Chapter 62: I, ‘Dear,’ have descended.

A large conference room. A huge TV is hanging on the wall.

The screen is silently broadcasting the news.

In front of the police station, the scene of Director Kim Jun-ki being held by both arms with a group of reporters surrounding him like a herd of animals appeared.

Director Kim Jun-ki, wearing a mask and pulling his hat low, lowered his head.

—Don’t you have anything to say?

—I will cooperate fully with the investigation. I am sorry to the victims. I will pay the price for my crimes and ensure I never show my face again.

And right after that.

Pop!

Someone turned off the TV. It was accompanied by a few brief words.

“He’s basically dead. He can never come back from this.”

Then, the people sitting around the round table nodded in agreement, about ten people in total. They had gathered to discuss a very important agenda today.

The agenda was the organization of the ‘Busan International Short Film Festival.’

The chairperson, who was the overall responsible person, broke the silence first.

“So, the event date is exactly one month away, right?”

“That’s right.”

“It’s too late. Let’s move it up by a week, and in return, let’s extend the submission period a bit. The key here is to hold it as soon as possible. Once the second half of the year comes, everyone gets busy.”

Everyone nodded and started taking notes on what had been discussed.

“That timing seems to be the best.”

One of the staff members nodded.

He thought the chairperson’s statement made perfect sense. Whether it’s the audience or the staff, once the second half of the year arrives, things get really busy, which naturally leads to the film festival’s absence.

“Exactly. Well, we don’t really need to go over the small details, right?”

“Yes. It’s going well.”

“Is the set installation done? This time, the screening is outdoors, right?”

Then, a staff member sitting across from him spoke up.

“The stage and screen are already set up, but we’re debating on the chairs. Due to the nature of the festival, people will be sitting for a long time, and if the chairs are too hard, a lot of people will end up leaving halfway through.”

“Use the best ones you can get. Don’t save money on this.”

“Yes. Understood.”

“Good. Then, let’s go with that… now, let’s see…”

The chairperson scratched his head as if troubled.

“…Now, we need to discuss the festival judges.”

Judges.

Just four short letters, but their influence was obvious.

As the topic was brought up, discomfort appeared simultaneously on the faces of all the staff members sitting around the table.

One person cautiously spoke up.

“The only confirmed judge was Director Kim Jun-ki, but unfortunately, this incident happened… so now, we haven’t received confirmation from anyone. It seems like everyone’s just waiting to see.”

“Yeah, what a timing for something like this to happen to Director Kim Jun-ki.”

The chairperson’s expression twisted as he rubbed his chin.

It would have been nice if all the directors could feel the passion of the Busan International Short Film Festival and visit, but reality and expectations rarely align.

The world doesn’t work on goodwill alone.

The directors who have made a name for themselves and gained enough fame need to have a valid reason to come here.

This is why they were planning to use Kim Jun-ki as bait.

—Director Park, I heard Director Kim Jun-ki is coming too…

—This director, not just Kim Jun-ki, but many others will be coming…

That’s how they planned to recruit more people…

‘Of all things, this happened to Kim Jun-ki.’

Now, Kim Jun-ki’s name had become an obstacle.

The chairperson clicked their tongue.

“We need to make it clear that we’ve severed ties with Director Kim Jun-ki.”

“Understood.”

“And we need to find a new big-name director…”

The hesitation didn’t last long.

The chairperson soon thought of someone.

“Director Go Tae-min. He’s making a new film based on music, but he probably hasn’t started working on it yet. In other words, he’s likely free right now. Let’s aggressively pursue him.”

“We’ll push forward with Director Go Tae-min as the big name… How many proposal letters will we send out? How many judges will we have in total?”

“We need at least ten. To generate buzz.”

“Then, the more the better.”

Tap tap—

The staff member in charge of finding judges began typing on the laptop, and the chairperson continued.

“Set design, judges, these are just basic frameworks. Got it?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Now, let’s discuss how we can attract as many people as possible. First, the invited guests.”

Then, a staff member who caught the chairperson’s gaze spoke up.

“Inviting actors isn’t a problem. But…”

“But?”

“The issue is inviting foreign master directors. Do we really want to push this?”

“We should. Let’s try everything possible this year.”

“Understood. What about the countries?”

“Doesn’t matter. Send out the proposals, and bring in whoever responds.”

With the short film festival approaching, the meeting continued smoothly without any obstacles.

As the staff members wrote down the finalized decisions, the notes had already exceeded ten pages.

“Now, the last and most important issue.”

The chairperson wore a serious expression.

“As you know, the Busan International Film Festival has two sections: one is the regular festival, and the other is our short film festival.”

“That’s correct.”

“Even though they are linked, the difference between the two sections is significant. Compared to the regular festival, the short film festival doesn’t receive much attention.”

“That’s true. There’s this prevailing perception that short films are lower in rank compared to regular films. Actors and directors who’ve reached a certain level often avoid short films.”

“Exactly. The problem is that short films are often seen as just a stepping stone.”

Like the tutorial that always exists when you start a game.

