[N인터뷰]① Shin Hyun-joon “When I think of working with my former manager, my heart is torn…and my family is hurt too”

A cafe in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Actor Shin Hyun-jun’s new essay’Woollim’ published Interview / News1 © News1 Kwon Hyun-jin

Actor Shin Hyun-jun has returned as the author of the new book’Ullim’. ‘Ullim’ is the fifth autobiographical essay published by Shin Hyun-jun, an actor, broadcaster, and university professor. In the book, Shin Hyun-jun calmly tells the story of the moment when there was an emotional resonant feeling from the precious family and relationships that made him present. I am not talking about any great influence, but it warms my heart with a gentle, bleak impression that reminds me of precious things I forgot. I feel the will to convey the memories of everyday life that touched the artist and the impression of every moment without losing her pure sincerity.

In the process of publishing this book, it is also essential to mention the conflict Shin Hyun-joon experienced in July last year with the former manager. It was Shin Hyun-joon, who had never been active as an actor or broadcaster since his debut as the movie “Son of the General” in 1990, but that incident resulted in an unexpected comma. However,’rest’ was created, and the originally planned writing could be promoted earlier. And finally, I was able to capture the inner stories I felt as I looked back on the past time in a book. The story is composed of a compilation of memo notes about the stories with his family, director Im Kwon-taek, his teacher, actor Kim Soo-mi, and the mentors who helped him learn.

Shin Hyun-joon confessed, “I still feel heartbroken when I think about that time,” he said in relation to his work with the former manager, which is one of the backgrounds that made him rush into this writing earlier than expected. At the same time, he confessed that the wounds were still not healed by saying, “My family has been hurt very much.” Nevertheless, he conveyed the consolation he received from the little ties he met on the way with his family who believed in him, saying, “I have to live with more gratitude.” He retraces the past by saying, “I didn’t have a really wasted time in my life, whether it was a good time or a hard time.” I met Shin Hyun-jun and heard the story.

A cafe in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Actor Shin Hyun-jun’s new essay’Woollim’ published Interview / News1 © News1 Kwon Hyun-jin

-How did you come to write the book?

▶It is already the fifth book. I think of many people I have met through various relationships as mentors, but I tried to capture the resonant feelings I had received from them. In fact, don’t you meet many people because of the nature of your job as an actor? In my case, I also see many people in entertainment. When I was doing’Country Police’, the reason I chose the program was because I really like meeting people. As an actor, I learned a lot through people, so I wanted to do that variety. ‘Country Police’ is also a program that provides healing to viewers through the elderly who meet while living as a police officer in the countryside, isn’t it that viewers heal when the things I feel through me are conveyed intact? I felt a lot of warmth while talking with the passengers as well as when I was going on a plane. I gain wisdom from all the people I have met and learn to be a teacher on the other hand.

-Who can be called Shin Hyun-jun’s mentor?

▶For example, I keep exercising every morning, but there is a grandfather who organizes shoes in the gym. The old man says’it’s my job’ when I try to organize my shoes. And when he comes out after exercising, he always keeps his shoes neat and smiles brightly, saying,’Have a nice day’. I saw that laughter in the morning and the day was really fun. I said,’I should always laugh like that and tell people good things first like that grandfather.’ These are my mentors.

-‘Ullim’ contains the resonance that actor Shin Hyun-joon felt while looking back on the relationship with the people around him. What was the decisive reason for writing a book on this subject?

▶When there is something to be learned through the relationships I mentioned earlier, I often take notes in my life. These memos were piled up and piled up, and there was a manuscript request from the publisher, so I had to publish a book. I kept forgotten what was important to me, but the wisdom I received through these people came to me, and while learning as a teacher, there were many things that I couldn’t do. However, it was not time to write this as a book right away, but then Corona 19 broke out. You became the head of the department last year, but because of Corona 19, how many trials and errors did you experience while teaching non-face-to-face classes at the beginning of the school? At that time, I was too busy to write a book. Then, unintentionally, an article was published and all programs were stopped. Then I wrote a book.

A cafe in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Actor Shin Hyun-jun’s new essay’Woollim’ published Interview / News1 © News1 Kwon Hyun-jin

-I had a hard time with my former manager, stopping broadcasting activities. The prosecutors’ prosecutors also filed a non-prosecution on the case that the former manager sued. I must have suffered greatly in the process.

▶In fact, I’ve been doing’entertainment broadcast’ for 10 years. After 10 years of’entertainment broadcasting’ and my wife and I have been married for 8 years, the moment when my husband worked hardest in my view was when colleagues were having a hard time. When my colleagues are having a hard time, it seems like that because my husband is having a hard time coming home after finishing the broadcast. However, as this happened to my husband, my wife kept standing next to me in case I might have a bad idea. When I went to the mart, I said let’s go together. It would not have been possible without my wife, our children, the elderly in the family, and people around me. Let’s think positively while praying, there might be a reason, I kept thinking and trying, but that wasn’t easy. I debuted when I was 20, and now I’m 31 years old, but I was unintentionally taking a break for the first time. Then I remembered’Oops, I was going to write a book’ and I started writing.

-When the incident with the former manager occurred,’Superman is back’ (hereinafter’Shudoll’) was also filmed.

▶ I persuaded me to appear in’Shoodoll’ for a long time. Thankfully, I gave an offer for a long time, and then (which made me decide to appear) came. Celebrating Family Month, I was in charge of a program MC, and when I was talking about my father, tears poured out. I was really crying while talking about my father. After the recording was over, the PD asked me to deliver the photos I took with my father. When I went home and looked, there was no picture I took with my father. My father wasn’t taking pictures of my mother, me, and my sisters. Last year, my children were 5 and 3 years old, but I wanted to remember the moments with them, so I said I would do’Shoodoll’. It would be nice if the children later grew up and watched the video and remembered’Dad did that’ when I wasn’t there. Then, before the broadcast, an article broke out, and the first episode of the cast was broadcast after that, and I watched it with bloody tears with my wife. It hurt so much. I was so sorry for my wife too. My heart breaks when I still think about it then. It really seemed like my heart stopped. I was in a panic.

-Do you have any plans to resume broadcasting activities in earnest?

▶As for me and my wife, everything is over, but there is a wound. My family was also hurt a lot. It was really a shock. I can’t afford to think about it now. It seems to take a long time.

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