Choi Minho About His Acting Career: I will make the label 'idol turned actor' into an advantage"

[sra-interesante.livejournal.com]

Last week he walked on the BIFF red carpet for the first time for his movie Canola


Choi Minho “Confidence over fear, I will take my time”

The film that portrays runaway teenagers’ wandering without care and the dark world of adults is the first work SHINee Minho challenges himself with the name ‘Actor Choi Minho’ as the leading role. His strong determination of “I will make the label of an actor from idol into an advantage, not a disadvantage” was impressive. Choi Minho’s sturdy pure love is shown through the troubled boy in the back alley, Jin-il, strengthens his basis.



This must be your first time being officially invited to the film festival. How do you feel after stepping on the Red Carpet?
M: I have been here to present the awards but Busan Film Festival is my first time of being officially invited for my work. It was a red carpet that I always dreamed of so the atmosphere seemed a little different from other red carpets (laughs). I am thankful for the fact that I am able to attend.

It’s your first time acting a leading role in a film through . Did you join after going through an audition?
M: My acting teacher said there’s a good script and the script that teacher handed me asking me to read it regardless of making an appearance or not was . Just in time, the role of Jin-il was unoccupied and I wanted to play it so much after reading the script. My company actively encouraged me to act at that time too so I was able to meet with the director Lee Seong Tae.

The character of Jin-il is the complete opposite of the image of ‘SHINee Minho’. It must have been a burden to not only play the leading role for the first time but also a fierce character.
M: I actually thought my company won’t approve. (laughs) If things go wrong, then everything that I have achieved so far might collapse. But my curiosity for the movie and the character was bigger than that fear. Jin-il is a character commits aberrant acts every day but he has a sense of pureness of protecting his friends. I was curious on how I would look like if I played this kind of character. I also wanted to work with Ma Dong Seok sunbae too.



I want to know how you approached your character Jin-il. It must have been hard to identify yourself with him.
M: I think the leading role of a film needs a power that can captivate the audience throughout running time. I joined this work while I was thinking about how to express that kind of charm. I had lots of worries but I communicated with the director from first and last. He listened to my words one by one and gave explanations. At first, it was hard to sympathize with him because Jin-il and I were so different. I was really having a ‘mental breakdown’. (laughs) I tried to think and act like Jin-il as much as I can from months before the filming. I learned how to smoke for the first time to become Jin-il too. For me, that was the most aberrant act that I have ever done.

What kind of sunbae was Ma Dong Seok? You must have needed a lot of advices from the acting of emotions to action.
M: He is a sunbae who approaches hoobae first. He gave a lot of advice on every little details ever since the preparation of the filming. We were shooting an action scene in cold winters and he only worried about me not even letting his tiredness show. So, the filming atmosphere was comfortable too thanks to him. I am really thankful for it.

Was there any special tip that Ma Dong Seok gave for action acting?
M: He told me to avoid well. (laughs) Sunbae was a real expert so he let me know the movements according to the camera angle. I think the martial arts director filmed more comfortable too when there was Ma Dong Seok sunbae. There was a scene where Ma Dong Seok grabbed me by the collar and even by that my lips busted a little. If I were to be really hit by him, I wouldn’t be here. (laughs)



There are only bad adults in the surrounding of the troubled teenagers in Two Men. Which part will the audience be able to sympathize with?
M: I felt that Jin-il is fighting alone to speak for the troubled teenagers. He was representing the teenagers and making a protest saying ‘We are not young and adults won’t listen to us, so that’s why we look like we are behaving as we please’. The reason why teenagers are rejecting the help even when they need to be taken care of is perhaps because of their pain and a sense of alienation.

Isn’t it awkward and uncomfortable to watch your own acting just like any other rookie actors?
M: It was like that before but I overcome that feeling at some point. It feels regretful rather than uncomfortable now. Regretful as in ‘I should have tried this way or that way’. I think I learn things one by one through this feeling.

I am curious on how long you have wanted to become an actor. Did you dream of becoming an actor before becoming an idol?
M: I really love watching films. I frequently went to cinemas when I was young too. I had a vague thought of wanting to become a movie actor when I was in 1st year of middle school. It was really vague but after watching other actors who were good at acting after I made a debut as SHINee, I felt a sense of anxiety thinking ‘Will I be able to do like that too?’. The moment that I gained confidence was when I realized that I needed to leave myself on the screen and on dramas as much I can when I’m young. They say you won’t have regrets later on if you have tried many things when you’re young. To not shrink into myself and be confident, I think I should build up experiences that I can learn from it.



