Translator: Dreamscribe
The essence of long-take filming is in its rhythm. The lead actor, props, co-actors, camera, audio, planned storyboard, etc. All the elements captured by a single camera had to come together in perfect harmony to bloom in a single take.
If even one of these elements slipped up, it was an instant NG.
If the director uttered the word ‘cut’, they would have to start all over from the beginning. So, not just the lead actor, but all co-actors and elements involved had to commit themselves completely to the storyboard. No other thoughts were necessary. Only precise actions at the exact timing were required.
If the number of characters in the long-take scene could be counted on one hand, the difficulty level would be relatively low.
However, in the current long-take of ‘Beneficial Evil’, there were over dozens of characters. In such a scenario, both the actors and the crew would experience hell. Yet, the reason for persisting with the long-take was simple.
-Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Realism and impact.
“Ahhhh!!!”
“#*&#*((%*!!”
“Ugh!!”
Raw intensity and.
-Crack!
Excitement.
-Bang! Bang!
Speedy tempo and liveliness. The camera moves with the lead actor. If he runs, it runs with him; if he rolls, it replicates the same movement. The perspective. In a long-take, the camera is no different from the lead actor’s eyes. That unity exponentially increases the audience’s focus.
The continuity of stimulus and violence.
Above all, the highlight of a long-take is its ability to make the audience forget time.
A length of over 10 minutes is by no means short, yet it’s just a part of the whole. But the urgent camera work, proceeding without cuts, maintains the flow and packs numerous scenes into a short amount of time for the viewers. Thus, even if it feels like more than 10 minutes have passed, when you check the time, it feels as though not even 5 minutes have elapsed.
A lot can happen in just one minute.
That is the driving force of a long-take.
Moreover, if the protagonist’s skills and abilities are outstanding, the audience would never be able to take their eyes off the screen. The explosive, violent stimuli trigger adrenaline, which directly leads to excitement. Realism, the audience reacts and breathes alongside the protagonist.
-Bang! Bang!
In other words, the extreme situation the protagonist faces also applies to the audience. Currently, that protagonist was ‘Jang Yeon-woo’. No, it was Kang Woojin. While they weren’t exactly the audience, the 200 or so ‘Beneficial Evil’ crew members, regardless of nationality, were captivated by Kang Woojin’s ‘CQC’ and overwhelmed by his violence.
The Thai staff members crowded on one side were no exception.
“……I heard this actor is doing his first action scene today. Did I hear wrong?”
Dozens of Thai staff members who had been informed in advance stood agape at the spectacle unfolding before their eyes.
“No way. Look at that, how does that look like a first-timer? He’s beyond a veteran.”
“Not to mention, his skills are exceptional. At this level, it just looks like he’s- enjoying it.”
“Why is a Korean actor performing ‘CQC’ on par with Hollywood standards? Compared to the rehearsal, this is… a completely different level.”
Meanwhile, intense gunfire echoed throughout the abandoned building. Muzzle flashes sparked, and bullet casings flew through the air. Blood splattered everywhere. This was about ‘Jang Yeon-woo’, or Kang Woojin.
He had just entered the second-to-last room on the fifth floor.
-Click!
Woojin, whose face was stained with blood, roughly ejected the casing from the AK47 rifle in his hand. Bodies were sprawled across the floor. All of them had their chests, faces, or heads blown apart. Kang Woojin switched to a rifle laid across the chest of one of the fallen men and pulled out the pistol tucked into his waist to check the bullets.
At that moment.
“Oh.”
Woojin, who had been roughly wiping the blood off his face, let out a small laugh. He had discovered something on the floor. There were about 10 seconds until the next movement. The action Woojin took now was not originally in the storyboard. As a result, PD Song Man-woo, sitting in front of the monitor on the first floor, furrowed his brows.
‘What is it, what did he find?’
Kang Woojin picked up a still-smoking object from the floor. It was a lit cigarette, left behind by one of the gang members. 5 seconds until the next movement path. Woojin took a deep drag from the nearly burnt-out cigarette.
“Hooo-”
The thick smoke was clearly visible in the sunlight streaming through the broken window. It made for a striking image. The screams of the gang members heard nearby, the bodies sprawled on the floor, Kang Woojin drenched in blood, his gray short-sleeve shirt stained red, and the leisurely cigarette smoke in contrast. The cameraman, with the camera on his shoulder, instinctively.
-Ssss.
Took two steps closer, zooming in slightly on Kang Woojin’s face with a faint smile.
PD Song Man-woo, watching the monitor, couldn’t help but get goosebumps. Composure? Who normally thinks about pacing adjustments in such a tense situation? An action that go far beyond mere relaxation. Deviating from the planned storyboard could be problematic. However, if it didn’t interfere with the next movement, it wasn’t a big deal.
Above all.
‘…With just that one action, he added an exhale, it’s insane.’
The last five minutes had been an inhale. In other words, pure tension. Woojin had easily released that tension with just one action. He had provided a fleeting moment of respite. At that moment, PD Song Man-woo noticed something else.