Many people viewed short films in that way.

For directors and actors with established careers, there was no real reason to make short films. It wasn’t a profitable venture.

Why would they waste time on that when they could be doing something more beneficial?

The chairperson clenched their fists and crossed their arms.

“From above, they’ve insisted on saving the short film festival this time. How many times have I emphasized this? I’ve been asking for a solution every week, right? Now, one by one, tell me your ideas.”

A moment of silence.

Then, the chairperson threatened once again.

“They didn’t just give orders from above. They also allocated a huge budget. So, how easy do you all have it? You don’t need to worry about the money; just come up with ideas. Is there a better environment than this?”

Afterward, various ideas were discussed.

“It would be great if we could use YouTube for advertising.”

“How about considering inviting idols as well…?”

“Chairperson, what do you think about increasing the number of awards?”

The chairperson showed interest in the last comment.

“Increasing the number of awards?”

“Yes. In fact, the main merit of short films is to gain recognition by winning awards, right?”

“That’s true.”

“But if there are too few awards, people may not even be motivated to participate, so the idea is to increase the award categories. Adding awards like Best Actor or Special Award to make it more appealing.”

“Hmm…”

The chairperson crossed their arms and paused in thought.

“If we increase the number of awards too much, the value of the awards themselves might feel a bit diminished. How do you plan to address that?”

“Don’t worry, I’ve thought about that as well.”

The staff member spoke casually, as if reassuring the chairperson.

“CHH?”

“Yes. We’ll set the premise that some awards might not even be given out. We won’t forcefully give out all the awards. Only one will be given to the most valuable works.”

“…So, you keep the possibility of winning awards open as bait, but you won’t just give out awards recklessly? Sounds good.”

The chairperson immediately agreed.

“Alright. We’ll go ahead with increasing the award categories. Let’s move forward with this, but it would be good if you have one more useful idea.”

At that moment,

“Chairperson, does it only matter to increase the attention?”

A staff member raised their hand and interrupted.

It was the staff member who had remained silent, wearing glasses.

“Why? Do you have a way to increase attention?”

“Of course. What’s trending these days?”

“Hmm…”

The chairperson thought for a moment.

“Alright. I get it. I know what you’re going to say.”

The chairperson soon furrowed their brow.

“Don’t even bring up things like noise marketing. How many events tried that and ended up with a bad reputation? All of them fell apart.”

“No, that’s not what I meant.”

“Isn’t it noise marketing then? What else?”

“I’m suggesting we use streamers or VTubers.”

The staff member grinned.

However, the chairperson’s expression was skeptical.

“…VTubers?”

“Among young people, VTubers and streamers have a huge influence. This generation is more familiar with mobile phones than TV. These days, there are even more homes without TVs.”

“That’s true. My daughter only watches her phone.”

“Yes. Streamers and VTubers mainly operate on mobile platforms. Let’s try putting an ad in their content. Regardless of the outcome, we’re guaranteed exposure.”

“No, VTuber… is that really doing that well?”

The chairperson still hadn’t removed the skeptical look on their face.

It’s understandable, though. The person who had always been dozing off and lacked energy suddenly started passionately speaking as if they were a completely different person.

It was almost as if they wanted to hit them.

“Wouldn’t it be nice if you worked like this all the time…”

Anyway, the staff continued confidently.

“But of course, we need to give ads to the popular ones. If we give ads to the most popular ones, the VTuber viewers’ reach will naturally spread.”

“Well, alright. You take care of it.”

Meanwhile, in the editing room of the short film Sword.

Energy drink cans formed the Great Wall on the desk, and now, it was so difficult to even stack them that various trash items were rolling around on the floor.

The scene looked like a trash heap, but surprisingly, there were people working in this place. The director of the short film Sword, Park Jun, along with two or three others working on the editing.

Tada-dadak—

Tada-dadak—

Only the sounds of the mouse and keyboard clicking.

There was no conversation between them.

Tada-dadak—

As if they had forgotten the time, as if they had forgotten their hunger, they stared only at the monitor with deeply shaded eyes. The editing program displayed on the screen was being rapidly manipulated.

And a few hours later.

They turned off two of the three computers.

Screech!

They moved their chairs towards the computer that was still on. They no longer worked.

Now, they just admired what they had completed.

All three of them crossed their arms and said nothing.

Then, after a while.

Finally, when the video finished playing and stopped,

They exchanged glances without speaking.

It was hard to believe these were the same coworkers I knew, their faces now worn-out. But they easily read each other’s emotions.

It was something all three of them strongly held inside.

“Finally…”

The three of them formed a circle and put their arms around each other.

The names of those emotions were pride and joy.

“We did it!”

“Finished! Finished! Finished! Finished!”

“It’s finally over! It’s finally over!”

The short film Sword.

It was literally a sword. The sharply forged blade was now ready to be swung toward the short film festival.

Meanwhile, in the editing room of the short film Wind.

“Hmm…”

Yang Ha-rin quietly sipped her coffee.

It was a completely different scene from the editing room of Sword.