I think your determination and fun in acting is bigger than fear.
M: It’s a lie if I say that I am not scared of being criticized for doing badly. But I think it’s something that I should put up with. It’s only right to acknowledge what I’m lacking and correct it. Of course, everyone wants to do well from the start. But I don’t think I’m gifted that much so I need a lot of experience. It is physically strenuous to manage SHINee activities at the same time but I really enjoy the acting site. I feel alive when I’m on site.

The fun in being on stage as SHINee and acting on camera, how is that different?
M: Both are thrilling but I think the process is different. To make a comparison with maths, it’s like the answers are the same but the equation is different. There’s a sense of being deeply moved when I prepare hard before going up on stage and presenting it to the fans. For acting, I feel deeply moved by the reactions of the people around when the work that I worked hard for is released. It’s same but different, and different but same. (laughs)

The prejudice that follows like a label to actors from idols is also a matter you must overcome with.
M: I think a label could actually become an advantage, not a disadvantage. Many people would think ‘Let’s see how well he does’ when they look at me acting but if I were to do really well then they might look at me more positively. It’s up to my ability to change that perception. Thinking positively, I think it’s an advantageous point if I compare it with other actors.



It’s good to see that you’re so positive.
M: That’s right. It would be hard to work if I’m not like that. I am a really positive person so I am able to think like that but I think friends of my age are feeling stressed. But there are lots of advantages if you just change your perspective a little and see it from a different angle.

SHINee has already reached the top in the music industry. Do you feel the desire to establish yourself as an actor quickly too?
M: I want to go slowly. I wonder whether I really deserve this big amount of love while working as SHINee and feel really thankful. To think ‘I should become successful quickly’ while acting too feels like greed. I think there are many things that I will miss if I go quickly. I think experience is the most important thing when it comes to acting. So perhaps I can become a trustworthy actor if I go slowly and embrace many experiences



Since we are talking about BIFF let's check out Minho's look for the red carpet:

Omona just let this silver(ish) haired prince get into your bias list
Wait ... did you just said no??
©
Source: Fyeahminho Blog 1| 2|3, FondueOfLight, Beautiful Days , FocusNews

Comments

[lostintheechoes.livejournal.com]

Minho was my first kpop bias back when Lucifer was released and still is my bias in SHINee.

[mylovebelt.livejournal.com]

minho's so gorgeous

i'm so glad he's so positive. i hope his films and future projects are successful.. and i can't wait for hwarang ~

[rosiemotleymind.livejournal.com]

My body seriously is not ready for that drama. Minho and Tae?! I'm not even close to being prepared.

[keytfelt.livejournal.com]

Hwarang could be a total mess but I will watch every minute of it because I like so many of the actors in it. I'm hopeful it will be good (and that Minho will be good), so fingers crossed!

[mmmalvina.livejournal.com]

he truly IS a prince (of my heart)! this comeback finally showed me the light, and now i can't stop staring at his ridiculously handsome self

[ah0000.livejournal.com]

How have his recent acting gigs been? I have watched To The Beautiful You and uh obviously it's not the best but it was a long time ago. I tried the one where he was a doctor but I don't think I watched more than 2 episodes. Has he improved?

[rosiemotleymind.livejournal.com]

Every comeback Minho tries to steal my heart from my true bias Onew. I'm not here for his evil ways and his never ending fineness.

[punkylana.livejournal.com]

aw soo cute :3, wishing him the best of luck w his acting career
ps. I hate the platinum/grey hair but he looks so cute in these pics

[psharp10.livejournal.com]

i haven't seen any of his dramas aside from when i tried to watch to the beautiful you lol so i don't really know about how much he's improved (or not) but i really like this attitude:

They say you won’t have regrets later on if you have tried many things when you’re young. To not shrink into myself and be confident, I think I should build up experiences that I can learn from it.

i think it's really important to do things you want to do and just try them, if you're not good, you can get better. and if it doesn't work out, it's not the end of the world - and well, at least you tried it so there'll be no regrets about not even attempting it

i might watch hwarang when it comes out but lets see how i do with moon lovers and mystic nine for now lol

[sheisagentleman.livejournal.com]

I wonder if this was the movie shown at Sundance? (Or was it the Tribeca film festival? Lmao there was a Minho movie shown somewhere in America)

I hope with all my heart he's good! I like him a lot and tbh the movie sounds interesting!

