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| From left, actors Jin Seon-kyu, Jun Jong-seo and Chang Ryul pose during an interview with reporters at Cannes, France, Sunday. Courtesy of Tving |
By Lee Gyu-lee
The Tving series "Bargain" made history when it became Korea's first streaming service original series to compete at this year's Cannes International Series Festival, held from April 14 to 19 in Cannes, France.
Ahead of the winners' announcement, scheduled for Wednesday, the lead actors of the series shared their overwhelming excitement for the series' milestone, saying it is a dream come true.
"Coming to Cannes is an honor I'll pass down to my family," actor Jin Seon-kyu, who played the character of Noh Hyung-soo, said during an online interview with The Korea Times, Sunday. "Spending each day here is heart flattering and exciting. I'm excited to see how global audiences will react to 'Bargain.'"
Adapted from a 2015 award-winning short film of the same name by filmmaker Lee Chung-hyeon, the thriller disaster series follows three survivors trapped in a motel building after an earthquake. Noh has come to the motel with a young woman, Park Joo-young (Jun Jong-seo), who is masquerading as a sex worker with the true intention of stealing and selling his organs.
Just as Noh's fate reaches fever pitch, an earthquake hits, leaving him, Park and a desperate organ buyer named Ko Keuk-ryul (Chang Ryul) trapped and pitted against one another in a game of survival.
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| A scene from the series "Bargain" / Courtesy of Tving |
Jin expressed that the series' recognition came due to its striking cinematography and its unique characters.
"Compared to other nominated series, I felt our series tends to be more unconventional in terms of genre. I think people have responded to the series' one-take filming technique and the unique characters within the story," Jin said. "Also, (the series) puts the viewer in the characters' point of view and makes them feel as if they are playing a virtual reality game, trying to escape. It puts them in the character's shoes, which makes it more interesting."
The series scored the highest number of unique visitors at the time of its release last November, the number of subscribers logging in to watch specific content in the first week of its release among all of Tving's original series.
It garnered acclaim for its massive one-take scenes, as well as the interesting portrayals of human nature under extreme circumstances.
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| From left, actor Jin Seon-kyu, director Jeon Woo-sung, actors Jun Jong-seo and Chang Ryul pose during the pink carpet event at Cannes International Series Festival, held from April 14 to 19 in Cannes, France, Sunday. Courtesy of Tving |
This is the second time for Jun to be invited to Cannes, following the 2018 film "Burning," which notched the Fipresci International Critics' Prize for best film at the Cannes Film Festival in 2018.
"It's nice to be back here after five years. It brings me back to that time and I feel honored to be here again with 'Bargain,'" Jun said. "When we filmed the series, I never thought we would come to Cannes."
She expressed she was dumbfounded by the series competing at the Canneseries. "Byun Seung-min (the CEO of the series' production company, Climax Studio) told me he would take me to France (with the project) when we were working on the series. And I was really amazed that promise became true," she said.
She added she is pleased that such an experimental project like "Bargain" was able to be recognized by audiences worldwide.
"I feel that the experimental element of 'Bargain' spoke to viewers. I hope this could become another opportunity to show the uniqueness of K-content," she said. "I think there is uniqueness in Korean content, like in its techniques and appeal that other countries can't copy. As an actor, I keep thinking about the distinctiveness that I should have in acting and I hope to find answers to such conundrums to continue my acting career."
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