Park Ki Woong 박기웅

[ecs707a]

Hahaha, we're all like, "we should totally do this, right?" and then immediately say, "but I don't know what to write".

We're hopeless.  But maybe we could work together to come up with something?

Hmm...must think...

[Guest na71]

Just let's do it. He deserves to know that we love and support him. We're not many but we're loyal hahaha.
That pictures killed me... I'm falling more and more... I lost my words... Sorry, today I'm not myself. It was a long and hard day but coming here is like breathing free. <3

[ecs707a]

Call for group letter participation:
To @dr25, @minnieXD, @readlead, @Irish_law, @chane019, and lurkers (I know you're out there!)

In case you haven't been following along with recent posts, we're writing a letter!  So gather your thoughts, write a short message, and PM me or @na71 if you want to participate.  The deadline is a week from now (May 27) but the sooner we hear from you, the better.  So get writing!

Someone's waiting to hear from you...

You don't want to disappoint him, do you?
(Just kidding...but seriously, if you want to do this, let us know ASAP.)

[ecs707a]

[20140425] Park Ki Woong: “I gave up on drama offers for “My Heart Beats”.”

Park Ki Woong will be going soon to the army. He’s wrapping up his latest projects and here’s a short interview he did for BNT.

The spectrum of your filmography is very diverse. What’s the most important thing when you pick a project?

It must be fun/interesting. When I choose a project, I think first and foremost about what can make this role interesting when I play. I don’t think I can show good acting if I don’t enjoy or can’t immersed myself in the role. However, I’ve been acting for a long time and a lot of my childhood friends are directors now. Right now, I also work a lot through my network of friends. (laugh)

If so, which drama or movie left you the most vivid memory?

Among my most recent memories, it’s KBS “Bridal Mask”. The filming was such a rough time that it’s unforgettable. There was this one time I filmed for 9 days and 8 nights straight and I didn’t sleep a wink. At that time, when I was monitoring myself, I was so out of it that I even thought “so is it the acting I showed?”. It was such a busy time that there were times when I could barely shave before going back to filming.

I didn’t have one single day of rest for the last three months of filming, so it was physically and mentally hard. Ah ! I also remember my first lead role in a movie. It was for “My Friend My Tutor 2″. I can’t really look at it because I’m embarrassed when I watch it now, though. (laugh)

When it comes to acting, there must be things you feel unsatisfied with.

Most of things always feel unsatisfying. When I do something, I think “I worked this hard”, but I naturally get this feeling of unsatisfaction as time goes by. To be honest, I think it’s inspiring because feeling this way pushes me to keep improving and broaden my horizons.

You’ve worked with many actors until now. Which actor was the best match for you?

Strangely enough, I’m the kind to work really well with actors. (laugh) I got along well with Kim Soo Hyun and Lee Hyun Woo with whom I shot the movie “Secretly, Greatly” and I worked well with Joo Won on “Bridal Mask”. We still contact each other and we’re close friends. What’s funny is that the fans probably feel it too because “m/m couples” topics keep coming up on fansites or galleries.

It’s been 12 years since your debut. You changed from “CF Star Park Ki Woong” into “Actor Park Ki Woong”. How did you break this prejudice?

Time and experience, I think. Of course, I had the desire to be good at acting and I made efforts too. I think my acting came out more natural as time went by and I spent a lot of energy too. I think experience and time were my biggest help. That’s why I’m also thankful to get the public’s recognition.

When people say “Park Ki Woong”, different images come to mind. Not having a representative image is a weakness. What’s your take on that?

I have a definite opinion on this matter. I want to be an actor who is able to interpret various images instead of being an actor limited to one image. Someone told me, “Take one thing at a time. If you have a fixed image, the character won’t matter and won’t people think about Park Ki Woong instead?” I couldn’t hate these words when I heard them. I aim to gain experience by playing different characters. This is how I got here today and this is the acting I want to keep doing.

You’ve been making yourself known through a variety program these days. How did you get to join SBS “My Heart Beats”?

My movie was doing well at that time, so I received many offers to be a member of a variety program. “My Heart Beats” was one of them. To be honest, I’m the exhausting type, so I think a lot and I research before I make a choice. I thought about the strengths of each program and also about what I could do well. I think “My Heart Beats” was the best project for me. More than anything, I felt this sense of duty that the difficulty of the work that these firefighters do must be shown. I thought it was worth the challenge even if it made a less bigger issue and had lower ratings than other programs.