‘This isn’t acting, he’s genuinely enjoying the slaughter.’
He realized that Kang Woojin was genuinely playing right now.
‘Ecstasy and madness. And satisfaction. He even has the leisure to express those emotions in between. I realized it again, this guy is a monster.’
Kang Woojin had taken the character ‘Jang Yeon-woo’, created by writer Choi Na-na, to another level. Yet even the seasoned PD Song Man-woo didn’t catch on to one thing. He was the director of ‘Profiler Hanryang’. Even so, he failed to recognize ‘Park Dae-ri’. That’s how intricate Kang Woojin’s ‘character synthesis’ was.
At that moment.
“$@&@*$@$(*!!!”
With a bizarre shout, the wooden door of the room where Woojin was standing suddenly burst open. Rushing in were two masked gang members. However, Kang Woojin, with a cigarette in his mouth, was already aiming his AK47 rifle. The camera moved behind Woojin at the precise timing. Then, five gunshots followed.
“Ugh!!”
“Eek!”
Forehead. Heart. Blood spurted out of their bodies. Woojin spat out the cigarette with a ‘Ptooey!’ and slightly crouched down. The smell of gunpowder wafted from the shouldered gun and a scream followed.
“Ahhhh!!”
From behind, a gang member who had been hiding rushed in. He swung a long knife at Woojin’s head. Kang Woojin made a quick judgment.
‘Too late.’
Turning to fire would be difficult. He threw himself to the ground. The long knife sliced through the air above his head. The knife-wielding gang member closed in on the prone Woojin. He brought the knife down with force. The momentum was strong.
-Thwack!
Kang Woojin blocked the knife with the body of the AK47 rifle.
He kicked the assailant in the stomach, sending him flying backward. However.
“Uuuaargh!”
Two more attackers joined in from the side. Both wielded knives. Once again, Woojin blocked the attack with the AK47 rifle. But in the second guy’s slash, Woojin let go of the rifle and rolled his body. The blade clanged as it struck the floor. Kang Woojin got up quickly. His eyes darted around. Right next to him, he spotted chopsticks on the table.
-Whoosh!!
A long knife came flying towards him. Woojin dodged to the side. He immediately grabbed the chopsticks. He closed in on his opponent. Delivered a knee strike to the side. A groan was heard. The chopstick stabbed into the eye. The groan turned into a scream.
“Kyaaaargh!!”
He landed a powerful low kick to the leg of the limp assailant. The man spun and fell to the ground. Another fierce scream followed.
“Ahhhhhh!!”
The second attacker came charging with a knife raised above his head. Kang Woojin smirked. The camera moved back to capture all three of them in one shot. Woojin’s hand went to his waist. He swiftly drew the Glock 17 pistol and gripped it with both hands.
-Bang! Bang!!
Two bullets pierced the attacker’s throat and face. He fell like a puppet with its strings cut. A groaning sound. The guy with the chopstick lodged in his eye moaned in pain. Kang Woojin stepped over him. Of course.
-Bang!
While lightly blowing his head apart.
“Hoo- hoo.”
Kang Woojin’s breathing was slightly rough. There were still many gang members outside. The more weapons, the better. Woojin checked the remaining bullets in his Glock 17. It wasn’t enough. He picked up the AK47 rifle and a short knife from the floor. He started walking toward the door. The camera followed him.
From this point on, it would be a full-scale gunfight.
Woojin, pressed against the door, peeked outside. Three guys were charging toward him. A half-broken flowerpot lay at his feet. Crash. The charging three briefly glanced at the shattered pot in the hallway. It was thrown by Kang Woojin.
At this moment.
-Ratatat! Bang! Bang!
Woojin, with the AK47 aimed, burst open their chests and heads in quick succession. Blood splattered onto the stair railing. A shout echoed from the opposite hallway. Two men with caps opened fire. Bullets drilled into the wall with a ‘rat-a-tat’ sound. Woojin rolled towards the stairs. The camera shook slightly, following him closely.
4th floor. Woojin aimed the muzzle of his AK47 upward. Five shots.
Two men whose faces and torsos were blown apart fell one after the other onto the first-floor ground. Once again, fragments scattered everywhere. Bullets fired by the guys who had just climbed the stairs lodged into the wall beside them. Kang Woojin raised his gun and fired two shots.
-Bang! Bang!
The head of the first man exploded, and he collapsed forward. But there were three more. With the noise of gunfire, a hail of bullets rained down. Woojin rolled once and dashed into a nearby room.
“$(*&$@*(@&(*!!”
The enemies let out a cry and tried to pursue him. But.
-Whoosh!
Kang Woojin came out again. Lying down, he stuck out just his face and muzzle and fired. At least six or more gunshots rang out. Blood splattered everywhere. It gushed from the limbs of the rushing attackers. They fell in a heap. Woojin’s eyes darted around. He spotted something round on the waist of the corpse lying in front.
A grenade.
He quickly grabbed it and tossed it toward the stairs. The men charging up from behind screamed.
