INTERVIEW Cho Bo-ah calls 'Military Prosecutor Doberman' huge challenge
Actress Cho Bo-ah played the role of Cha Woo-in in tvN's crime series “Military Prosecutor Doberman.” Courtesy of Keyeast Entertainment
Actress plays determined military prosecutor, seeking revenge against the corrupt
By Lee Gyu-lee
The latest crime military series “Military Prosecutor Doberman” was a big challenge for actress Cho Bo-ah's acting career, she says.
“There was a lot that I was taking the first stab at with this series. It was my first time doing real action sequences, my first time playing a servicewoman and getting such a short haircut. While everything was new and I had to go through a lot of changes, it was comforting and more enjoyable,” the actress said during an interview with The Korea Times in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Monday.
Led by director Jin Chang-gyu, who previously oversaw the family drama "Bad Papa" (2018), the action courtroom series revolves around a money-hungry military prosecutor, Do Bae-man (Ahn Bo-hyun), and rookie prosecutor Cha Woo-in (Cho).
The two prosecutors are from completely different backgrounds yet they join hands to put corrupt forces in the military to justice and seek their revenge, bringing down the wicked division Commander, No Hwa-young (Oh Yeon-soo). The drama series is written by Yoon Hyun-ho, who wrote the script for the film, "The Attorney" (2013) and the thriller series, "Lawless Lawyer" (2018).
The series wrapped last week with its highest viewership rating at 10.1 percent.
Cho played a determined military prosecutor who joins the army to plot revenge against Hwa-young for her father's death. The actress expressed that portraying her character has brought out the tough side of her personality.
A scene from the series “Military Prosecutor Doberman” / Courtesy of tvN
“I zoomed in on my tomboyish side to create the character of Woo-in. And now I feel like I've come to be like Woo-in in real life,” she said, adding that she still finds herself speaking like a servicewoman sometimes. “I wanted to learn her serious, charismatic side … after meeting this character of Woo-in, I feel like I've become more mature.”
The series follows different issues in the military that are based on the actual cases, like gun accidents and corruption to cover up issues within the military bases.
She expressed that the actors and production team took a careful approach in order to best portray the real-life cases.
“The series covers serious and heavy stories, so we tried to add in more dynamic, animated elements to give it a cartoon-like feel. By doing so, we tried not to make it as devastating but to give a cathartic feeling as well as send a lesson,” she said.
The 31-year-old, who debuted with the music series “Flower Band” in 2010, said she has gained a new perspective in her career since moving into her 30s.
“(Past 10 years of) my career has been a time of developing myself, taking part in various projects. That time has been the base of where I stand now. My 20s were the time when I prepared myself to do my job with more comfort in the 30s,” she said. “If I was like a horse with blinders, only able to look ahead (in her 20s), now I can take a step back to look at my life with a broader perspective and give myself some room to experience different things.”
Cho said she loves to challenge herself with her work. She added that she hopes to take part in a light-hearted piece for her next project, contrasting her latest work.
“I usually like to do a type of work that is different from my previous work. And since I've done a serious, dark story series, I want to try a more spirited and light-hearted role for my next project,” she said.