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| A scene from the film "Rebound" / Courtesy of Barunson E&A |
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Director Jang Hang-jun said he wishes to capitalize on the recent interest in basketball with "Rebound," a film about the endeavors of a high school basketball team as they compete in a series of tournaments with the hope of winning a title.
Japanese anime "The First Slam Dunk" has been experiencing immense popularity here, surpassing 4 million tickets sales in cinemas. It became the highest-grossing Japanese anime ever to be released in Korea.
"This is the first time I showed support for a Japanese movie. I checked the box office data for 'The First Slam Dunk' every morning. 'Rebound' is coming out with perfect timing. It would be nice to continue the basketball boom, which was triggered by 'The First Slam Dunk,'" Jang said during a press conference for "Rebound" in Seoul, Tuesday.
The film, based loosely on the true story of the JungAng High School basketball team in Busan, follows enthusiastic basketball coach Kang Yang-hyun (Ahn Jae-hong) as he tries to rally a struggling team.
As undersized and under-skilled players come together for a common purpose under Kang's guidance, they defy the odds and naysayers to rise to the finals of the national high school basketball league.
It is co-written by director Jang's wife Kim Eun-hee, the screenwriter of Netflix's "Kingdom" and tvN's crime drama "Signal," and Kwon Sung-hui, who penned Netflix's "Narco-Saints" and the 2018 spy thriller "Spy Gone North."
On collaborating with two famed screenwriters, Jang said, "I needed a good script in order to secure investment from local producers. Luckily, my wife showed interest in adapting the original screenplay. The three of us constantly tweaked the script to the very end."
Actor Ahn said he had wanted to star in "Rebound" even before getting offered the role of the basketball coach. "I was watching tvN's 'You Quiz on the Block' one night and director Jang was on the show. He talked about his upcoming film, and for some reason, I felt like I could be the one playing the role he was describing. Three days later, I received the script for 'Rebound,'" he said.
Jang said he wanted the actors to fit their real-life inspirations. "In this film, every member of the cast bears resemblance to actual basketball players," he said. "For instance, Ahn looked exactly like a coach after he gained 10 kilograms."
"Rebound" will hit local theaters on April 5.
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