What is your mindset when you’re shooting “My Heart Beats”?

“I must stay focused no matter what”, “Make no mistake”. This is how I feel. To be honest, I’ve been declining drama offers while I’ve been shooting “My Heart Beats”. People around me says “you’re offered a good project, so do it. Isn’t variety program make you lose your job?”. I’ve been working for 10 years while taking in consideration promises to others the most. I guess that made me unable to act in a shallow way. I never think lightly of variety programs.

There are many similar programs in this category these days.

At the beginning of the year, people said that things should be done like MBC “Real Men”. Still, I think if the observation-type variety programs become popular, it’s only fair you’ll see more of them on TV too. Isn’t this how a trend works?

Is there an episode you remember the most?

The woman who got her legs cut off. It was so sad and heartbreaking. I’m still in contact with her daughter. I was wondering if her rehabilitation was going well, so I personally went to Mokpo to see her. I’ll always be upset and sad when I think about it even today. At that time, I was worried that her guardian or the patient would be even more scared if I showed my anger, so I had to keep it together and it was hard. I even had a few dreams about it afterwards.

What do you mostly do when you’re not shooting “My Heart Beats” or when you don’t have a schedule?

I’m a part of a basketball team and a soccer team. Beside exercising, I like staying home. My nickame is “homebody”. I like spending time on my own at home. Sometimes I just chill or I read a book, listen to some music or play some games. I don’t really have other hobbies. I’m a boring guy (laugh).

Your enlistment is set for May. How do you feel?

I have no regret. I’ve been shooting a movie and I hurt my left foot, so I do worry sometimes that it’d create a problem for filming. There are times I also wonder if I’ll be able to get along freely with people 10 years younger than me. But I also have big expectations. Once I’m discharged, I think my acting will show a wider spectrum with the experiences I’d have gone through. My concrete wish would be to play a macho character that gives off this manly vibe.

Do you have projects until your enlistment?

I’m planning to keep shooting “My Heart Beats” and a fanmeeting in Japan is scheduled. I have a movie in the last stages of production. I think my schedule will be tight until the day of my enlistment.

Original article: bnt
Translation: onesunnylady

credit: The Sunny Town

[dr25]

@na71 @ecs707a So there I was reading an article entitled Embracing Your Parasocial Relationship when I thought of dropping by here. And there were my fellow PKW fandom doing just that (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o))) Def. putting a few word for him as soon as tomorrow.

Since we are at the topic of his English...here's this video I found. For a better illustartion of his English skills..

http://youtu.be/94iygPWEwyQ

It may not be the best English around and I may not be the best person to comment on anyone's English but he seems to know what he's saying from experience. Not a Siri-like utterance. I can hear accentuation used naturally withing these a few phrases he uttered.

ecs707a said:
You’ve worked with many actors until now. Which actor was the best match for you?

Strangely enough, I’m the kind to work really well with actors. (laugh) I got along well with Kim Soo Hyun and Lee Hyun Woo with whom I shot the movie “Secretly, Greatly” and I worked well with Joo Won on “Bridal Mask”. We still contact each other and we’re close friends. What’s funny is that the fans probably feel it too because “m/m couples” topics keep coming up on fansites or galleries.

[minnieXD]

Oh my. I've been called upon! haha jkBut yes. I would like to participate in this message sending thing, but I'm so bad at writing this type of stuff (letters, messages, other personal type stuff xP) I wouldn't even know where to start! D:
*stares at picture for inspiration*


Ah. I already miss this face lolㅠㅠ

[ecs707a]

dr25 said: So there I was reading an article entitled Embracing Your Parasocial Relationship when I thought of dropping by here. And there were my fellow PKW fandom doing just that (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o))) Def. putting a few word for him as soon as tomorrow.

Haha...yeah, well, I wouldn't mind embracing this particular parasocial relationship, if you know what I mean...

Ha.

Since we are at the topic of his English...here's this video I found. For a better illustartion of his English skills..

It may not be the best English around and I may not be the best person to comment on anyone's English but he seems to know what he's saying from experience. Not a Siri-like utterance. I can hear accentuation used naturally withing these a few phrases he uttered.

There's also this.

