Han Seung-yeon Grazia Interview: Push and Pull

Whenever we start recapping dramas we always try to learn a bit more about the actors in the drama. In that vein we have started to look up interviews that the Last Minute Romance and Go Back Couple actors have participated in. We found this one for Han Seung-yeon which was conducted about a year ago. If anyone knows of any magazine interviews that any of the other actors have participated in, then send us a line.

THE INTERVIEW
Please Push and Pull
Grazia Magazine // September 01, 2016 // Translated by Bah+Doo

She speaks coherently. It has been a long time since I had an interview that flowed so naturally by following the interviewee’s own direction. She said she doesn’t like to hear, “She is on the ball,” but what can she do? That is a side of her that makes her more pretty.

PROFILE
Name Han Seong-yeon
Birthdate July 24, 1988
Debut 2007 KARA’s first album Blooming
Dramas KBS2 Pure Love(2013), SBS Jang Ok-jung, Living by Love(2013), SBS plus Her Lovely Heels(2014), MBC Jang Bo-ri is Here!(2014), JTBC Age of Youth(2016)
Short-term goal Except for work, I want to correct my penmanship. Because I have the worst of the worst penmanship.
New hobby Taking pictures with my recently bought new mirrorless DSLR
To-do right now, eating a lot of flour based foods.

You monitored the result a lot while shooting.
Of course, I want it to be done well. However, I was lacking some ‘Beauty of corruption (or sexy and louche).’(laughs)

You were very haughty just like your first impression. Like you were a prima donna?
Well, was it? I hear that a lot, completely not true. When I was in the drama Jang Ok-jung, Living by Love, people even said I looked mean. Staff members told me that when they say they are working with me, people ask them, “Isn’t she cranky?” That is why I envy people who look very docile even when they are doing nothing.

Like an affectionate doggy?
Correct. Someone like Hae-soo (Park Hae-soo) in the JTBC drama Age of Youth. Maybe it sounds abstract, but the type of person who “suits a slow tempo.” The type of person who you can easily start to have a conversation with?

Are people hesitant to approach you?
Yes. It hurts, but it is true. I think it is because the “Class President who is on the ball” image has been emphasized since my début. A type of person who doesn’t get in trouble and doesn’t matter in others business. But I am just a sloppy person. Where ever we go, my manager is busy packing all my belongings. I behave foolishly often.

When was the last time you were the most relaxed?
At our company retreat. I drank a lot and played games. I made the soju cocktail very strong because I thought someone else would drink it. (laughs) I was smiling and saying, ‘ah~ it burns, so warm~’ a lot.

Are you a good drinker?
No, I can’t drink much. I don’t like to get drunk as well. There is a bar serving cocktails and Makgeolli near my place, I just like to have one or two drinks there. But I don’t even do that anymore. I want to appear pretty in my drama.

Do you mean the JTBC drama Age of Youth that will be premiered on July 22?
Yes. I cut flour-based food, I’m not drinking Makgeolli. I am trying to cut them at least until filming ends.

Age of Youth is already your 7th drama.
Yes. It is embarrassing, but it is. However, it is my first drama with a lot of other girls who are of a similar age to me. Our first meeting was so nerve wracking. I had unnecessary worries like, ‘What kind of dress will we all wear?’ ‘Is a white t-shirt and jeans too predictable?’ (laughs)

I heard it is a youth drama about five female college students.
Right. Han Ye-ri, Park Hae-soo, Ru Hwa-young, Park Eun-bin and I are in the main roles. The story is very hectic because each character has a different age, personality, background, and dating style. In addition, all five share a house and that house is always noisy. This especially applies to my character, Jung Ye-eun, who is the most talkative. Ah, I have a hard time memorizing all the lines because she talks so much (laughs).

What is the people’s reaction?
Hmm. If we only talk about the news articles, there are no good replies just as always. Maybe the same this time. However, the most difficult person to satisfy is myself. Even if I work hard, act well, and am well received, often times it is not satisfactory to me. By the way, I frequently hear, ‘Don’t work too hard’ from staff members. (laughs)

What do you mean?
In real life, no one makes plans for drinking like, ‘lift this cup, bite the straw, then drink coffee!’ right? But previously, I planned all my moves while I memorized the script. I thought that would make my acting perfect. But for Age of Youth, I only memorized the dialogue, but I acted spontaneously at the filming site. The director told me, that is how to not work too hard.

You also want to receive compliments for your acting as well, right?
Whew, I don’t even expect that much. I just want to hear less of ‘I can’t watch the drama because of her’.

I heard you date someone in the drama.
Yes. Il-Ju oppa (Ji Il-ju) is cast as an absolutely bad-guy boyfriend. Whenever we meet I always complain, ‘I am having a hard time because of you!’ like this. Why did Ye-eun meet a boyfriend like that?

What kind of man are you attracted to in real life?
A careful style. If that person is funny and leads me well, that would be the best. I don’t usually say what I want first.

So you won’t be able to date someone with a so-called ‘Indecisive disorder.’
Right. It is easier for me to just follow the lead of “Let’s eat this,” or “Let’s do that.”

