[Video] Exclusive interview with Gong Yoo (Part 1)

Well, this is something of my current obsession.. A marvelous Korean actor, Gong Yoo whom I grew to like 5 years ago.  This is something from back then which is one of my favourite as it provides an insight into this great actor and a person.


YouTube has limitation with its description and comments.  That prevent me from providing a translation there.  I guess this is a better way to share this wonderful piece and bringing back the sweet memories once again.  Apart from the in-depth interview, the behind-the-scenes from 2006 drama "One Fine Day" gained my interest and love too.  ^^




Translation courtesy of love_jesus@YOOhouse Soompi

Intro

GY: The fact that I really want to show an extremely sentimental feeling is I think much easier. If someone tells me to cry, I can cry, and if someone tells me to laugh I can laugh. To ...act in between that is the hardest though, even in life – not to go overboard and at the same time not to be lacking…

June 2006, one fine day filming

<acting with sung yuri>

The real actor
GY: when I think to myself, "I'm a real actor" I feel all weird inside. I start to miss the filming sites... I really like to think that I'm just a common person, like everyone else. At times, I surprise myself with my acting.. like sometimes I say to myself, "I never knew I had this side of me," ..and every time I realize one of these I feel happiness, and I think that delight is the motivation that keeps me going, keeps me acting.

<at the site>GY: In usual dramas or movies that I had to act in, I never really had to wear fully dressed suit, but in this drama I think there are a lot of times where I have to.. and it's the summer, so I’m a dead man.
..suit… I hate wearing neckties.


<Showing GY's past movies - My Tutor Friend and S-Diary>

First work- drama "School4"
GY: When I acted in "school4", I hurt my hip. In the very first filming, we had to play basketball in winter for the title piece, and I slightly hurt my hip…... it was my first debut work, and the first recording, and I was already hurt.. I thought I was going to go crazy because I was depressed. I knew in this situation that if I couldn't get up the next morning, I could be replaced instantly. That's why no matter what I had to get up. Of course there was a commotion. On a Saturday night, in a remote area where there's all this Chinese medicine kind of stuff, snakes and badgers, and even an old grandpa not allowed in the area, that kind of place, I searched, so determined to get an acupuncture (to get healed) for my hip, because we had to grab this small chance. When I woke up the next morning, I could feel myself get up. I wrapped bandage around my hip, and for two days I forced myself through the filming for "School 4". … I got hit in the face, and even though I couldn’t bend over I had to pick up something.. so the first piece of work was full of a lot of meaning for me..

<Acting with Sung Yuri>

<Having filming break in front of the women’s restroom>
(talking about betting who had the closest number to the public viewing rates)
GY: I had a friend who knew the exact numbers, was it 11.6 or 11.8?
GY's manager: It was 11.8
GY: Well my guess was 11 point something and my friend who worked with the camera team brought over the exact numbers and it was 11.6 or 11.8. Yuri’s team and my team figured out everything between 11 and 15. I was all excited because I thought we won, but the camera team actually did… if I got it right the staff would’ve liked it, right? If I got caught you guys would have put more money into it and had a party.
Staff: Even if you didn’t we would have done it. You’re the main hero.
GY: I told that to director chomyung and he told everyone to give me money right away, (laughs) "hey give $400 to Gong Yoo, he’s buying for us!


Acting Requirement
GY: I think the very best way to study acting is to meet everyone around you, all the people… Yeah, and also having the eye to observe each and every small detail. Even if it’s the smallest thing, I shouldn’t laugh at it. ...When I meet people, the smallest things I do and say, the smallest experiences, they become the most initial part of me.

<One fine day press conference>
GY: I'm kind of nervous and worried.. today is the first day that we officially announce drama "one fine day" to the media. I'm curious to what the reaction will be like…

<during press conference, in front of reporters>
GY: Even though there were a lot of times where it got really tiring and people could have gotten hurt, the weather in Australia was always nice and we filmed our best without really knowing we were getting tired.
SYR: Please watch without a heart of as if you were to put on your new glasses and say, "lets see how well they do".
GY: Like right now, I hope you stay interested with lots of love to this drama. We will do our best.

<after press conference>
 
GY: Everything's crazy right now. I don't even know what I said up there. If I look at the newspaper I'll be able to see what I said up there. Sometimes, being here is harder than filming. Also, there are so many cameras and flashes that a person's soul could collapse (idiom). I feel like I'm losing conscience.
Report: What do you think when you watch yourself act?
GY: I get embarrassed.
Reporter: But you're a veteran
GY: Well I still think I'm incomplete and not good enough yet to be a veteran…


What would you have been if you didn’t act?
GY: If I didn't act, I would be about, randomly saying… what would I have done? I don't even know. When I started acting, it was really the turning point of my life. Going from "Gong Ji Chul" to "Gong Yoo".



Gong Ji Chul vs. Gong Yoo
GY: When I talked in shows as a VJ, I used to say "Hi everyone, this is makdong's VJ Gong Ji Chul.". I told him, "I don't really like this name" and he said, "Then how about we leave out your last name and just go with Ji Chul?" I said no, because I have this self-conceit kind of thing for my last name. One day he calls me and asked me, "hey, I was just going through a book and I saw the word gong yoo... owned together (meaning of gong yoo). What do you think?". I officially decide it as my name when I put together my mom's last name, which was "Yoo", and my dad's last name "Gong" and decided it okay. Decision made. My dad's last name and my mom's last name - it has so much meaning. When I was given an award, it wasn't a very big one but my name was posted up top as "Gong Yoo" and I want to give all of the honor to my parents. I felt good inside and my parents were happy and impressed.


One fine day filming @ 3am
<NG scenes>

<Filming break: Throwing baseball with his manager>

GY: We're practicing throwing for the Playboys (Korean stars baseball game). We have to practice like this in order to beat the other team.
Reporter: What’s your position?
GY: Third base… I have to beat the other third base player Joo Jin Mo..

<More NG scenes>

Reporter: How do you feel after filming is over?
GY: It's over!! How many hours can I sleep today?.. that kind of stuff… do I have to do this much tomorrow too?…

A soft-hearted man:
GY: While I was driving, one time, I was listening to the radio and a sad song came up and it fell over me. I look at the room mirror sometimes and I see that I'm crying. "Idiot. Crazy person, why are you crying?", I said to myself. But I couldn't stop crying. There wasn't any real reason to why I was crying but it was automatic. Some times the sadness hits me right on the spot.