MBC 'Rookie Director Kim Yeon-koung' PD, "Kim Yeon-koung is a Prepared Leader... I Will Actively Persuade for Season 2 Production"

Kwon Rak-hee, the producer in charge of the main direction of MBC's entertainment program 〈Rookie Director Kim Yeon-koung〉, highly praised Kim Yeon-koung's capabilities as a leader and expressed his intention to actively persuade for the production of Season 2.

At the production team's press briefing held on the 17th at the Sangam MBC building in Mapo-gu, Seoul, PD Kwon stated, "Director Kim Yeon-koung calls the production team every Monday after watching the broadcast," adding, "When the ratings go up, she says, 'I called because I missed you,' and just hearing her voice makes me feel good." Along with PD Kwon, PDs Choi Yoon-young and Lee Jae-woo were also present at the briefing.

〈Rookie Director Kim Yeon-koung〉 is a sports entertainment program that captures the first directorial challenge of volleyball legend Kim Yeon-koung and the growth process of the 'Winning Wonder Dogs'.

Since its first broadcast at the end of September, it has consistently gained word of mouth, recording the number one spot in the '2049 viewership ratings' for five consecutive weeks on Sundays. Due to this high level of interest, an extension of the first episode was also decided.

In particular, during the 8th episode, which achieved the first three consecutive wins since its establishment by winning against the professional team 'Jeonggwanjang Red Sparks', the highest viewership rating recorded was 5.0% based on households in the metropolitan area.

PD Kwon expressed, "Checking the ratings every morning is a joy to wake up to," and added, "When starting this project, I felt a lot of pressure not to tarnish the career of such a great person as Director Kim Yeon-koung, but I am happy to be able to repay with a good process and result."

PD Choi mentioned, "The production team held meetings every Monday as if it were a volleyball research institute," and said, "We struggled to figure out how to present Director Kim Yeon-koung's tactics in a way that viewers could easily understand and how to effectively convey the charm of volleyball."

The biggest challenge the production team faced was that, due to the nature of sports entertainment, there were many variables in the broadcast schedule depending on the outcome of the matches.

In a situation where it was decided to disband the team if they recorded four consecutive losses out of a total of seven matches, an emergency meeting was convened when they suffered two consecutive losses after a defeat against Japan.

PD Kwon recalled, "At the moment we suffered two consecutive losses, everyone on the production team felt their hands go cold. I really thought we might have to disband the team," and added, "Before the match against the Jeonggwanjang team, superstitions about the color of underwear or coats arose among the staff. Even saying 'I think we will win' was cautious, and we held our breath throughout the match."

Regarding Kim Yeon-koung's qualities as a leader, he mentioned that he had confidence from the time of filming, but was surprised again during the editing process.

PD Kwon stated, "I felt it during filming, but I was surprised again while editing," and added, "The scene where she told the player Inku to 'not make excuses but find solutions' was something the production team did not hear during filming. I became convinced that Kim Yeon-koung is much more prepared as a director than I had thought."

The production team expressed overwhelming emotions about the positive cycle that is occurring through this program, where the sport of volleyball is gaining attention again, and the 'Winning Wonder Dogs' players are receiving love calls from professional teams.

PD Kwon stated, "The biggest charm of this program is that it can positively impact the volleyball community," and expressed, "I sincerely hope that it will happen, and if the ultimate goal of establishing the 8th team is realized, it will be a dream come true."

The production team also expressed a positive stance on the production of Season 2.

PD Kwon emphasized, "There have been many requests for Season 2," and said, "I will do my best to persuade Director Kim Yeon-koung well so that we can meet with good news, and I will also do my best to persuade the players and MBC."

〈Rookie Director Kim Yeon-koung〉 is set to air its final episode featuring a match against Kim Yeon-koung's former team, Heungkuk Life, on the 23rd at 9:10 PM.

PD Kwon heightened viewers' expectations by stating, "It is the match that Director Kim Yeon-koung was most satisfied with and at the same time the match that made her the angriest."