Kdrama English always just makes me giggle.  His pronunciation isn't too bad though.

He must have learned some English in school, but I would guess that without further study, that probably doesn't amount to much.  Although I'd bet that his understanding is better than his speaking, so it's difficult to judge based on the delivery of a few lines that he didn't even write.  And reading and writing are different from speaking as well.

You’ve worked with many actors until now. Which actor was the best match for you?

Strangely enough, I’m the kind to work really well with actors. (laugh) I got along well with Kim Soo Hyun and Lee Hyun Woo with whom I shot the movie “Secretly, Greatly” and I worked well with Joo Won on “Bridal Mask”. We still contact each other and we’re close friends. What’s funny is that the fans probably feel it too because “m/m couples” topics keep coming up on fansites or galleries.

He still lurks around fansites I don't recall when was that Dramabeans article published... In which he said something about reading the fans' thought on his performance in A Man's Story but I'm glad years after he said that, he's keeping the habit. Kamsamida pkw-shi Keep lurking.

I'm one of those fans who'd ship the Won-Woong bromance whenever feasible lol.

Are you trying to tempt me into unleashing a flood of bromantic goodness, @dr25? ; (Because it doesn't take much, lol.)

 

What do you mostly do when you’re not shooting “My Heart Beats” or when you don’t have a schedule?

I’m a part of a basketball team and a soccer team. Beside exercising, I like staying home. My nickame is “homebody”. I like spending time on my own at home. Sometimes I just chill or I read a book, listen to some music or play some games. I don’t really have other hobbies. I’m a boring guy (laugh).

*High five* Long live the homebodies. It kinda makes me less concerned about his time in the army. Spending time 'away' willingly makes it easier for you when you have to be away by necessity. A mere assumption of mine...

Yeah, me too.  Boring people unite!

Other things that I like about this interview:

I want to be an actor who is able to interpret various images instead of being an actor limited to one image.

I'm glad he plans to keep portraying a variety of characters.  He seems to have carved out a nice niche, where he has a certain level of recognition, but he doesn't let it keep him from taking on interesting roles.  There is a point at which, it seems to me, an actor can choose to either parlay existing fame/prestige/whatever into more fame (or trying to maintain it, at least), or into a more personally satisfying career.  (Or maybe the latter is really the goal of most actors, and only some are actually successful, and I can keep my judginess to myself, lol.)  Which is to say, I guess, that I believe him when he says that he acts because it's fun and interesting, and he enjoys the challenge, and it does show in both his acting and his choice of projects. 

To be honest, I’ve been declining drama offers while I’ve been shooting “My Heart Beats”.

And about giving up drama roles...honestly, I wonder if movie roles may be better for him.  Selfishly, I want him back in a drama at some point, but then I think about how few dramas have piqued my interest lately.  And I wonder which roles he might have passed on, and then I play the game of "which character do I wish he had played?", and almost come up empty.  (I have been in such a drama slump, though, and that may be clouding my judgment.)  There are just not that many "types" in the kdrama world.  A skilled actor in a quality production can bring something extra to an otherwise stock character, but even when it's done well, so many times, it's just not that interesting.  I would argue that Yoo Jin was one of those stock character types, and he did make that character compelling, but the drama...not so much.  Roles like Kyung-tae and Shunji (and the dramas they belong to) don't come around every day.

I am, however, legitimately interested in Chen (or maybe I just want to know what the eels have to do with anything, lol) and Yeo-wool and their corresponding movies.  So it seems like he knows what he's doing, and is making intelligent choices.

 

I’ve been working for 10 years while taking in consideration promises to others the most. I guess that made me unable to act in a shallow way. I never think lightly of variety programs.

This, too, shows in his behavior.  I know I've said before that I love so much that he takes things seriously.  I know the show's not "real", in the strictest sense, but there is a lot a stake, and people really can get hurt.  And once he commits to something, he wants to do it right.  I will accept a drama drought in exchange for his presence on a show that has done a fabulous job of showing that he's truly a kind and considerate human being.  I think that's a fair deal
Um...end of thesis.  Sorry about that.

minnieXD said:

Oh my. I've been called upon! haha jk

But yes. I would like to participate in this message sending thing, but I'm so bad at writing this type of stuff (letters, messages, other personal type stuff xP) I wouldn't even know where to start! D:

*stares at picture for inspiration*

Ah. I already miss this face lolㅠㅠ

@minnieXD: the problem with staring at a picture like that for writing inspiration is that your message may end up like, "pretty...pretty...eyes...smile..." *drool*
(And I don't know what to write either...still.)
 

