Jo Hyun Jae

It’s been a while since we’ve posted anything on Andrea, so here are a few photos and a video.

The following “Love Letter” video, created by johyunjae.cn, is set to one of our all-time favourites – “Try to remember”.  While we are waiting for JHJ’s new drama/movie, all we can do is try to remember.

youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvsWazoqw0w

(Credit: Video by www.johyunjae.cn; photos from http://cafe.daum.net; www.johyunjae.hk. Thanks!)

After seeing Jo Hyun-Jae in person for the first time at his discharge, our translator L said this song by Lee Seung Chul reminded her of him.  She translated the lyrics from Korean into Chinese, and we have translated them into English here.  The song is called “No one else” on the web, but our translator says our title is closer to the Korean.  This song is dedicated to JHJ.

There will never be anyone like you

Even if there are a thousand reincarnations
There will never be anyone like you
You soothe my sorrows, you warm my heart – I am thankful
Even if my heart still aches, for someone like you what does it matter

Even if I can’t say “I love you”
Even if I can only gaze from a distance
I can still give, still love
Even if I am sad, I still feel blessed.

For the first time in my life I feel moved
There will never be another love like this
This beautiful love is hidden deep in my memories
For someone like you I can endure the pain and tears.

Even if I can’t say “I love you”
Even if I can only gaze from a distance
I can still give, still love
Even if I am sad, I still feel blessed.

 I ask nothing of you,
I feel blessed just to see you smile
Love means giving, just giving like this
Even if I am sad, I still feel blessed.

Lee Seung Chul  (이승철 ) singing “No one else” (그런 사람 또 없습니다) – from the movie “A Story Sadder than Sadness”.

Long version (repeated) – with Chinese lyrics

Short version

Korean lyrics and Romanised lyrics

천번이고 다시 태어난데도
cheonbeonigo dasi taeeonandedo
그런 사람 또 없을테죠 음~
geureon saram tto eobseultejyo eum~
슬픈 내 삶을 따뜻하게 해줄
seulpeun nae sarmeul ttatteutage haejul
참 고마운 사람입니다
cham gomaun saramimnida
그런 그대를 위해서 나의 심장쯤이야
geureon geudaereul wihaeseo naui simjangjjeumiya
얼마든 아파도 좋은데
eolmadeun apado joheunde
사랑이란 그 말은 못해도 먼곳에서 이렇게
sarangiran geu mareun motaedo meongoseseo ireoke
바라만 보아도 모든걸 줄수 있어서 사랑할수 있어서
baraman boado modeungeol julsu isseoseo saranghalsu isseoseo
난 슬퍼도 행복합니다
nan seulpeodo haengbokhamnida나 태어나 처음 가슴 떨리는
na taeeona cheoeum gaseum tteollineun
이런 사랑 또 없을테죠
ireon sarang tto eobseultejyo
몰래 감춰둔 오랜 기억속에 단 하나의 사랑입니다
mollae gamchwodun oraen gieoksoge dan hanaui sarangimnida
그런 그대를 위해서 아픈 눈물쯤이야
geureon geudaereul wihaeseo apeun nunmuljjeumiya
얼마든 참을수 있는데
eolmadeun chameulsu inneunde
사랑이란 그 말은 못해도 먼곳에서 이렇게
sarangiran geu mareun motaedo meongoseseo ireoke
바라만 보아도 모든걸 줄수 있어서 사랑할수 있어서
baraman boado modeungeol julsu isseoseo saranghalsu isseoseo
난 슬퍼도 행복합니다
nan seulpeodo haengbokhamnida
아무것도 바라지 않아도
amugeotdo baraji anhado
그대 웃어준다면 난 행복할텐데
geudae useojundamyeon nan haengbokhaltende
사랑은 주는거니까 그저 주는거니까
sarangeun juneungeonikka geujeo juneungeonikka
난 슬퍼도 행복합니다
nan seulpeodo haengbokhamnida

(Credit: English lyrics translated by wulijohyunjae; all others by d00lie, from soompi; JHJ photo from http://cafe.daum.net/hyunjaeAnPam.  Thanks!)

Before you watch these behind-the-scenes videos, you should refresh your memory and watch those MVs of See Ya’s “Love’s Greeting” and “Ice Lady” again.  (Please see our earlier posts “JHJ in ‘Love’s Greeting’” (June 11, 2009) and “JHJ in ‘Ice Lady’” (June 12, 2009) under Category “JHJ MV”.)

The first video here is an interview of Jo Hyun-Jae and his female co-star Lee Yo-Won during filming of the MVs.  The interview is a little “embarrassing” (original word in Korean, not mine) because throughout the interview JHJ seems to be elsewhere (not focusing) which makes Lee laugh hysterically.  There are lots of funny comments on the video, some of which we’ve tried to translate (words in italics within parenthesis.).

Q: If there is really a former life, what kind of a person do you think you were?
Lee:  I seem to have owed many people a lot of debt, which is why in this life I have to do many things.  This question is very difficult to answer.
JHJ: ………. (seems to be thinking of something else…..Did I remember to turn off the gas before I left home this morning?……..Ha!Ha!Ha!) I think I was a simple man.

Q: Is the performance difficult?
Lee: Very! Shooting an MV is very different from a drama. Even though I try to visualize the protagonist in the music, but I just can’t make the connection. And then there is no music – very difficult.
Q: How about writing some music for you?
Lee: There is already a song………..(keeps laughing)
Q: What is the song?
Lee: 사랑이 좋아 (”Love is great”)

(All this time JHJ is still in his own world………)

Q: The present and the past – which part is more difficult to act?
Lee: Both are difficult, but the part on the past is more beautiful in the acting.
JHJ: This is the first time I’m shooting an MV………(doesn’t know what he is supposed to answer……..) Very different from a drama or movie, very difficult.