[dragonclouds.livejournal.com]

he's such a puppy. are any of his dramas any good? bc tbh i want to watch him just to see his fine self.

[boxcuttergirl.livejournal.com]

awww!! i have shinee blacklisted just bc i can't stand their Tumblr fandom so I always forget how much I genuinely love minho lol

[kiku-cha8-8.livejournal.com]

Minho tries so hard, I got to hand it to him.

How come you don't like shinee tumblr fandom? From what I experienced they aren't that bad, incapable of googling some basic stuff but not awful. Is it the ship wars or the constant monitoring or album sales? Both are pretty rampant in kpop fandom.

[sodapab.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad I don't see any shinee ship wars (okay maybe few offhand comments every now and then) but I'm curious what do you mean by constant monitoring?

[kiku-cha8-8.livejournal.com]

whoop I didn't see this until now orz

I had meant to type in "constant monitoring of album sales" not "or". i'd also lump youtube views into it as well because jfc how do people find so much time to do this.

idk maybe because I'm an old person, but its really irritating to see people constantly flipping out over their faves "not selling well according to me checking mel0n at 2pm today and thus are a flop" or "my faves mv haven't reached 1M in a few hours and aren't going to win a cheap mcountdown trophy next week T-T"

i get that it is normal to want your fave group to be successful, but i feel that the recent extreme emphasis on charts/rankings/sales figures is sucking the fun out of a comeback.

[sodapab.livejournal.com]

Ah I see what you mean, and yes I find all of that you mentioned kinda annoying too.

The youtube views thing...sometimes I feel like a bad fan because I'm not replaying some music video every day but I've learned not to feel like that because it doesn't make any sense to feel that way?? (lol what is this sentence) plus it kills the enjoyment.

[boxcuttergirl.livejournal.com]

ahhh idk its kinda hard to explain w/o sounding like an asshole but I'm just kinda tired of how much ppl on tumblr overhype jonghyun and try to shove him down my throat i guess

plus in general a lot of big group fandoms tend to be unnecessarily rude towards rookie groups lol

[kiku-cha8-8.livejournal.com]

ah i see, that makes sense. i am a jjong fan, but i get what you mean by tumblr overhype for jjong. i see it from the fringes of my dash and i tend to ignore them. people can be really gross with how they hype him though.

as for your second point, kpop fandom is unnecessarily immature and strangely competitive regardless of if you're stanning a big group or a rookie. it mostly depends on volume. i've been in kpop fandom long enough that i've built up blinders to this nonsense.

[sra-interesante.livejournal.com]

love yourself and dont pay atention to fandom drama, you would enjoy life again :)

[boxcuttergirl.livejournal.com]

lmao i do my best but a lot of the time it comes from other fandoms attacking groups i like which is kinda hard to just let go

[sra-interesante.livejournal.com]

that's what i'm saying letting go things makes your fangirling moments even more enjoyable lol ..... then again who am i to teach you how to enjoy your own life anyway

[dharawal.livejournal.com]

My gorgeous froggy Prince, you grab these opportunities every time you can.

[jinkiestabi.livejournal.com]

I can't stop laughing at one of those photos, someone on Twitter called it his Christian Mingle profile pic, lmao.

Minho was the first Shinee member I got into. I couldn't compute how it was possible for him to be that cute(still can't). I think I retweeted everything Minho before I realized I was full of love and very willing to accept all of Shinee as my lords and saviors.

His attitude is so positive and he's very confident, all the things I can't even be in my dreams. He works very hard at everything he tries his hand at, and I genuinely admire him for it.

[undeniablysarah.livejournal.com]

This hair color has seriously grown on me. I am loving the first pic you used and all of the winter goodness pics.

Gets me excited for Christmas lol

[pisceanfelt.livejournal.com]

Minho entered my bias league when Taemin decided to show his colorist ass. Long live the flaming chaRISMA

[keytfelt.livejournal.com]

I love Minho, he's just a giant fluffball and I can't help but root for him. I thought he did a pretty good job in Because It's the First Time, I'm hoping his film work will help his acting to improve even more.
His BIFF look was A+++

[nonovia.livejournal.com]

love you oppa :)

[amandaplan.livejournal.com]

love him and his new hair color. this cb he really shined.