Program Note
Chulsoo, a resident of Jeju Island, picks up Younghee, an actress he has hired to pose as his fiancée. Hoping to fulfill his terminally ill father's final wish, he plans to stage a fake relationship. Younghee prepares a convincing backstory for their fabricated romance and steps into her role. But when they receive news that Chulsoo’s father has fallen unconscious, her performance begins to take an unexpected turn.
Can acting ever be truly separate from reality? As Younghee’s emotions gradually blur the line between fiction and truth, what began as a lie slowly transforms into something real. In the moment when performance mirrors life, the illusion reveals a world that is unexpectedly warmer and more beautiful. This short film was produced as part of a themed project on ‘beauty’ by the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society. (Martin LEE)