article / shin pd for wof

14.11.17

 

How was the Mino you met through Youth Over Flowers?

- He was the youngest in New Journey To The West. In YOF, you were able to see a mature side to him. Mino knows all the staff members of YOF, and when you're close with the staff, it's easy for the other fellow group members to feel silently alienated, but Mino always took care of the WINNER members first. He always remained one step behind for his friends. Of course, the 'Song Dummy' character was still there, and he still danced from time to time out of excitement. Despite that, to make sure that it wasn't 'My Trip' but rather, 'Our Trip', he always asked for the WINNER members' thoughts and opinions. He sort of became the anchor for the members throughout the trip in that sense. I got to see a mature side to him.

 

What is Lee Seung Hoon's appeal/charm?

- He's very good at cooking and I heard that he occasionally cooks for his members in their dorm, so I thought his cooking skills were just enough to survive. While WINNER was traveling in Australia, they cooked a lot in wherever they were lodging in order to save money, and SeungHoon was usually the one that was in charge of cooking. It wasn't something he learned separately, but rather something he picked up from watching TV shows or looking through SNS, and yet it was interestingly delicious. And when he gets the chance to make it properly, he makes sure that the plating is pretty. So, whenever it's time to eat, the members would look for SeungHoon and tell him what they wanted to eat. The reason behind why the WINNER members didn't starve in the duration of their trip was because of SeungHoon. SeungHoon would also wonder 'What should we eat?' when it was time for a meal. He also believes that when you have a meal, you need to eat it deliciously, so he's great at finding good restaurants. They were better than the restaurants that the production crew finds after specific field/site investigations. We've created the official title, 'Good Restaurants You Trust Lee SeungHoon and Go To'. Later on, the production crew even went out to go eat at a restaurant that SeungHoon recommended.

 

Besides Mino, it was your first time meeting the other members. How was the eldest, Kim Jin Woo?

- He was the eldest who often seemed like the youngest, yet he was a hyung you could really depend on. The members of WINNER are all of different ages, but as someone who was beside them and watching their dynamic, it seems as though they're all the same age. Each member's own personality is very distinct. Because of this, they can't help the differences in opinions and disagreements that arise, and Jin Woo plays a very big role in naturally bringing about a solution or compromise. He interacts with the younger members without even thinking about the authority that usually comes when you are the eldest. Even though Mino has the title of 'Song Dummy' in NJTTW, Jin Woo is no better (laughs). Mino thought he might get his character stolen and consistently kept himself in check. But JinWoo confidently declared that he was a 'Natural Dummy', and that this wasn't something just for broadcast-purposes. He is also very bright, genuine, and pure. He doesn't have the whole, 'I'm an idol so I have to be cool' persona at all. His physical features are refined, but you can still feel and see the island boy of Imjado. The production team also quickly opened up their hearts to JinWoo. I could see the reason why the younger members love Kim Jin Woo so much.

 

I thought the way leader Kang Seung Yoon calmly looked after the WINNER members was very memorable.

- Age-wise, he's the youngest. At the start of the trip, he took the role of being the treasurer and navigator. Something I noticed while putting together the episodes was that it's quite rare to see all the WINNER members in one place at the same time. They're all sort of spread out somewhere and you really don't know where they're going to run off to next. Kang Seung Yoon takes initiative and sets an example because of his responsibility as a leader. None of the other members have a very good sense of direction so SeungYoon had to take charge of things like the schedule, and emceeing. As a staff member, I wished that SeungYoon could enjoy the trip to the fullest instead of taking all the responsibilities. But as time passed, the role naturally became shared with the other members, and SeungYoon was eventually able to enjoy the trip. When you think of a TV show like this, there is usually a member of the cast who is a bit strong in character which can cause some issues to rise. With WINNER, there is no such member. They were all delighted just by the fact that they were on a trip, and were happy over every little thing. And I think that's the charm and appeal of WINNER.