| By Lee Hyo-won Staff Reporter  Actress Jeon Do-yeon talks about her new film "My Dear Enemy" and her post-Cannes life with The Korea Times in a private press meeting / Courtesy of Film Bom Actress Jeon Do-yeon seems to have it all, having won the Best Actress award at Cannes last year and about to enter motherhood. In time for the release of her latest movie "My Dear Enemy," the 35-year-old, five months pregnant but looking svelte in a colorful construction dress, met with The Korea Times in a private press meeting Friday. "I'm super healthy, I actually wish I had morning sickness," joked Jeon, who is expected to deliver her first child at the end of January. The actress rose to international prominence for her role in "Secret Sunshine" as a woman traumatized by her son's death. "I was afraid I was portraying a stereotypical mother figure in 'Secret Sunshine,' but the director (Lee Chang-dong) assured me that my interpretation is probably right. If I were to tackle the role again after having my own child, it would probably be different," she said.  "'Secret Sunshine' was challenging because the director left everything completely up to me, and I felt cornered. When I'd tell him I didn't know how to interpret something, he would say he didn't know either," she said. She said she simply wanted to rest after wrapping up the emotionally draining film. The torment paid off with the much coveted prize at Cannes. But the "Queen of Cannes" felt like a nobody at the festival. "No one knew me, nor had any information about me even after watching 'Secret Sunshine.' Seeing all these cineastes and actors I grew up watching was greatly inspiring but it also affected my self-esteem. It made me realize that there is a lot I still need to achieve in the future,'' she said. Following the international spotlight, the actress did receive a few offers for artistic foreign films and was invited to film festivals around Asia. She was also interviewed by CNN. About possible a foreign film debut, however, she said it would be unlikely to happen in the near future. "First, the language barrier is there. I'm an actor who always thought dialogue wasn't very important, because people don't speak perfectly in real life. But if I were to deliver lines in a foreign tongue, or if my lines were to be dubbed, it's doubtful whether or not it would be natural. (Making a foreign film debut) would be more rooted in ambition than genuine passion," she said."But I would like to learn English so I can converse with (non-Korean) actors and cineastes," she said. "My nickname (Queen of Cannes) is the only thing that changed," she said about her post-Cannes life in Korea. Jeon expressed concern about the dwindling domestic film market. "I do get maybe one or two more scripts than I normally would, but with the number of films being produced cut to half, I think all the other actresses are struggling as well," she said.  The Cannes title was a big burden for her, but she chose "My Dear Enemy" for its amusing story about a single unemployed woman in her 30s spending an awkward day with her ex-boyfriend. "I was really scared because I felt overrated (for 'Secret Sunshine'). But my heart feels a lot less heavy now because ('My Dear Enemy') turned out well," she said. "My husband thought I was being myself," she said about her stubborn, ill-tempered character. "You might laugh, but I'm actually quite winsome and charming," she protested. Jeon has starred opposite some of the most reputable South Korean actors. She made her big screen debut in 1997 in "The Contact" with "Shiri (Swiri)" star Han Seok-gyu, followed by works including "Happy End" opposite "Old Boy" hero Choi Min-sik; "Untold Scandal" with hallyu superstar Bae Yong-joon; and "Secret Sushine" with "The Host" leading man Song Kang-ho. She appears in her latest movie with Korea's rising star Ha Jung-woo ("The Chaser"). "If Song Kang-ho is like a preying beast, Ha Jung-woo is like a bunny who can swindle someone's liver," she said, comparing Ha to the Korean folk tale bunny that can talk a king into selling his liver. "He's a very versatile actor," she complimented Ha. Looking back at her acting career, she said "The Contact" was unforgettable because it was her first movie, and "Happy End" helped define herself as an actress while "Secret Sunshine" made her break herself down. About taking a break from acting for the baby, she said getting roles might become more difficult. "I think things will get tougher. I have no idea," she said. "Now that I'm about to have a baby, I realize that mothers aren't made to be mothers," she said, explaining that one does not necessarily have to be perfectly prepared to become a parent. But one thing she's sure about is that she wants to become a trusting parent who can have complete faith in her child. But trust is perhaps key to everything, including movies, like director Lee Chang-dong's utter faith in Jeon for her award-winning role, as well as Lee Yoon-ki's confidence in the screen beauty for her charismatic performance in "My Dear Enemy." "My Dear Enemy'' is due in theaters Thursday. Spongehouse is hosting a Jeon Do-yeon retrospective through Oct. 1 featuring some 10 films. Spongehouse Gwanghwamun is located near exit 6 of Gwanghwamun Station on subway line 5. Call (02) 2285-2095. Credits: hyowlee@koreatimes.co.kr http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/art/2.../141_31350.html | |
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Showing posts with label Jeon Do-Yeon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jeon Do-Yeon. Show all posts
Jeon Do-yeon on Pregnancy, Post-Cannes Film
'Queen of Cannes' Is Back With Lighter Fare
Actress Jeon Do-yeon
The Queen of Cannes is back. Jeon Do-yeon seemed somewhat overwhelmed by the title, given to her after her winning the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival in 2007 for her role in “Secret Sunshine,” but she knew she would have to get used to it. The Chosun Ilbo met her for an interview at a café in Apgujeong-dong on Friday afternoon. “This won’t go away until someone else gets the Best Actress award, right? I want to break people’s preconception that I peaked at ‘Secret Sunshine,’” she says.