“Ahhhh!!”
“Grenade! Grenade!!”
In that brief moment, Kang Woojin fired his gun again. Bullets shattered the heads of a few of them. Simultaneously.
-BOOM!!
The grenade exploded. Heads, hands, feet, and bodies flew through the air. Silence followed for a moment. Voices could still be heard below on the first floor, but they were far off. Kang Woojin got to his feet. First, he checked the ammunition in his gun. Then, he surveyed the room.
“Hm?”
There were five children in the room who appeared to be unconscious. One girl and four boys. Kang Woojin stared blankly down at the girl closest to him. The girl had a familiar face. It was Lim Hae-eun, who had joined the cast of ‘Beneficial Evil’ through the large-scale audition.
The camera zoomed in on Woojin’s face. There was no sympathy in his eyes. He looked at them as if they were mere objects.
“Not her.”
Meaning she wasn’t the drug lord’s daughter he was looking for. But he logged the information. Five children in the first room at the 4th-floor stairs. They might need to be rescued later, not for their sake but for his own needs. If they had been prisoned here.
‘They might be able to provide quality information.’
As if on cue, the camera slowly moved out of the room into the hallway. Following that, Kang Woojin, with the AK47 at the ready, cautiously checked the hallway. He spotted enemies rushing up around the second floor.
-Bang! Bang! Bang!
The first guy’s fingers and shoulder were torn.
“Ahhhh!!”
The ones behind him hesitated. He had bought some time. Woojin fired and dashed forward. It had been about 9 minutes now. The long-take scene of over 10 minutes still had a car chase and explosions left.
At that moment.
-Thud! Thud! Thud!
The gang members on the second floor, in other words, the Thai actors, fell like dominoes. It wasn’t a prearranged move. One guy tripped and fell, causing everyone behind him to stumble and crash.
Soon, PD Song Man-woo picked up the megaphone and shouted.
“……Cut!! NG!”
It was an NG. Instantly, dozens of staff members around PD Song Man-woo rushed into action. Since it was an NG, they couldn’t use this shot. They had to reset everything for a retake. PD Song Man-woo, standing up, smacked his lips in frustration.
‘What a shame.’
But this was expected. Long-take filming is a process of repetition. Shoot one minute, NG, shoot two minutes, NG, shoot three minutes, NG. Constant retakes. That’s how practice leads to high-quality shots.
The fact that they managed to go beyond 8 minutes without a single issue was almost a miracle.
‘This was all thanks to Woojin-ssi dragging it through by the scruff of its neck.’
The coordination with the Thai actors was good, but ultimately, it was the male lead Kang Woojin’s skills and abilities that far exceeded expectations, making it all possible. Soon after, the Thai actors who had fallen like corpses got back on their feet, and dozens of crew members rushed in to gather the props. The makeup team immediately went to Kang Woojin.
Woojin remained indifferent.
“……”
There was no significant change in his expression. That composure appeared quite fascinating to the Thai actors.
“He’s not even out of breath.”
“He’s been running around alone for over 8 minutes, and he doesn’t even look tired. How is that possible?”
“More than that, did you see Kang Woojin’s movements? I almost missed my timing just watching him.”
“The quality is almost at Hollywood level.”
They were wrong. Kang Woojin was actually in an excited state.
‘Wow— Crazy! This is freaking fun!! The adrenaline is pumping like crazy! Ah, no, calm down, or I’ll lose my character control.’
Indeed, the first action scene with a long-take gave Kang Woojin a sense of freshness.
‘This is insanely intense. I want to do it again already.’
Looking up at Woojin were Joseph and Megan, the towering figures around PD Song Man-woo. Smiles were spreading across both their faces. Though they didn’t say anything to each other, they shared the same thoughts.
‘Haha, my goodness! At this level, he’d make it big in Hollywood right away! No, even among Hollywood actors, there are only a few who can reach his level!’
‘The martial arts in ‘Last Kill 3’ were child’s play compared to this!! What the hell is up with this actor! How monstrous is he really!’
The foreigners crowd around them, that is, the stunt team Joseph had brought and the executives from Hollywood’s ‘Universal Movies’, were all left in a daze. They didn’t move a muscle. Is what I just saw even real? Then, one of the executives, the one with the potbelly, finally spoke with difficulty.
“Ho-how many minutes was that?”
The answer came quickly from the giant Joseph.
“A little over 8 minutes.”
“…8 minutes straight without a single NG? Was that even possible?”
“That man always defies common sense.”
The man with the potbelly slowly lifted his head to look at Kang Woojin.
“H-how is something like that possible?”
The reply came immediately, and it wasn’t from Joseph. A big-nosed foreigner, who had appeared without notice, grinning slyly, joined the conversation. It was Ethan Smith, the stunt coordinator for ‘Beneficial Evil’.
“Kang Woojin, he’s from a special forces background.”
At that moment, the eyes of the potbellied executive from ‘Universal Movies’ grew wide.
“S-special forces?”
****
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