Ryeoun “Idol trainee acting, guitar + singing is OK... training due to the burden of dancing” (Namib)

Actor Ryeoun looked back on the process of preparing for the idol trainee character.

First, director Kang Min-goo revealed the reason why he cast Ryeoun, not an actual idol, for the idol trainee character at the ‘Namib’ production conference held at the The Saint Grand Ballroom on the 6th floor of Sindorim D-Cube City, Guro-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 16th.

He said, “I watched Ryeoun‘s previous work ‘Sparkling Watermelon’ closely and thought, ‘I really want to act with this friend.’ He was an actor whose passion for acting was better than any other actor I’ve seen recently. He explained, “I cast him because I saw his passion and sparkling appearance.”

Ryeoun said, “I’ve never actually been a trainee,” and “I played the guitar and sang a lot in ‘Sparkling Watermelon,’ so it wasn’t as hard as I thought. I think the dancing was a lot of pressure, so I received a lot of training. It wasn’t easy. The amount of footage wasn’t long, but we spent a lot of time practicing. I was really nervous while filming.” He then said about the life of an idol trainee, “You have to just pour out your passion every day in a situation where the future isn’t set. It must have been unsettling. Despite that, I respect the way you move forward toward your shining dream.”

Lee Jin-woo, who appeared with Ryeoun, is also a member of the actual idol group Ghost9. Ryeoun said, “I respected the fact that you weren’t nervous when you went on stage. He revealed, “I asked for help when I had a dancing god.”

Lee Jin-woo, who watched Ryeoun on set, said, “I saw my brother dance and he was so good without me giving him any advice. These days, when I watch music shows, the fancam system is so good that facial expressions are important. I was surprised that Ryeoun hyung was so good at acting with facial expressions. The camera director was so happy because it came out well no matter what angle I filmed.”

‘Namib’ is a drama that tells the story of a fired star producer Kang Soo-hyun (played by Go Hyun-jung) and a released long-term trainee Yoo Jin-woo (played by Ryeoun) meeting and moving forward toward their own goals. It will be first broadcast on ENA at 10 p.m. on Monday the 23rd, and streaming will be provided for free on KT Genie TV and Genie TV Mobile immediately after the main broadcast.

Jeong Hee-yeon, Donga.com reporter shine2562@donga.com