‘High Sugar Content’ Special Supporting Cast Jang Ri-woo, Jung Soon-beom, Yang Mal-bok's High-Concentration Performance!

This year-end, the family tragicomedy 〈High Sugar Content〉 (The Price of Goodbye) that will captivate theaters introduces actors Jang Ri-woo, Jung Soon-beom, and Yang Mal-bok, who add astringency and sweetness to the story with their high-concentration performances. The film depicts a family’s fake funeral business to fund their nephew’s medical school tuition with the father’s funeral money, and it is the feature debut of emerging director Kwon Yong-jae. 〈High Sugar Content〉 is a deep exploration of the ‘family’ ties that no one can choose, intertwined by blood, blended with immersive suspense and black comedy. Director Kwon Yong-jae, who wrote and directed the film, has gained attention at various domestic and international film festivals with his short films 〈Goodbye! Good Mommy〉, 〈Condolences〉, and 〈Sweet Honey〉, and 〈High Sugar Content〉 is invited to the Festival Choice section of the Seoul Independent Film Festival 2025, which opens on November 27, for its first public screening.

In particular, 〈High Sugar Content〉 features actor Kang Mal-geum, who has been active across films and TV, including the movie 〈Lobby〉, 〈Chansili is Not Lucky〉, the Netflix series [I Was Deceived], and the MBC drama [Red Sleeve Cuff], and actor Bong Tae-kyu, who has enhanced dramatic immersion in various genres with his unique performances in SBS dramas [Penthouse], [Return], and the movie 〈Mina Stationery Store〉, playing the astringent reality siblings. Alongside them, veteran actor Jang Ri-woo, promising new actor Jung Soon-beom, and the uniquely present Yang Mal-bok complete the high-density family chemistry. Director Kwon Yong-jae, who harmoniously orchestrated this, is gaining attention as the most accomplished debut feature director of the year with his smooth script and solid direction that capture ‘fun’, ‘meaning’, and ‘chemistry’ all at once.

Actor Jang Ri-woo debuted in 2005 with the film 〈I Can't Go On Like This〉, and in 2009, he won the Best Actress Award at the Syracuse International Film Festival for the film 〈Exhausted〉, gaining recognition for his profound acting skills. He then established himself as a veteran actor in the independent film scene, creating a breakthrough in the genre by playing ‘Yoon Jin-hee’, the quirky team leader of a publishing company next to a temple in 〈I Will Lie Flat〉, and ‘Son Kyung-yeon’, the HR team deputy who has to execute layoffs in 〈What Needs to Be Done〉. In the upcoming film 〈High Sugar Content〉, which opens on December 10, he plays ‘Hyo-yeon’, who accidentally sends a condolence text before her father-in-law passes away, adding tension and humor to the film as she rushes around with her siblings ‘Sun-young’ and ‘Il-hwa’.

Actor Jung Soon-beom began with the film 〈Extraction〉 in 2022 and has been steadily building his unique acting style through independent shorts and features, including 〈When Breathless〉, 〈Minimum Goodness〉, and 〈Boundary〉. In the film 〈Our Name〉, which opens on November 26, he takes on his first leading role in a feature film, realistically portraying the inner world of a nineteen-year-old standing on the boundary between adolescence and adulthood. In 〈High Sugar Content〉, he plays ‘Dong-ho’, the only son of ‘Il-hwa’ and ‘Hyo-yeon’, who declares he will give up college despite being accepted into medical school, delivering an intimate performance that bursts with pent-up emotions, adding both astringency and sweetness to the film and leaving a strong impression.

Actor Yang Mal-bok debuted in 1999 with the play [Why Byeong Hak-do Hit Hyang-dan with a Beeper] and has been active in theater and independent films for 25 years. In 2022, she gained public and critical attention by winning the Independent Star Award at the Seoul Independent Film Festival and the Best Actress Award at the Wildflower Film Awards for the film 〈Two Women Wearing the Same Underwear〉. She has since expanded her range by portraying various characters in each episode of the Netflix series [D.P. Season 2] and the Tving original series [LTNS]. In the film 〈High Sugar Content〉, she plays ‘Geum-soon’, a successful aunt who has severed ties with her family, raising the tension at the beginning of the film with her unique aura. The family tragicomedy 〈High Sugar Content〉, completed with the high-concentration performances and high-density chemistry of unique actors, will be released in theaters nationwide on December 10.