Episode 54. A Step Towards a Dream (3)
Upon arriving in America, Kang Dae-oh first contacted his daughter.
Anyway, the audition was scheduled for two days later.
He thought she would be able to answer if he called right away, so he felt no great burden in trying to call first.
As Kang Dae-oh expected, Kang Yebin’s voice was heard immediately.
―Hello?
“It’s Appa. I just arrived in America. I called to let you know that.”
―Did you just arrive?
“Yeah. Now… I’m about to take a car to the hotel. I intentionally booked the same hotel where you’re staying. Do you want to see Appa for a bit if you have time later?”
―Yes, that sounds good.
He was coming to America for a business trip around the same time as Kang Yebin. Since it would be better to book the same hotel if possible, he had intentionally arranged it this way.
Senior Managing Director Shin Young-jun waited for Kang Dae-oh to finish his call with Kang Yebin before speaking to him.
“Is Yebin at the hotel?”
“It seems so. She said she’d see me later, go out for a bit during the day, and then come back before evening to sleep early.”
“She must be very nervous. A chance to appear in a John Denny film. Wasn’t Director John Denny quite famous in our time?”
“Senior Managing Director Shin, have you also watched many of Director John Denny’s works?”
“Oh, of course! Recently, what was it… ‘Romance Time’? I heard it was released on VOD, so I watched it in the evening with my wife to reminisce about our old dating days. But it wasn’t the ending I knew, you know?”
“The one released on VOD is called the director’s cut. Originally, Director John Denny intended to show the ending in a post-credits scene, but it was intentionally omitted during the initial screening.”
“What? Why?”
“He determined that an open ending would be better, she said. Yebin told me.”
As much as Kang Yebin was fanatical about movies and dramas, she also had a hobby of continuously looking up related interview materials and information.
So, if Kang Dae-oh wanted to know something about that field, instead of searching the internet, he would send a text message to Kang Yebin and ask her first.
Although he could find it directly on the internet, there was too much inaccurate information.
When he asked Kang Yebin, she would filter out all such groundless information and tell him, so Kang Dae-oh found it more comfortable to ask his second daughter instead.
Senior Managing Director Shin Young-jun clicked his tongue upon hearing the information Kang Dae-oh provided.
“To think there was such an inside story… As expected. Since your daughter works in the film industry, you get to know all these things. I’m envious, Daepyonim.”
“If there’s anything else you don’t know later, feel free to ask me anytime. I’ll ask Yebin on your behalf, Senior Managing Director Shin.”
“Thank you, Daepyonim.”
The two men looked at each other and chuckled.
“By the way, Daepyonim, how will you schedule your subsequent plans? Our work involves looking around the site, and that’s it, so it won’t take long.”
Since it could be adjusted at any time, this business trip to America was relatively flexible.
Kang Dae-oh decided to inform Senior Managing Director Shin Young-jun of his schedule in advance.
“If possible, I plan to go with her on the day of Yebin’s audition. To cheer her on as well.”
“That sounds like a good idea too. Since you’ve come all the way to America. You should be a source of strength for your daughter.”
Kang Dae-oh nodded and told Senior Managing Director Shin Young-jun that he was grateful for his understanding.
Then Senior Managing Director Shin Young-jun responded by saying he didn’t need to say such things.
“Because I’m also a father with children. Although they’ve all gotten married and started their own families, becoming independent. Still, children are children. They seem like children I’ll have to embrace for life. And since your daughters are all still young, Daepyonim. I imagine it must seem even more so for you.”
“That’s right.”
Even now, in Kang Dae-oh’s eyes, they seemed like treasures he would have to protect for his entire life.
And hearing that one of those treasures was in America, holding onto a long-held dream, preparing to shine brightly.
Appa really wanted to go and be a source of strength for her.
The day finally dawned for actors gathered from all over the world to compete in auditions for Director John Denny’s next project.
Despite having no particular schedule, Kang Dae-oh woke up early in the morning and waited for Kang Yebin in the hotel lobby.
Ten minutes later.
Kang Yebin appeared with her agency staff.
As soon as she saw Appa, her eyes widened significantly.
“Appa. Why are you here?”
“To cheer on my daughter. Can I come with you?”
“Yes. Well… but you won’t be able to go inside the venue.”
“I know.”
Even so, Kang Dae-oh had experience taking Kang Yebin around various audition venues when she was actively participating in them.
Thanks to that experience, Kang Dae-oh knew roughly how auditions worked.
Kang Dae-oh boarded the vehicle with the staff.
Kang Yebin’s manager guided Kang Dae-oh to her seat.
“Mr. Kang. Please sit next to Yebin.”
“Is that alright?”
“Yes. I’ve been sitting next to Yebin ever since we came to America. So this time, I should yield my seat to you, Mr. Kang.”
Manager Park Yi-song has been Kang Yebin’s manager ever since she was a child actress.
