[HanCinema's News] Director Lee Chung-hyun Talks About "The Call"

By William Schwartz on 2020/11/30 at 19:18 PST

On November 30th Netflix released an interview featuring director Lee Chung-hyun with some choices comments about "The Call" which was released on the streaming platform on November 27th worldwide. "The Call" is the first feature from Lee Chung-hyun, but it's also the first role for lead actress Jeon Jong-seo since "Burning" in 2018. Lee Chung-hyun said that he cast Jeon Jong-seo due to the unknowable vibe she exuded in that movie, finding it a perfect compliment to the concept in "The Call".

Lee Chung-hyun also described "The Call" as a fairly egalitarian production between peers, with all the various technical personnel and actors being able to communicate smoothly with one another. Lee Chung-hyun attributed this at least in part to so many of them being the same age. Lee Chung-hyun also claimed that on-set Park Shin-hye had a strong leadership role, and expressed gratitude to her for being such a steadying influence.

Lee Chung-hyun described his actors as improvisers, with many of their mannerisms during their telephone scenes being unscripted. Lee Chung-hyun claimed that he decided to use medium shots rather than close-ups for Jeon Jong-seo to better emphasize how she had radically different posture for each individual take. Lee Chung-hyun also said that his actors were aggressive and animalistic in physical scenes even when safety gear was not yet in place.

According to Lee Chung-hyun, Jeon Jong-seo was so intense that he felt there was little choice but to use aging makeup and cast her as the older version of her character. Lee Chung-hyun was concerned about breaking immersion, but also doubted he could find an older actress who could demonstrate Jeon Jong-seo's unique energy for the role. This perhaps explains why Jeon Jong-seo is not seen in clear focus during the present day scenes, with various circumstances often obscuring her face.

Written by William Schwartz