[ecs707a]

KBS World English subbed Entertainment Weekly 1522 (original KBS airdate May 9, 2014):

 

credit: KBS World TV

(skip to 2:36)

[dr25]

ecs707a said:

Are you trying to tempt me into unleashing a flood of bromantic goodness, @dr25?  (Because it doesn't take much, lol.)

[ecs707a]

 

Quote

 

dr25 said:
 

 

Quote

 

I am, however, legitimately interested in Chen (or maybe I just want to know what the eels have to do with anything, lol) and Yeo-wool and their corresponding movies.  So it seems like he knows what he's doing, and is making intelligent choices.

 

Who's Chen?! These choices kept his career lighten up for 12 years. He sure knows what he's doing. To wait til a good drama comes your way or to just take what's present? The fangirl in me doesn't care frankly. Let him have a drama for me to see him every single week for a considerable part of the year. The more mature side of me, however, prefers the long wait in promised of a meaty role (in relation to both his role and the general plot) because that will help boost his fame too. Of course now the long wait is not optional so I'll stick with what the mature me thinks.

 

 

Chen!

And I believe this is also Chen...

Twitter

We really haven't been given much info about Made in China yet.  This is about it, really, except for those photos of HCA and PKW (separately) with Kim Ki Duk (and the eels).

 

 

[Guest na71]

Edit:

I'm done with my letter and already PMed it to Na71. I'm so very happy I won't be there to see his face when he reads it Ah...writing something to someone you think you know but you are very well aware that you don't so how to say whatever you wanna say without it seeming awkward? Huh I'm glad I won't be there to see his face. B-)

[minnieXD]

@ecs707a I just PM-ed you my message for PKW >.<
Ahhh! I seriously didn't know how I should go about writing it, but hopefully he finds it nice even though it's not really anything special haha 

[ecs707a]

New photo!

source
Harper's Bazaar, June issue maybe?  I'm sure I could wait and be less vague, but meh.  Why wait?

[ecs707a]

Beating Hearts episode 27 screencaps (aired May 20, 2014):

Lesson of the week: Korean firefighters will go to great lengths to fish your phone out of the sewer if you happen to drop it there.

No episode this week again.  At this rate, they'll still have new episodes left when he comes back in two years.  It'll be like he never left.

Edit: Or they'll cancel the show, and we'll never see the remaining episodes...SBS, military service already took him away, and now you're going to take away my last few episodes of him on Beating Hearts too?  There should still be one more Busan episode, and then I thought there would be one more set of episodes after that, based on the fact that they were still filming up until at least the end of April.  There's only one week between now and June 10, which is when most articles seem to be saying the new show takes over the time slot.  So they're just going to waste the money, time, and effort spent on filming an entire 4-episode arc?  That makes me sad.  Maybe they'll just put them on youtube or something...anything...

Geez, I sound like an addict looking for a fix...but this seriously makes me sad.

Edit (yes, again): Now it looks like last episode airs July 1, which gives us 5 more weeks (assuming they actually air an episode every week) (and which agrees with the number of episodes I thought we had left).  Yay, more episodes!  (Boo, still cancelled.)  (sources: 1 2 3)

[Guest adikkeluangman]

SBS Variety Shows “Beating Hearts” and “Challenge 1000 Songs” Canceled


SBS‘ variety programming is going through changes, as it has canceled “Beating Hearts” and “Challenge 1000 Songs” while moving around many other shows.
The cancellation of “Beating Hearts” has especially met with much criticism. “Beating Hearts” was a public service program which featured celebrities joining real-life firefighters on missions. The show even carried out the “Miracle of Moses” campaign to encourage citizens to move their cars for ambulances and fire trucks. For the campaign, the show starred Park Ki Woong, Jo Dong Hyuk, Choi Woo Sik, Jun Hye Bin, and Jang Dong Hyuk, who personally took to the streets to shoot public service announcements and give out stickers.
The show was known for taking on serious social issues such as drunk driving and suicide. However, it was canceled due to its low ratings in the 2% range, along with member Park Ki Woong’s sudden military enlistment. The last episode will air on July 1. 
“Challenge 1000 Songs” was canceled after running for 14 years. Despite decent ratings, the lack of advertising sales led to its cancellation.
http://www.soompi.com/2014/05/29/sbs-variety-shows-beating-hearts-and-challenge-1000-songs-canceled/#.U4gGepSSxc8