As someone who had looked after Kang Yebin for over 10 years, Kang Dae-oh knew her well too.
“Thank you, Ms. Yi-song.”
“You’re welcome.”
Thanks to her consideration, Kang Dae-oh was able to stay by Kang Yebin’s side until they arrived at the audition venue.
It took quite some time to travel to the venue.
Only after driving for about 40 minutes did the audition venue slowly come into view.
Then, Kang Yebin swallowed dryly and began to show a rare sign of nervousness for her.
Kang Dae-oh reached out and held his second daughter’s small, subtly trembling hand.
“It’s okay. Yebin, you can do it. Appa guarantees it.”
It might seem like a vague belief with no basis.
But this blind faith can sometimes be a source of strength.
Kang Yebin nodded firmly and said.
“I will definitely bring back good results, Appa.”
Seeing his determined second daughter, Kang Dae-oh smiled with full conviction.
As soon as he arrived at the venue, Kang Dae-oh thought to himself.
‘Certainly… the vibe is quite different from the audition venues I saw in Korea.’
Strictly speaking, the American side was indeed larger in scale.
However, it wasn’t an atmosphere frozen with tension compared to Korea.
Not only the audition participants but also the staff guiding and controlling the venue were exchanging jokes, creating what could be called a festive atmosphere.
‘It’s certainly a typical American atmosphere.’
Kang Dae-oh could easily tell that there was a significant difference in the atmosphere between the two countries, having traveled back and forth between Korea and America.
Understanding the kind of atmosphere people live in is inevitably very important for someone in business.
This is because one must choose a business direction that fits the country’s culture and promote it accordingly.
If one were to pursue business abroad using the exact same methods as in Korea, the business would likely fail.
That’s why Kang Dae-oh was trying to come to America frequently in this manner, even if he didn’t have any major schedules.
Because by staying and living here, one can eventually reach a level where they understand their culture to some extent.
Kang Dae-oh subtly observed the other audition participants and thought to himself.
‘I see a lot of Asian actresses.’
Perhaps because the character Director John Denny wanted this time was an Asian female character, many actresses were focused on that.
Especially many Japanese actresses were visible.
It was then, whether they knew each other or not, they were continuing their readings while looking at the script among themselves.
Several actresses saw Kang Yebin and their eyes widened.
Then, they approached Kang Yebin and started speaking to her in Japanese first.
After they had conversed for about 5 minutes.
Kang Yebin returned to where Kang Dae-oh and the staff were.
Kang Dae-oh quietly asked Kang Yebin.
“Are they actresses you know?”
“No.”
“Huh? You don’t know them?”
“Yes.”
“Those people seemed to know a lot about you, though.”
“That’s also true. They said they watched all the movies and dramas I appeared in. Because of that, they said they started talking to me as soon as they saw me without even realizing it, because they were so happy to see me.”
Kang Yebin is fluent not only in English but also in Japanese, to the extent that she can converse with locals.
To become a global actor, one must fundamentally overcome language barriers early on.
This is because it allows them to appear in various works and show their face in countries around the world.
Not only Japanese actresses but also some actresses active in China additionally greeted Kang Yebin first. Kang Yebin was a popular star herself at the audition venue.
Among them, no actress had a career as illustrious as Kang Yebin’s. Considering this, such a phenomenon might have been natural in a way.
A total of fifteen actors were scheduled to audition today.
They were all not amateurs, but actors with a reputation in their respective countries, so even if the number was small, one should never let their guard down.
Kang Yebin also always kept the saying “complacency is forbidden” in her mind.
Kang Dae-oh asked Kang Yebin about her turn.
“What number are you?”
“I’m… twelfth.”
“You’re towards the back? Appa isn’t sure if that’s a good order or not.”
“The order doesn’t matter. What’s important is who shows how outstanding their acting skills are at the audition venue.”
The entertainment industry does have a certain degree of luck involved.
Even so, one must have basic skills.
Relying solely on luck without skill won’t solve everything.
Immediate matters might be handled well somehow.
But in the long run, it’s ultimately a battle of skill.
A staff member came out and called the name of the actress who had been assigned the first number.
The actress stepping up to the first turn walked towards the audition venue with a tightly nervous expression.
Watching that scene, Kang Dae-oh became even more nervous.
‘It’s not even me who came to audition.’
At the same time, he admired Kang Yebin.
‘Yebin must have endured this kind of burden and pressure every time she auditioned, right?’
If Kang Dae-oh had been in the same situation as Kang Yebin.
Would he really have been able to do as well as Kang Yebin had shown so far?
Honestly, Kang Dae-oh wasn’t confident.
It must be possible because it’s Kang Yebin.
‘Because everyone has a field they’re good at.’
One just needs to do their best in their respective positions.
Kang Dae-oh hoped that Kang Yebin would pour out everything she had at the audition venue, leaving no regrets.
