'Project Y' Han So-hee① "I wanted to challenge myself knowing there would be risks; if not now, I felt I might never get another chance at this script"

Han So-hee opened her diary for the interview. Filled with honest thoughts and various drawings, her diary contained the note, "〈Project Y〉 interview day. I want to make a business card too. I want to give out a business card as well."

The film 〈Project Y〉, set to be released on January 21, tells the story of Mi-sun (Han So-hee) and Do-kyung (Jeon Jong-seo) who, while dreaming of a different tomorrow in the heart of a glamorous city, steal black money and gold bars at the edge of life's cliff. Han So-hee plays Mi-sun, who makes a bold choice to steal black money and gold bars, risking everything to seize an opportunity that may never come again.

〈Project Y〉, Han So-hee's first commercial film lead, is a project that came to her like 'fate.' Her admiration and friendship for actor Jeon Jong-seo, along with her thirst for female-centered noir, intertwined, allowing her to showcase a side of Han So-hee that can only be revealed at this moment.

Han So-hee expressed that she craves the words "you did well" more than "you are pretty." How does she want to pass on her name in the future? What phrase will be attached to her business card? On the afternoon of the 16th, actress Han So-hee met with Cineplay for a release commemorative interview. Below is the full transcript of the interview with Han So-hee.

You have your diary open. What kind of content is written in it? Are there records from when you were filming 〈Project Y〉?

Looking back at the time I filmed 〈Project Y〉, I was very negative. (laughs) What I wrote today is, "It’s the day of the 〈Project Y〉 interview. I want to make a business card too. I want to give out a business card as well."

I'm curious about what you usually write in your diary. Do you keep a log while filming a project?

Rather than memories of filming, I tend to write about what emotions I am feeling right now. What thoughts I have, what emotions I am experiencing. After all, acting is my job, so I write a lot about what state I am in while doing this work.

What was your impression after watching the completed film 〈Project Y〉?

Seeing my face on the big screen was a very unfamiliar experience. Watching it on the big screen, the gaze and actions of Mi-sun that I expressed appeared to be more expansive. It seemed to play a significant role in making the character look more diverse. Also, I ended up only seeing the things I regretted. You know that feeling, right? It’s not about anything else, just me. I should have done it like that back then, I should have tried it a little differently. And I thought about how I had gained weight at that time, I should have lost a little more. I had all sorts of thoughts.

What was it like when you first met director Lee Hwan? I heard that it was undecided which role you would take, Mi-sun or Do-kyung.

I met with the director without the boundary of Do-kyung or Mi-sun. After talking with the director for 4 or 5 hours, he observed whether the parts we could express were closer to Do-kyung or Mi-sun, and in the end, I became Mi-sun, and Jong-seo took on the role of Do-kyung. During the meeting, he showed references, including music videos featuring two women and sequences from films like 〈Thelma and Louise〉, as well as sequences from Hong Kong films. He showed references on how the lighting and mise-en-scène should look and how the images of these two should intersect, and we developed the acting aspects through conversation.

This is your first lead role in a commercial film. If you have a reason for choosing 〈Project Y〉 as your first commercial film, what would it be?

While choosing my next project, I was in a state of falling into a rut, and this script was the one that sparked the most challenge. To be honest, I knew there would be heavy themes and issues related to the profession, and that there would be risks, but I wanted to challenge myself at least once. I felt that if not now, I might never get another chance. I thought that in 2 or 3 years, I wouldn’t be able to embody the character of Mi-sun.

You once described 〈Project Y〉 as a script that felt like it fell from the sky. Why did you express it that way?

It might sound grand, but there’s a saying, 'fate.' Just like that, before the script of 〈Project Y〉 was given to us, Jong-seo and I became friends. Also, while I was desperately looking for my next project, Jong-seo showed me the script of 〈Project Y〉, and it just happened to be a script featuring two women. Moreover, I had really liked Jeon Jong-seo as an actor even before she became my friend. In fact, scripts like this are rare. It’s a noir genre, and it’s almost safe to say that there were hardly any scripts where two women were the main characters driving the story at that time. I was thirsty for something like that, and then the script was given to me. So it felt like everything was progressing smoothly. Even though it was a very difficult time for film investment and production, it went very smoothly, and I thought, 'Ah, there is a master of the work, ah, it feels like I was told to shoot this from the sky.' I think I approached the filming with that mindset.

You also described the role of Mi-sun in 〈Project Y〉 as a character that can be played with the vigor of youth right now. What is the reason for that?

Just before entering 〈Project Y〉, I was in a period where I felt a lot of shortcomings in my acting. It’s our job to show new faces, right? So I was very thirsty for showing something new, and the character of Mi-sun came to me at a good time. I think I have always played characters that are more mature than my age. Due to the situations given or the environment I have lived in, I have played many mature characters for my age, but I thought Mi-sun was a character that could reflect my immature side as well.

The opening scene of 〈Project Y〉 is very sensuous. It’s a scene that immediately shows the identity of the film. What was it like during the filming?

The opening scene is actually the last scene in terms of time. I learned a little later that I would be using the last scene as the opening. While filming in that state, the director changed all the lighting the day before. We did a test shoot, but it seems that it didn’t quite match the image the director wanted. In that state, we changed all the lighting, tried shooting in slow motion, shot normally, and shot back and forth. When Mi-sun turns around, Do-kyung turns around, or they both turn around together. We tried many different versions. When I saw it on the screen, I felt it definitely became a scene that announces the identity of the film. Since we all had scars on our faces, I think it could also evoke curiosity, and the song blended well. After the VIP screening, I received a lot of feedback that the first and last scenes, as well as the scene walking through the underground parking lot, were impressive. I really liked the expression that such images were fresh.

After 〈My Name〉 and 〈Gyeongseong Creature〉, you also did some action acting this time. What was it like filming the action scenes?

There was a martial arts director on set, and since I had done 〈My Name〉 and 〈Gyeongseong Creature〉, the filming went smoothly. However, while watching the movie, I saw senior Jung Young-joo and senior Kim Shin-rok stuck in tar, and senior Lee Jae-kyun was completely naked, and Yoo Ah was covered in blood, and I thought to myself, 'I really filmed comfortably,' and I had that thought. What if I get stuck in tar too….

You took on the challenging role of Mi-sun, who gets involved with black money. How did you interpret and portray the character of Mi-sun?

When I first saw the character of Mi-sun, I really couldn’t understand her with my personality. I’m too much of a coward to jump into such dangerous things. I thought that Do-kyung and Mi-sun were friends who made very foolish choices. While reading the script, I thought that this couldn’t have been the best choice for them, and they were friends trying to make money through shallow means. But since I had to portray Mi-sun and convince the audience of the character, there were difficult parts in the process of understanding her. However, if I think about it without considering environmental factors or professional factors, if I have no one to rely on in life and only one friend left, would I jump into what that friend is doing? I think I would. So I tried hard to make the relationship between Do-kyung and Mi-sun appear more intense through that one point of connection.

It seems that there are similarities between Mi-sun and actress Han So-hee. What is your synchronization rate with Mi-sun?

The reason Mi-sun decided to break down the system based on the Hwa Jung market was ultimately because of Ga-young (Kim Shin-rok). In that sense, I also value relationships between people and live and die because of people, so there are similarities in that aspect. I live with a sense of humanity.

※ The interview with actress Han So-hee regarding 〈Project Y〉 continues in part 2