Q: This is your first collaboration after “Great Ambition” (DaeMang). How does it feel like after such a long time?
JHJ: I feel we collaborate really well, don’t you? (keeps looking at Lee)
Lee: (pointing to JHJ) He gave a superb performance.

Q: Do you often listen to See Ya’s songs?
Lee: ……….(covering her mouth and laughing……….)
JHJ: “구두” (”Shoes”) this song…….(laugh……), that’s the only one I know………
Lee: ……….(giggling uncontrollably……..)
Q: (repeats question) Do you listen to See Ya’s songs a lot?
Lee: Yes.
Q: Which ones do you like?
Lee:: “구두”(”Shoes”), “여인의 향기”(”Lover’s scent”), “미친사랑의 노래”(”Crazy love song”).

Q: Say something to See Ya who cannot come on set.
JHJ: Filming very seriously……..trying our best to produce the best results……..hope we can do well. (Still can’t focus properly……….)
Lee: ……….(keeps laughing…….) It’s not our answers that are strange; it’s the question that is strange………I really hope we can finish this interview soon.

(Interview seems to be over……….JHJ strolls away nonchalantly……….)

Q: (Addressed to Lee) Where is JHJ?
Lee: Why do you ask me?
Q: You look very tired.
Lee: Yes, interviews are tiring.
Q: The interviewee is tired, and so is the interviewer.
Lee: Yes………thanks.

*             *            *            *             *             *             *            *             *            *           

The two MVs are shot non-stop during a 24-hour period. JHJ is probably seriously sleep-deprived. Throughout the whole interview he seems to be slower by half a beat – very funny and cute!

Why is Lee Yo-Won laughing her head off?  She is obviously a little high (if you ask me), unless after non-stop shooting she has not decompressed properly and is suffering from the “bends” (cramping which makes her laugh uncontrollably – just kidding!)  

As for the second and third videos, they are mostly shooting sequences and some NGs, also repeating parts of the interview in the first video.

A little tidbit on the shooting of these videos — if you pay attention to the third video, you’ll see at 5:30 minutes (lower left corner) there is a brief appearance of JHJ’s birthday party (and the birthday cake.)  Yes, he celebrated his 27th birthday on set on May 9, 2007, and he even “died” on his birthday.

In Part 2, set to See Ya’s song “Ice Lady” (which is about love and parting), the story continues with the eloping lovers. Actually the See Ya songs have nothing to do with the dramatic story. The director is really ingenious in coming up with such a storyline that transcends time.

In Part 1 (See Ya’s “Love’s Greeting”) the JHJ character, the archaeologist, discovers a book clutched in the mummy’s grasp. He reads her story and asks the Lee Yo Won character, the forensic sculptor, to restore her likeness. As she works, it becomes increasingly clear that the face that will emerge in the end is hers (in her past self.) No wonder she faints when she first sees the mummy. Lee and JHJ keep having flashbacks in their minds of their past lives long ago.

The lovers in the past come to a tragic end, or rather, the JHJ character is killed by his pursuers. The lady is forcibly taken back to her folks, and she spends her days writing her “diary”. That is the book that is unearthed with the mummy and which tells their love story.

When the JHJ character, the archaeologist, sees the finished head, he understands at once. Lee leaves and he runs after her. His final words are: “The past must not be repeated. I’ll never let you go again. Never!” At least in this life they may have a happy ending. (But I’m not sure, because Lee is wearing a wedding ring. I don’t understand why this little detail is included.)

The two MVs together tell a beautiful and moving story. I like JHJ’s acting here, however brief, only 11 minutes altogether, but it’s like a mini-drama. And the See Ya songs are pretty catchy and melodious. The MVs are supposed to dramatise the songs, but the songs are just background music. It’s the love story (past and present) that is so absorbing and attractive.

(Credit: johyunjae.cn for the Chinese subtitles.)

In 2007 when Jo Hyun-Jae was filming “G.P.506″ and production was halted halfway, he made two rather surprising career moves: one was to model for Andre Kim in his Fashion Extravaganza in Wuxi (China) in July; the other was to star in two music videos for See Ya’s second album.

See Ya is a very popular Korean female group comprising of three members (one of whom has left the group in April 2009 due to a contractual dispute.) Their second album “Lovely Sweet Heart” was released in May 2007, and it became the fifth best-selling album in Korea of that year, according to the Music Industry Association of Korea.

The first single “Love’s Greeting” won awards at the 2007 Golden Disk Awards and the MKMF Awards. “Ice Lady” is the follow-up single which also did very well.

Jo Hyun-Jae’s female co-star in both MVs is Lee Yo Won (who is one of two female leads in “Great Ambition”.) The lyrics of “Love’s Greeting” is about love and promise, but the MV portrays a very interesting and intriguing story. It opens with Lee, a forensic sculptor, driving to an archaeological site which is supervised by the JHJ character, an archaeological expert. Their team has just discovered a well-preserved female mummy in a grave. As it turns out, the story is about their past lives and present lives. Lee and JHJ are lovers in their past lives in ancient times, but they meet with a tragic fate.

The MV weaves between past and present. The scenes in ancient times rather resemble “Seo Dong Yo” in some respects. The two children who are the best of friends grow up to become lovers, but their love is doomed to tragedy because of their different status. JHJ is involved in some action scenes in which he shows his physical prowess, including a leap in the air with a fiery torch. This MV ends on a cliffhanger, with the JHJ character wounded by an arrow in the back. You have to go to Part 2 “Ice Lady” to find out what happens to Lee and JHJ in the past and in the present. Watch out for our post tomorrow.

(Credit: johyunjae.cn for the Chinese subtitles)