This place was spacious, cleaner than anywhere else, and was filled with luxurious snacks and drinks.

Moreover, the editing team was neat and there was no trace of a worn-out, zombie-like atmosphere.

Director Jo Eui-shin and the entire team were waiting for Yang Ha-rin’s response after watching the edited version.

Yang Ha-rin nodded.

“Yes. It looks like it’s finished without any issues.”

“Hahaha!”

Director Jo Eui-shin finally smiled widely.

“It’s thanks to your excellent acting, Ha-rin!”

“Oh, no. Director Jo, you’re the one who will be winning an award soon.”

“Of course! It has to be like that!”

From Yang Ha-rin’s perspective, Wind was quite excellent.

It was only natural.

Wind was designed purely with the intention of winning an award. As a result, despite being a short film, an enormous budget had been poured into it.

Director Jo must have a pretty wide network.

Moreover, Yang Ha-rin knew that Director Jo Eui-shin had a broad network. At least, there was no concern about losing out on awards because of networking.

Later, Yang Ha-rin left the editing room and got into the van.

On the way back to the CT Entertainment building, the CEO, who had been waiting inside the vehicle, couldn’t hide their curiosity and asked.

“Ha-rin, did you have a good time?”

“Yes.”

“How was it? Did it turn out well?”

“There were no issues. It seems like we’ll probably win an award.”

“Really?”

The CEO nodded with a satisfied expression.

“By the way, I just got some new information…”

The CEO immediately whispered something into Ha-rin’s ear.

Ha-rin twitched her eyebrows.

“…Really? They actually managed to complete it?”

Yang Ha-rin sneered.

The news that the short film Sword had been completed.

It would have been annoying at any other time, but now it was rather exciting. It was because Wind, which she had seen, was so excellent.

At this moment, she was confident she could step on anyone, no matter who they were.

“Lee Sua…”

Yang Ha-rin murmured that name after a long time.

“Let’s see how you squirm. How ugly will you twist?”

While mumbling to herself and fiddling with her phone, she habitually searched her ego. Once again, her community addiction flared up.

It was no surprise that Yang Ha-rin, with her addictive tendencies, was exploring new galleries, and soon her expression became twisted.

She had discovered an unexpected gallery.

[Lee Sua Gallery]

“…?”

What kind of gallery is this? Just the name alone is unpleasant.

Yang Ha-rin, without much thought, wrote something. After all, it was anonymous.

[A trashy gallery. A ridiculous gallery.]

Ding— Ding—

But to her surprise, three comments appeared right after posting.

Deer: ᄋᄌᄋᄌ ᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏ
Monkeying: ᄅᄋ ᄊᄋᄌ ᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏ
Black Bear: Good good ᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏ

“…?”

Yang Ha-rin tilted her head once again.

What are these animals? Is this a zoo gallery?

At the same time, she bookmarked this page.

Meanwhile, at Go Eun-bi’s one-room apartment.

“What?”

The virtual YouTuber Shikarin, a member of the group chat Deer, narrowed her eyes.

She had just received an unexpected email.

[This is the Busan International Short Film Festival Committee.]

“Hello. I am Jung Woo-young from the marketing team of the Busan International Short Film Festival Committee. With the festival just three weeks away, we would like to offer you an advertising opportunity, Shikarin from NeoLive.”

Go Eun-bi squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again.

Once, twice, three times…

Eventually, she blinked like crazy.

“…What? What is this?”

Go Eun-bi immediately called her coworker.

The other person was the oldest among the virtual YouTubers from NeoLive. She was probably the best person to ask about such matters.

“Sis, I just got this email…”

“Ah, I know. You got the promotional email from the short film festival, right?”

“Yeah. It says NeoLive has already accepted it. What is this? You never consulted me about this.”

“Eun-bi, there was no need to consult about this.”

“O!?”

Eun-bi couldn’t understand those words.

“Why didn’t you consult me? I don’t know how to handle this! I’m not confident! Until now, all we’ve done is game ads!”

“Eun-bi, this is way easier than game ads.”

“Easier than that? How?”

“You can’t even compare. Think about it. You just sit and watch a short film. That’s it. If you watch it with the viewers, you make money.”

“…Oh, is that how it is? Wait, is that really all?”

Eun-bi had often wondered since starting as a virtual YouTuber.

Is it really this easy to make money? Is life this simple? Why does work even exist?

“So what? It’s not like we’re the ones begging for it. They made the offer.”

“That’s true…”

Anyway, Eun-bi nodded shortly.

If it was a good opportunity, there was no reason to refuse.

At the same time, Eun-bi thought of around 500 ways to torment Sua. One day, when Sua comes back after working hard, Eun-bi would boast about how she made easy money and beat her up.

Maybe she’d give her some pocket money if she cried…

Yeah, that’s how she’d train Sua. Hehehe.

“Got it, sis. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Go Eun-bi’s expression turned slightly wicked.

The moment when Shikarin, the virtual YouTuber from NeoLive, or rather, Deer, confirmed the short film festival coverage.