Superstar From Age 0

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: AgRoseCrystal

Chapter 534

Choi Tae-woo had finally resolved the problem that had been holding him back, and he left his house with a light heart, ready to return to work after several months. He adjusted his comfortable clothes one last time.

“I can’t believe I’m working at Cocoa Entertainment…”

Choi Tae-woo looked at the five-story building in front of him with an emotional expression.

It looked like an ordinary building, but it seemed more impressive than the day he had his interview. Besides, it was the home of the actor team that included Lee Seo-jun. He wondered if he would ever get a chance to see him passing by, and he felt excited and nervous at the same time.

“Mr. Choi Tae-woo?”

A security guard spotted him. He already knew the faces of the new managers who were starting today from their photos.

“Yes, hello! I’m Choi Tae-woo, the new manager of the actor team!”

“Haha. You’re full of energy this morning. Come this way, please.”

The security guard smiled and led Choi Tae-woo to the conference room.

As he opened the door and entered, he saw some people who were about to stand up awkwardly. He thought he had arrived early, but there were others who had come earlier.

“Hello.”

“Nice to meet you.”

They seemed to be all new hires like him, judging by their looks. Choi Tae-woo exchanged brief greetings and sat down in an empty seat.

He glanced around and guessed who was experienced and who was a newbie. Since working in the entertainment industry required a lot of running around, the experienced people were dressed casually, while the newbies were wearing somewhat stuffy clothes.

Cocoa Entertainment had told them to wear comfortable clothes in advance, but they didn’t know how comfortable they should be, so they had dressed as best as they could.

Three people who looked like newbies also noticed that, and they rolled their eyes and loosened the buttons that were choking their necks, trying to look more relaxed.

Choi Tae-woo and the other five experienced managers smiled slightly at their sight.

‘It reminds me of my first day at work.’

He remembered how he had dressed up nervously and went to work, only to end up with wrinkled clothes and sweaty body from running around. It wasn’t a very pleasant memory.

The atmosphere in the conference room eased a bit.

The eight of them would all become managers of the same actor team, as long as they didn’t cause any major problems during their probation period. So it was better to get along well.

One of them spoke up, feeling the same way as Choi Tae-woo.

“Is this your first time as a manager?”

“Yes, it is.”

“You won’t have to run around on your first day, but managers usually have to go here and there a lot, so you can wear more comfortable clothes next time. And wear the most comfortable shoes you have. I mean, the ones that won’t hurt your feet even if you run around all day.”

The newbies nodded their heads repeatedly, feeling a bit scared by the sincere advice of an experienced manager. They wondered if they would really have to run around all day.

That was the start of various conversations among the managers.

“There’s no news of signing contracts with the actors yet… so we won’t start working right away, right?”

“Well, if a debuted actor had signed with Cocoa Entertainment, there would have been articles about it already.”

“Maybe they only have rookie or unknown actors, so there’s no news.”

“That’s possible. Maybe they’re planning to train them from scratch.”

The newbies listened to the stories of the experienced ones, rolling their eyes. Choi Tae-woo opened his mouth.

“But I think our first task will be moving to the new building. There must be a lot of documents and items that we can’t leave to the movers.”

Everyone nodded at Choi Tae-woo’s words. Cocoa Entertainment’s move to the new building was a well-known fact.

The experienced managers sighed lightly.

“Moving in the summer… I’ll have to wear even more comfortable clothes next time.”

“Yeah.”

“But I’m curious about the new building, aren’t you?”

As they were talking, they heard a knock on the door. They reflexively looked at the clock and saw that it was time to start work. Was it a new manager, or a Cocoa Entertainment employee? Choi Tae-woo and the managers got up from their seats.

The one who opened the door and came in was Ahn Da Ho, the team leader of the second team, whom they had met during the interview.

The managers were surprised to see Ahn Da Ho and stiffened their bodies, then bowed slightly. Ahn Da Ho smiled faintly and opened his mouth.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Ahn Da Ho, the team leader of the actor team.”

***

Team leader Ahn Da Ho told them about the things they hadn’t covered during the interview, from working hours to company benefits. Of course, he said he would talk to them separately about personal matters like salary.

Choi Tae-woo listened carefully and took notes in his notebook.

“When we move to the new building, the actor team will operate from the first to the fourth team. The second team will have the actors who are currently active, and the third and fourth teams will have the rookies or unknown actors who need preparation. You will be assigned to one of those teams.”

One of the managers raised his hand cautiously and asked.

“Then, what is the first team?”

“It’s the exclusive team for actor Lee Seo-jun.”

Wow…

A sincere admiration flowed softly, and Ahn Da Ho continued his explanation with a small smile.

“We plan to start working in earnest when we move to the new building. You will also meet the actors you will be in charge of then. But before that, there’s something you have to do.”

‘Packing up?’

Choi Tae-woo and the managers looked at Ahn Da Ho.

“We have a library where we keep the scripts and synopses that have come into our company. There are a lot of them, since they are from after actor Lee Seo-jun joined our company.”

Wow…

If the previous exclamation was admiration, this one was full of dismay.

“You have to sort out the scripts that have already been made into videos. There might be different works with the same title, or works that have changed their title when they were adapted into movies, so you have to read the contents as well.”

Ahn Da Ho continued his words, seeing the trembling eyes of the managers.

“It would be a waste of time if you only did that job, right? You have one more thing to do.”

He pressed the remote control he was holding, and the conference room darkened and a white screen started to descend on one wall. The beam projector on the ceiling began to shine.

“The video I’m going to show you now is the acting of the actors who have joined our Cocoa Entertainment. There are dramas, movies, and plays. There are also scenes of them acting at school.”

Choi Tae-woo and the managers blinked their eyes.

