Gumiho: Tale of the Fox Child holds drama press conference
by javabeans
Kim Yoo-jung, Seo Shin-ae
On July 1, the cast of KBS’s Gumiho: Tale of the Fox Child held their production press conference. And while Han Eun-jung is the headliner, I’m wondering if (and hoping that) the two girls actually run away with the story.
Kim Yoo-jung plays Han’s half-human, half-fox child, and Seo Shin-ae is a sickly, cranky nobleman’s daughter. They were born on the same day and their fates become linked as Han and her daughter run away and meet Seo’s village family.
Both young girls already have quite a bit of acting experience despite their young ages (Kim will be 11 this fall; Seo will turn 12 a month later), each with numerous drama credits to their names. Kim was in Iljimae, Painter of the Wind, Tamra the Island, Dong Yi, and most recently Road No. 1, to name a few. Seo stole hearts in Thank You, then again in the recent sitcom High Kick Through the Roof.
As for the adults, Han Eun-jung called it her “good fortune” to be cast as a gumiho, described as “every actress’s fantasy.” It’s a familiar character of folklore and has been acted by a number of actresses in past projects, including Go So-young, Song Yoon-ah, Park Shi-yeon, and Park Min-young.
The gumiho, or traditional fox spirit, is considered a meaty role and melds together two sets of tropes that kdramas just love: the horror-thriller aspect and the woman as fox. The gumiho brings the fright factor of ghost stories (think vampires in Western lore, or to a lesser extent banshees or even succubi), and her fox nature is like a literal manifestation of the foxy lady archetype. (In English, a foxy woman means a hottie, but in Korean it has additional — often negative — connotations. She’s wily, cunning, and a man-eater.)
In addition to those three ladies, the drama also features Jang Hyun-sung, who had nothing but praise for his child-actor co-stars. He said, “They’re like colleagues more than children actors. They’re so good that they’re very dependable. Children’s hearts are pure, so the expressions they convey are pure. There are a lot of things I can learn from them.”
Meanwhile, 23-year-old Seo Joon-young (in the hat below) plays his silent servant, and harbors secret feelings for Han’s character. His reticence isn’t just a character trait, though, as it seems he’s actually mute. (Gah, I’m a sucker for this type of character. It just kills me.) His character is described as a “momjjang” servant, which means muscular and built. As Seo recently packed on 10 kg for a film role, he had to shed that weight to get in shape for this one.
Rounding out the cast are Baek Bong-ki (Pasta) in a comic role, Yoon Hee-seok (Secret Reunion) as a mean governor in pursuit of the gumiho, and actress Kim Jung-nan (Partner).
Gumiho: Tale of the Fox Child premieres next Monday, July 5.
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Tags: Gumiho: Tale of the Fox's Child, Han Eun-jung, Jang Hyun-sung, Kim Yoo-jung, press conferences, Seo Joon-young, Seo Shin-ae, Yoon Hee-seok
Interview with Kim Yoo-jung
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1 :)
July 1, 2010 at 2:50 PM
first!
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2 Sweet
July 1, 2010 at 3:01 PM
WOW!
Why Oh! Why
Does he have to be mute.
Grrrrrrrrr.
His expressions better be good!
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3 DryedMangoez
July 1, 2010 at 4:01 PM
I totally remember Kim Yoo-jung in Powerful Opponents! Boy she's grown!
I always love it when the kids/young cast steal dramas. So much more enjoyable I think.
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4 Jennifer
July 1, 2010 at 5:05 PM
Kim Yoo Jung is so pretty!! I have high hopes for her in the future. She is the child actress that I'm looking forward to. She also has a great acting ability.
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5 nobody
July 1, 2010 at 5:05 PM
The actors/actresses are starting out younger and younger these days. I hope these young actors have great support systems and their rights are being protected because it would be heartbreaking if they would end up as tortured, messed up adults.
The best of luck to the whole cast.
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6 Buki
July 1, 2010 at 5:11 PM
i'm not sure about that white dress.
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7 nobody
July 1, 2010 at 5:14 PM
sorry for the 2 consecutive post.
Question: Are there laws in SK that protects the rights of these young actors? For example: they work only XX number of hours per day, no working at night, they have time for study, etc. etc.
JB or anyone can answer my question. It just bothers me so much that these young ones are working already in a very competitive industry instead of enjoying their childhood.
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8 lilly
July 1, 2010 at 5:42 PM
Kim Yoo Jung is everywhere. She plays the child character in every projects I see. I would like to see her and Jung Da Bin (the cutest child actress I have ever seen and acts very good too) in a drama or a movie.
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9 saranga
July 1, 2010 at 7:31 PM
kim yoo jung is going to grow up to be a knockout. she already looks so much older than the last time i saw her!!
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10 Ani
July 1, 2010 at 7:34 PM
Can't wait! Can't wait! Thanks for this update. Go team Gumiho (both dramas, I mean) GO!
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11 kaedejun
July 1, 2010 at 7:36 PM
hehe kim yoo jung reminds me a bit of park shi yeon in the first photo. and seo shin ae looks like she'll be a trendsetter like yoon eun hye in all those photoshoots!
anyways - a mute servant!?!? wow - major heavy acting with the eyes yo...
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12 koreandramasrock
July 1, 2010 at 7:46 PM
Omo.. this sounds exciting! I loved the little girl in Thank You so I'm looking forward to seeing her in this.
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13 Sonam
July 1, 2010 at 8:01 PM
The little darlings are cheering me up.
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14 elle
July 1, 2010 at 8:31 PM
those two girls are so adorable. i always thought they'd be child star rivals since they are both successful in acting. these two are going to go far i hope.
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15 booshoo
July 1, 2010 at 10:50 PM
Park Shi Yeon acted as a Gumiho??? When?! I wanna watch! XD
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16 Jenny
July 2, 2010 at 1:16 AM
It's interesting that in Korean folklore the fox or gumiho represents something bad while in japanese folklore the fox, kitsune is more someone who is a trickster.
I loved Kim Yoo-jung in Tamra, she was so cute there as a the smarter younger sister.
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17 michi
July 2, 2010 at 2:27 AM
i think i am going to give this a try :)
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18 choufy
July 2, 2010 at 5:25 AM
So finally Seo Joon-young won't be a main character ? I was quite curious to see his relationship with Han Eun-jung growing through the drama...
Fortunatally Jang Hyun-sung wins me over with his charcter in Jejoongwon lol So I'm glad to see him here.
Anyway, the two girls remain my first expectation so I'll go with that ^^
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19 therainhouse
July 2, 2010 at 5:44 AM
Does anyone else think that the gumiho child's yellow eyes are scary?
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20 mskololia1
July 2, 2010 at 7:03 AM
I'm looking forward to this one. The kids are adorable and always add something to dramas so I hope is stays with them throughout. The two girls are good actresses imo.
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21 supah
July 3, 2010 at 9:35 AM
Seo Shin-ae was a little darling in Thank You. This drama sounds much more intriguing now than it did at first.
(I hope it chips into Dong Yi's ratings and not Giant's please...)
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22 yoyo
July 5, 2010 at 10:03 PM
han eun-jung is so gorgeous i loved her in full house, i'll keep my eye out for this drama!
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