Jeon is back on the screen with “My Dear Enemy” directed by Lee Yoon-ki, which is to be released this Thursday. She stars as Hee-su, an unmarried woman who goes to her ex-boyfriend a year after their breakup to collect W3.5 million that she had lent him. It is a much lighter, and perhaps duller, character compared to the dramatic Shin-ae in “Secret Sunshine,” a mother whose child was abducted and found dead. “Because the role of Shin-ae was so difficult, I wanted to do something more relaxing and comfortable after ‘Secret Sunshine.’ But it wasn’t as easy as I thought,” Jeon says.
She calls “My Dear Enemy” a romantic film that is different from the average melodrama, where everyone knows how it will end. “I was drawn to Hee-su because she and I have a lot in common,” Jeon says. “She looks as if she often tends to step out of line, but in fact she battles every day to survive.”
Jeon is expecting a baby in January next year, and she seems excited. “I thought a mother is a perfect and impeccable being to everyone, but after I got pregnant, I realized that I wasn’t ready to be a perfect person for anyone,” she admits. But she soon brightens. “I heard daughters are the capital of a family, and it is also fun to see sons growing into young men.”
There is more good news for Jeon fans. From Thursday last week until Oct.1, a retrospective devoted to her is being held in the Gwanghwamun and Apgujeong branches of the Sponge House. It’s a small film festival consisting of Jeon’s entire filmography of 10 films, such as “The Contact (1997),” “Happy End (1999),” “Untold Scandal (2003),” “You Are my Sunshine (2005)” and “Secret Sunshine (2007).”
A film festival homage to a 30-something active actress is an extremely rare thing. “At first, I consented to the idea without giving it much thought. I just said yes out of curiosity and for the fun it might bring. But afterwards, I felt a lot of pressure,” Jeon says. “But these films are like my children, and they compare quite well with any other films. So while I feel the pressure, I also feel confident and proud.”
Source: english.chosun.com
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/new...0809220014.html
Top stars' next work anticipated
Top stars including Jeon Do-yeon, Choi Min-sik, Song Kang-ho, and Seol Kyeong-gu are emerging as saviors of Korean movies. From blockbuster hits to cinematographic movies, they aim to revitalize various genres this summer.
Jeon Do-yeon, who received the Cannes Film Festival award for Best Actress for "Secret Sunshine" is working hard to finish filming "A Fine Day".
This movie is about an unemployed, single woman in her thirties who meets an ex-boyfriend and embarks on an adventure for a day.
She acts with Ha Jeong-woo, who is raising stock prices with this year's best movie, "The Chaser".
As soon as filming ends at the end of this month, they will go into the latter half of production.
Park Ji-eun, the marketing team leader of the production company said, "There isn't a definite genre and plans for marketing, but it is certain that you can see this film in theaters in the later half of the year".
Choi Min-sik is done filming "Himalaya-Where the Wind Stops".
He showed his great acting in 2004 in "Old Boy", and this is his first film in three years after "Crying Fist" in 2005.
When a Nepalese factory worker dies in an accident, Choi Min-sik's character goes to a town in the Himalayas to give his family the remains. Director Jeon Soo-il has gone to many international film festivals with movies such as "The Bird Who Stops in the Air".
Team leader Son Min-kyung of Show East, the producing company, revealed that, "Kim Hyeong-suk, who was the music director of "My Sassy Girl", is also involved. It will be premiered in the first half of this year if impossible".
Song Kang-ho, a very influential actor, will be appearing in the Western style blockbuster "The Good, the Bad, and the Weird".
It is an action movie of men who are in lawless Manchuria in the 1930s during Japanese control. It is expected to be this year's best movie, for it features other top stars such as Lee Byeong-Heon and Jeong Woo-seong.
Also, Seol Kyeong-gu will play Kang Chul-jung, and Choi Min-soo will be in "Street of Dreams", a joint production of Korea, America, and Japan.
Movie producers said, "The fact that top stars like Jeon Do-yeon and Song Kang-ho are starring means an audience of at least 1 million. There is great expectation that they will bring a new craze into the stuck movie industry.
Original article at media.daum.net
English translation by www.hancinema.net
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