ah..."

The first and second regional qualifying rounds.

The seeds would bypass those entirely and advance directly to the third round.

So that had been one of the reasons behind Casting Vote's unprecedented success as an acting survival show.

Even so...

There had never been a second season.

Yu Myeong remembered why.

"You don't seem very enthusiastic for someone praising it this much."

"Honestly... I'm not."

Yu Seok rubbed his forehead.

"The benefits are obvious. But the odds are low. And the risks are just as obvious."

"Can you explain?"

"The benefit is straightforward. If you win, it's a shortcut into Hollywood."

He paused.

"No matter how talented an Asian actor is, getting cast as the lead in Hollywood isn't easy. But if you win this, you're immediately starring in the film of a director already recognized as a master."

"A rare opportunity."

"It is."

Yu Myeong nodded.

"And the risk?"

"The same reason."

Yu Seok looked directly at him.

"Can an Asian actor actually win?"

"..."

"This is an audition survival show. Viewer voting will matter eventually, even if the judges have influence too."

His voice became quieter.

"No matter how well you act, there's still the disadvantage of being a minority. People may applaud your performances. They may praise you every week."

Then he shrugged.

"But when it comes time to choose a winner, isn't it natural for them to think, 'Still, an American should win'?"

It was not something that could simply be dismissed.

"If you don't take first place, the benefits aren't that significant."

Yu Seok leaned back.

"On the contrary, it could damage your image. Right now, you're an actor nobody can criticize for acting ability. Why risk that?"

He folded his arms.

"If you continue building your career normally, in a few years you could win awards at international film festivals. Foreign directors could come looking for you themselves. Why take an unnecessary risk?"

"And yet you still kept it among the final candidates."

At those words, Yu Seok released a long sigh.

"I know."

A bitter smile crossed his face.

"For some reason, I just couldn't eliminate it."

Yu Myeong looked at him.

At the man who had agonized over countless possibilities before narrowing everything down to three choices.

Then he bowed his head deeply.

"Thank you. I'll consider it carefully."

Yu Myeong closed the second screenplay.

He understood now how much thought Yu Seok had invested in these recommendations.

Both the drama and the film were tempting enough to make his heart race.

But the third option...

"So that's the one you're leaning toward?"

"Kyler Unshaw."

Yu Myeong smiled faintly.

"I like him."

Directors were creatures with powerful egos.

The stronger their body of work became, the more clearly their personal style emerged.

Yet Kyler Unshaw was different.

His films were so varied that audiences sometimes wondered whether the same person had directed them at all.

That was why he had become a master without becoming a guaranteed box office success.

He worked constantly.

Produced many hits.

Produced many failures.

And in an interview many years later, Yu Myeong had heard the reason directly from him.

"I create stories after being inspired by actors."

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said."

Kyler had smiled.

"When I meet an actor who inspires me, a character appears in my head. Once I release that character into my imagination, it starts moving on its own and creates a story."

He had laughed.

"Every actor is different. So every story becomes different. Every directing style becomes different."

A completely impulsive and emotional method.

One that most directors would never understand.

Perhaps that was why his success rate was inconsistent.

Yet when he succeeded, he did not hit singles.

He hit home runs.

And because he stepped up to bat so often, his standing in Hollywood remained enormous.

"Oh? A director who writes stories after seeing actors."

"I'm curious."

Yu Myeong looked at the proposal.

"I want to know what kind of story he'd imagine after seeing me. His artistic sensibilities are... unusual."

"That's definitely interesting. Did the movie starring the Casting Vote winner succeed in your previous life?"

"No."

Yu Myeong shook his head.

"That's the reason there was never a second season."

Casting Vote itself ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) had become a sensation.

But the resulting film had failed commercially.

From the perspective of Warner Brothers' television division, that could not have looked good in front of the film division.

Investing another enormous budget into a second season would have been difficult to justify.

Which only made him more curious.

If he won.

If Kyler Unshaw created a film inspired by him.

Would the outcome change?

"So you've made up your mind?"

"...Yes."

And there was one more reason he hadn't told Miho.

He did not have the luxury of waiting for another opportunity.

The years remaining to him were not endless.

Another project would be nice.

But he wanted challenges that genuinely excited him.

He wanted unfamiliar experiences.

He wanted to interact with better actors, writers, and directors in a larger arena.

To grow even further as an actor.

To reach a higher realm of acting before his remaining time ran out.