When you were in KARA, you lived with all the other members. When you are in the share house with the other actors, I guess it reminds you of that time.
Of course. We had two restrooms, but with five girls, a lot of things accumulated here and there so we always tripped… Sometimes I remember those things. After work, I would sit around in the living room and sign CDs… I used to do handicrafts. (laughs)

Kara was disbanded early this year after last October’s activity in China. Do you have any desire to sing again?
I am not sure when, but I will sing again. Actually, I have songs already made. But I have so many things to do, so I am busy enough taking care of them.

What kind of music do you want to do?
Music that is acoustic where my voice comes first; almost no chorus. I wanted to do this for a long time, but I couldn’t even mention. ‘I want to do it’ before. Because if people don’t like it, I would be sorry to the members, and also there was no way to take responsibility for it.

If you are on your own, you can say, “If it fails, it is because of me, if it succeeds, it is also because of me.”
Right. That is the advantage of working solo. (laughs) I can do what I want to do without caring about others.

If members of KARA hear that, they will be hurt.
Haha! Well, I don’t think I am 100% used to working solo. Especially, when 6-7 people staff members look at me all day and how uncomfortable that is… Wherever I go, all the staff members have to follow me. It is very different than when I was together with the other group members and saying, ‘Let’s eat that’ ‘Let’s look at that.’

Around 10 staff members ARE only looking at Han Seung-yeon today as well.
See? It is a kind of A funny story, the biggest burden for me is when I pick what I want to eat on the menu. In case the food I choose doesn’t taste good.

Do you hear this question a lot? “Don’t you do KARA anymore?”
Yes. It is a matter of course, but sometimes I think, ‘Do I have to answer yes or no to that question?’ First of all, I don’t think KARA has ended yet. We just belong to different companies. It is not as someone suspects, where we can’t see each other anymore… But people try to put meaning on unnecessary things.

Some idol groups like G.O.D, Click B, Sechs Kies, who are broken up, are getting back together again. Do you think KARA will have a chance in the future?
Hmm… Because of these good examples by our sunbae’s, I think KARA will be able to find an easy solution. We get a lot of unexpected help as well.

That is very encouraging words for the fans of KARA who are waiting for a reunited KARA.
Yes. However, I can’t say, ‘Hello, this is Han Seung-yeon from KARA’ anymore like I used to. When I sign as well. I always wrote “KARA” next to my signature but I don’t do that anymore. Fans are a little sad about it, but can you just treat me as ‘Han Seung-yeon?’

Do you sometimes miss working as a team?
When I am under the weather or not in a good mood. Before the other members were a protecting, hiding barrier, but now I don’t have anywhere to hide. In those days I go home and write in my diary. I feel good when I see the accumulation of the documents.

You have a taste for the written word.
Yes. I don’t like to write on smartphones or computers. I have more than 10 schedule books, and more journals I have written since I was little. Ah, I like fountain pens as well. I visit Japan to only buy ink.

It would be good for you to try out calligraphy as a hobby.
Unfortunately, my writing is so bad I can’t even try it. (laughs) What should I do to write better? I tried “a little” with a penmanship textbook, but it wasn’t easy.

It is because you only tried “a little.” (laughS)
Haha! I dropped it because of shoulder pain. But I will try it again. I don’t appear to be, but my specialty is ‘do it consistently.’ For example, I read the Bible almost every day since middle school. I seldom skip my exercises and I have a good diet as well since I decided to do them diligently. I can say I have good patience.

What do you also do well?
Well… play quietly? (laughs) My parents never told me, “Oh my gosh, did you do those things?” I don’t drink too much or stay out overnight without telling my parents. In addition, I never went to a club.

You should try it out sometime. You never know if you will like it.
Hmm… I thought about it just now. I don’t think I will like it (laughs). I will just practice my penmanship, drink coffee, and write in my diary. Those things are more fun for me.

Hmm… I think Han Seung-yeon is a “Class President who is on the ball” type of person. What can we do?
Ah~ I am just giving up. However, don’t mistake me as a feisty person. I am a timid person.

JTBC Age of Youth (2016) ‘Jung Ye-eun’
Her housemates are busy with their part-time jobs, homework, or preparing to get a job, but Jung Ye-eun’s priority is only “dating.” A talkative fool for love whose life is evolved only with dating her boyfriend or staying at home.

SBS Jang Ok-jung, Living by Love (2013) ‘Musuri Choi’
A lot of viewers were upset because of Musuri Choi’s nasty behavior. Because she makes nasty faces all the time? A lot of bad rumors were spread around saying “She is nasty in her real life.”

MBC Jang Bo-ri is Here! (2014) ‘Ga-eul’
A Snob who thinks all the men in the world loves her. The youngest child who is full of bluffing, using her mom as a milk cow and she is always in trouble. She is mean and nasty, but we can’t hate her.

CREDIT
EDITOR 김수정 Kim Su-jung // PHOTO 김보성 Kim Bo-sung // HAIR 신선아(김활란 뮤제네프) Sin Sun-ah (Kim Whal-ran Museeneuf) // MAKEUP 조수민(김활란 뮤제네프) Choi Su-min (Kim Whal-ran Museeneuf) // STYLIST 박희경(Directors company), 조아라 Park Hee-kyung, Choi Ah-ra // ASSISTANT 강석영 Kang Suk-young // LOCATION 로칼버블 (서울시 강남구 압구정로10길 30-9) Local Bubble (30-9 Apgujung 10 road, Kang-nam gu, Seoul)

SOURCE Grazia Magazine

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