“There are various kinds of acting, good and bad. You have to watch their acting and think about what genre and what personality of character they should go for in their next work.”

Choi Tae-woo and the managers opened their eyes wide and gasped at the unexpected assignment, and Ahn Da Ho said.

“If they are experienced actors, they can choose their next work by themselves, but the actors you will be in charge of are not.”

Even the active actors needed the help of managers and the company, let alone rookies or unknown actors. Who would they talk to about their next work if not their managers?

The managers nodded at Ahn Da Ho’s words. They understood why he had asked them such questions during the interview.

“The actors will think a lot and choose from the works and characters you have chosen. If the actor and the manager have similar thoughts, they will get along well.”

Team leader Ahn Da Ho seemed to be looking at the compatibility between the actors and the managers while choosing the works.

Of course, there was no guarantee that the actor and the manager would get along well just because they chose the same next work, but it seemed like a good way to start a relationship with someone they met for the first time.

‘It’s easier to get along with someone who has a similar opinion to you.’

As Choi Tae-woo nodded his head, Ahn Da Ho said.

“You can choose the next work candidates while sorting out the library.”

It felt like the work had multiplied, but it seemed like a more meaningful job than sorting out the scripts mindlessly. He was curious about what the actors would think of the works he had chosen.

Someone raised their hand.

“Then, will the works that we and the actors choose be made into dramas or movies?”

“No. Since they are old scripts, the actors’ real works will be from the ones that are being planned these days, with similar genres and personalities of characters.”

It meant that if the manager chose the past scripts A, B, C, the actor would choose A, and Cocoa Entertainment would find the current script A-1 that was most similar to A.

The managers nodded their heads.

Well. They wouldn’t make a work just because a rookie actor wanted it, since it wasn’t easy to make a video.

‘Unless it’s Lee Seo-jun…’

If it was Lee Seo-jun, the investors would bring a pile of money even if he brought a script from 20 years ago.

“So please choose the candidates carefully. Any questions?”

“How many candidates can we choose?”

“Up to three.”

“Can we take the videos with us?”

“Yes. I’ll prepare them right away.”

A few more questions and answers followed, and when there were no more questions, Ahn Da Ho opened his mouth.

“And this is something you don’t have to do, but…”

It seemed like a delusion that the words ‘you don’t have to do’ sounded like ‘you have to do’.

The managers listened to their boss’s words.

“I’d like you to take a look at two works for Lee Seo-jun’s next work as well.”

“…Lee Seo-jun?”

The managers’ eyes shook at the unexpected name.

“I heard that Lee Seo-jun chooses his own work.”

Choi Tae-woo’s words made Ahn Da Ho nod his head.

“That won’t change. I’m just curious about what kind of genre people want for Lee Seo-jun’s next work.”

‘Oh. I see.’

The managers nodded their heads, and Ahn Da Ho smiled slightly and pressed the remote control to play the video.

“Then let’s watch the video now. This is the first actor.”

Choi Tae-woo and the managers swallowed their saliva and stared at the screen.

Maybe that actor would be my actor.

***

“So Da Ho hyung is watching it with us?”

“He has to explain about the actors, you know.”

Seo-jun nodded at the words of the second team staff.

“I see. But Da Ho hyung is really amazing.”

“Right? He’s checking their eyes for works while making them sort out the library, and he’s also creating an opportunity for the actors and managers to get closer.”

The other second team staff joined the conversation.

“The managers will watch the actors’ acting and think, ‘I want to take care of that actor’, right?”

“And the actors will be touched when they see a new manager who analyzes their acting and finds the next work candidates that they like.”

That was even more true for rookies or unknown actors.

“They will get along well from the start with good chemistry.”

“Team leader Ahn. He’s scary.”

The second team staff shook their heads repeatedly at that, and Seo-jun laughed.

“Did Da Ho hyung plan the articles this time too?”

“Team leader Kim also helped.”

“Did that manager come?”

“Yeah. They all came.”

They seemed like good people from the interview.

He felt a curious interest in the person who might become his manager. Of course, he was interested in the other managers as well.

There were also other people he was interested in.

“When are the actors coming?”

Seo-jun asked, and the second team staff who was putting the scripts in the box smiled and answered. It was the script that Seo-jun had received during his European trip.

“After we move to the new building. This place is not a good meeting spot.”

“I hope to meet them soon.”

Everyone smiled brightly at Seo-jun’s voice filled with anticipation.

While they were chatting, one of the second team staff picked up the box with the scripts and grabbed the car keys.

“Let’s go, Seo-jun.”

“Okay. I’ll see you later.”

“Alright. Drive safely.”

Seo-jun went to the car with the second team staff who always drove him home when Ahn Da Ho was not around.

The second team staff who sat in the driver’s seat put the script box next to Seo-jun, who was sitting in the back seat and buckling his seat belt.

“Are there any interesting scripts this time?”

“There was one that was unusual.”

“What was it?”

“It was a student’s work, so I guess it would be made into a short film or an independent film.”

Wow!

Seo-jun’s eyes sparkled.

“By the way, wasn’t that student from Korea National University of Arts?”

“Really?”

It was a work by someone who went to the same school as him.

Seo-jun reached for the script box with an interested face.

“Hyung, what’s the title of that one?”

“It was a simple title, whether it was a working title or not. Unknown Painter.”

“Unknown Painter…”

This must be it.

Seo-jun pulled out the script that had [Unknown Painter] written on it from among the scripts.

“The content was good and the director was a low-level staff, but he seemed to have participated in this movie and that movie… You’re already reading it.”

The second team staff glanced at the rearview mirror and saw Seo-jun immersed in the script. He chuckled lightly and focused on driving.