[ecs707a]

Old Entertainment Weekly, with Kim Soo Hyun and Lee Hyun Woo:

 

credit: KBS World TV

How was this over a year ago already?  These three obviously had a good time together.  I know I watched some random fancams and have an assortment of photos somewhere from all of those stage greetings they did.  I should try to find some of those again, I guess.  Maybe we can celebrate the 1 year anniversary of Secretly, Greatly with some of that stuff, since I think none of it was ever posted here.  (Where were we all in 2013?)

Anyway, I finally found where he said the thing about his mom and not smiling too much on TV (well, the other time he said it, other than in Win Win), @dr25.  It was in this video (better 6 months late than never?). 

[ecs707a]

Well, I threatened to do it, so here goes.   Traveling back in time to a year ago...

June 1, 2013 Secretly Greatly stage greeting

And a video...okay, so clearly this is a KSH fancam, but it's cute enough (and short enough) that I don't care (not that I have anything at all against KSH...)

June 5, 2013 stage greeting

A video from that day:

June 6, 2013

This would not be complete without a little Gwiyomi.  This is a compilation of several times they did it just that day alone (poor boys).  It mostly consists of them messing up over and over and trying not to die of embarrassment, both in adorably hilarious ways.

All three videos credit to 김면목.  Photos credit as watermarked, unless there isn't one, in which case, I don't know who to credit.  I found most of them at PKW DC at some point in the past year, but clearly some came from elsewhere originally, so sorry to anyone whose photos I accidentally misattribute (or can't attribute to anyone).

Still to come: 7 more days of stage greetings...

[Guest na71]

Hi!!!!Regarding the letter I have some good news and some bad news...The good new is that my friend sent the letter but the bad news is that she isn't sure that he will recieve it because... he finished his training month yesterday! There is no news about it yet but she saw the pictures on the naver cafe.After the training month, he'll change locations and go to the police (I guess, I'm not really sure how it works yet, I'll ask my friend to keep me informed so I can come here and share the information) ㅋㅋㅋAlso she said that she will keep a copy of the letter and she'll try to make sure that PKW recieve our best wishes because "we worked hard and he nees to know that we support him. Is better if he has 2 times the letter than not having any" (She said).I would love to be there if she can accomplish it, because she is really shy. But when she says something like that, I know that she will try her best even if she is dying of embarassment.

[ecs707a]

@na71: Be sure to thank your friend for us
There are so many layers of unknowns...will it get to the right place?  Will he get it?  Will he have time to read it?  (Will he understand our English? haha)  But it doesn't really matter.  It's the thought that counts, right?  And I think it's worth trying.  It really isn't that much effort to write a letter, and if it does get there, and he does read it, and it does what we all hope, and makes him happy, then it's good.  If not, we tried   And if he gets it twice, and then thinks we're all crazy, all the better?  Maybe we'll be more memorable that way.  Ha.

And now...

Secretly Greatly stage greetings, part 2!
June 7, 2013

Clearly, the theme of the day is LHW + PKW cuteness, which continued even outside of the venues...

A video (poor director):

(credit: Seungju Lee)
(Here's

that shows all 4 of them, if you want to see the director's reaction (starts at about 4:30))

Next: June 8 & 9...

[minnieXD]

^ his smile makes me melt inside! :x :x :x

na71 said: Hi!!!!Regarding the letter I have some good news and some bad news...The good new is that my friend sent the letter but the bad news is that she isn't sure that he will recieve it because... he finished his training month yesterday! There is no news about it yet but she saw the pictures on the naver cafe.After the training month, he'll change locations and go to the police (I guess, I'm not really sure how it works yet, I'll ask my friend to keep me informed so I can come here and share the information) ㅋㅋㅋAlso she said that she will keep a copy of the letter and she'll try to make sure that PKW recieve our best wishes because "we worked hard and he nees to know that we support him. Is better if he has 2 times the letter than not having any" (She said).I would love to be there if she can accomplish it, because she is really shy. But when she says something like that, I know that she will try her best even if she is dying of embarassment.