EXCLUSIVE 'Choosing a character entails big responsibility'

Actor Shin Se-kyung /Courtesy of Namoo Actors

Shin Se-kyung to return in TV drama ‘Black Knight’ in Dec.

By Kim Jae-heun

Actress Shin Se-kyung will return to the small screen in the hotly anticipated TV series “Black Knight” on KBS2 in December, starring alongside Kim Rae-won and Seo Ji-hye.

In her previous appearances, Shin has often taken the role of a Cinderella girl, who strives hard to make her way in life. Her new character Jung Hae-ra in “Black Knight” is not much different. Jung is a travel agency employee who struggles financially, but tries to make the best of her circumstances.

Shin said a character’s wealthy background cannot be the standard for her to pick a role.

“Just looking at people around me, I don’t separate friends by how bright or dark they are, or how wealthy or poor they are. It’s the same when I am choosing my role,” said Shin during an interview with The Korea Times at cafe in Jongno, Seoul, last week. Shin participated in the fashion show for Korean traditional clothing as a hanbok ambassador to celebrate Hanbok Day.

“However, the drama series needs conflict and resolution and often when a woman is in a difficult situation, it is easier to make a story out of it.”

Shin says all the characters she depicted on TV and the big screen are all precious to her and how wealthy they are does not matter to her.

“Black Knight” will premiere on Dec. 6.

Q. What made you decide to appear in “Black Knight”?

A. There was no specific reason. I was reading the synopsis and script for the TV drama and decided to take the role. My character in the new TV series is unique, somewhat different from my previous roles and I am happy to work with actor Kim Rae-won and director Han Sang-woo.

Actually, this is not the first time I am working with Kim. I met him when I was fourteen years old while working on the film “My Little Bride” in 2004, and we shot three scenes together. However, we haven’t talked about it. It’s been a week since we began shooting the drama. Kim is a very caring and considerate person. He always tries to create a comfortable atmosphere on set.

Q. You took many Cinderella roles in your previous work. Do you wish to try a character that is totally different from what you have depicted?

A. There are many roles that I want to play. But I learned that I should not choose characters thoughtlessly according to my preference. It entails a big responsibility and when I star in a piece, I am being part of it. I have to consider my responsibility and think twice about my ability.

Q. You began your acting career as a child actress. Is there a difference between acting as a child and as an adult?

A. It doesn’t work that way. My acting does not change because I am a child or a grown-up. There is a different point to show at different ages and growing up is like a process of learning. It’s not only about acting as a kid or woman.

Q. What do you do in your break time in between working?

A. I eat. During the break, I listen to music or sing. Sometimes I meet my friends and have chat or work. I don’t do anything special. I do normal things others enjoy like watching a movie.

Q. What does it mean to live as an actress in Korea for you?

A. I don’t put meaning into living as an actress in this country. I just like what I do now. Obviously, there are difficulties and hardships while living as an actress, but every job does. Meanwhile, I also get a lot of love and respect as an actress. That is a fact and I am happy right now.

Q. You have been chosen as one of the top 40 most powerful celebrities in Korea. What do you think is your most appealing trait?

A. I didn’t know that. I don’t know my appealing points either. I receive questions on my image often, but only because I want to appeal a certain point of my personality, it doesn’t always work. So it is hard to say I am receiving love for a particular charm.

Q. You have appeared in many works, be it big or small screen. Which one was your favorite character and work?

A. Honestly, all the characters that I depicted are like my children and I cannot pick one. But certainly my recent role as Yoon So-ah in “The Bride of Habaek” stays clear in my memory, probably because it was my latest character.

Playing Yoon was like breaking the rules of playing a typical woman in a romance comedy or melodrama genre. “The Bride of Habaek” was really a fantasy story and Yoon would turn into a water dragon in the scenes. But what the real fantasy about this TV drama is that the leading characters Ha-baek and Yoon fall in love unconditionally.