I've decided.

Let's go to America.

His lips pressed together firmly.

Yu Myeong is back.

The rumor spread through the industry almost instantly.

Even during his travels, it had been the same.

Good Enter had simply announced that he was taking a break.

But fans who happened to encounter him in Europe uploaded photos to Cyworld, and news of his travels spread immediately.

Fortunately, his most enthusiastic fans still somehow failed to track him down completely.

Only a few days after his return, the phones at Good Enter began ringing nonstop again.

The current call was from Writer Yuk, anxiously asking whether her script had been delivered.

Knock knock.

Through the glass wall, Yu Myeong appeared.

Covering the receiver with one hand, Yu Seok gestured for him to come in.

After motioning toward the sofa, he switched the call to speakerphone.

"Team Leader, it has to be Yu Myeong. I wrote this script with him in mind. There's literally nobody else who can play this role!"

"Writer, please. You weren't commissioned by us to write it. You can't pressure us like this."

"I'll match any condition you want. It's fully pre produced, so the actor won't have to destroy his body filming. Half the shoot is overseas. We'll provide the best accommodations and meals. Tell him to think of it as a vacation with occasional work!"

"Writer..."

"I mean it! Tell him to meet me next week. Maybe Sushi Jo? Just a casual meal—"

"I'll contact you later. I have a meeting right now. Goodbye."

Click.

After hanging up, Yu Seok pretended to wipe sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

"You heard that, right? This is my life these days."

"You seem to be enjoying it."

"Absolutely not!"

After draining a mouthful of water, he sat across from Yu Myeong.

Then he asked.

"So? Have you decided?"

"Yes."

"Which one?"

"The audition."

"Haaa..."

A sigh deep enough to make the ground collapse escaped him.

"I knew it. I shouldn't have shown you that proposal."

"You promised you'd choose my next project. If you really hate the idea, just tell me not to do it. I'll choose something else."

"Oh, sure. As if I could."

Yu Seok shook his head helplessly.

"You're really an actor who never does anything my way."

"Come on. You showed it to me because part of you was interested too."

"No."

His denial came immediately.

"What exactly is appealing about sending my favorite actor overseas where I can't even watch him work?"

Even while grumbling, he pulled out a stack of papers.

Apparently he had already done his research.

"You know what TW Network used to be?"

"No."

"Earlier this year, TBS and WB TV Network merged."

Yu Myeong nodded.

"Warner Brothers, right? They're famous for movies."

"Exactly. They already had television channels. They merged with TBS and essentially combined the strongest programs from both networks."

"Ah..."

"They've become very aggressive."

Yu Seok tapped the documents.

"They openly talk about becoming the fifth major American broadcast network alongside ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox."

"So that's why they're investing so heavily in Casting Vote."

Yu Myeong listened quietly.

"They're trying to do three things at once."

Yu Seok raised three fingers.

"Create the first successful acting survival show."

"Increase TW's popularity and market share."

"And make money through the resulting film."

He laughed.

"It's an absurdly ambitious project."

Yu Myeong stared at him.

As always, when it came to work, there was no more reliable partner.

Even before knowing which option Yu Myeong would choose, Yu Seok had already gathered every piece of information he could.

"Honestly, promising the lead role in a Hollywood film is a massive investment."

He continued.

"It's nothing like promising an album to the winner of a singing competition. A movie requires vastly more money and manpower. The risk of failure is enormous."

"And finding a director willing to attempt something like this can't be easy."

"Exactly."

Yu Seok nodded.

"What director would happily share casting authority over the lead role with viewers?"

"Fair point."

"Kyler Unshaw is unusual, sure. But WB must have offered him something substantial in return."

"Money?"

"Money. Opportunities. Resources. Something."

He spread his hands.

"Which means that even though it isn't written in the proposal, everything involved with this production will probably be top tier."

"The program."

"The set."

"The judges."

"Everything."

"They're taking on too much risk to cheap out on the details."

Yu Myeong nodded.

"The preliminary rounds will start in January 2007. Since we're receiving a seed, we'd probably join around mid February. Though it might be better to arrive earlier and get a feel for the atmosphere—"

"Actually, Team Leader."

Yu Myeong interrupted him.

"I forgot to mention something."

"What?"

Yu Myeong spoke calmly.

"I'm not using the seed."

"...What?"

"I want to start from the first round."

"...WHAT?!"

Yu Seok practically shouted.