Success of 'Secret Garden' Continues to Grow

The massive popularity of the SBS hit drama "Secret Garden" is still reverberating even after the weekend series came to an end. Deals have been worked out to export the drama to several countries, and it is expanding its reach to other fields including music, film and theater.

SBS Contents Hub said on Thursday that it has sold broadcasting rights for 13 countries so far, including Japan, China and Thailand, at record-high prices for a combined US$ 3.5 million. It also recently signed a contract with a U.S. website which will offer the series as video-on-demand.

"We expect more profits once exports of merchandise such as dolls, comics and diaries begin sooner or later," an SBS Contents Hub spokesperson said. "The Japanese terrestrial channel that will broadcast the series expects the same blockbuster success as 'Winter Sonata' there."

Meanwhile, the soundtrack of "Secret Garden" is sweeping the pop charts here. The album has sold more than 30,000 copies, and a song from the album by main actor Hyun Bin has topped various online music charts.

The film industry also hopes to see ripple effects, as the movies "Late Autumn" and "Come Rain Come Shine" starring Hyun and "Sector 7" with the series' lead actress Ha Ji-won are soon to hit cinemas.

"Secret Garden" may be heading to the stage as well. "We had thought about making it into a musical, and thanks to its great popularity we've been inundated with proposals," said an insider at Hwa & Dam Pictures, the series' production company.

source: Chosun Ilbo

An Interview with Kim Hyun Joo on Twinkle Twinkle's Success

The gist of the interview:

"The shooting of Twinkle Twinkle has been particularly hard for me, but it holds special meanings to me," Kim Hyun Joo said. As a bright and bubbly JW who experienced drastic changes in life but eventually achieved success, Kim Hyun Joo has successfully portrayed the outstanding and exceptional JW according to what the scriptwriter has perceived her to be. Twinkle Twinkle was the only one MBC drama which broke the 20% rating over the past 7 years and emerged as the winner among weekend dramas.

In fact, KHJ also experienced a long period of slowdown and setback before making a successful comeback at Twinkle Twinkle. In an interview on 17 August in a cafe at Apgujeong, KHJ said, "I feel a lot of love from people. But I also feel a lot of pressure. During the shooting of this drama I was surrounded by very good atmosphere and the overwhelming responses from the viewers are also very encouraging."

"JW is like the name of this drama, really transparent and clear like a crystal. I also hope to raise a daughter like JW in the future. At my age, I have experienced the troubles of JW so at a certain degree I can understand her struggles."

"I don't think I have a great voice. At least my voice is quite lovely and I find it acceptable. In real life I seldom practice solo singing. Due to having a deep voice, I don't sing really well. A few days ago I even had a discussion with my friends about my performance of JW's out-of-tune singing."

"In the last episode, I sang a lullaby to the mother Hwang. I really shot the scene with my real emotions and feelings and I also tried really hard to hold back my tears. My mother was really into this drama. She is even jealous about my intimacy with the mother Hwang in the drama," she laughed.

About the rating, she said, "The ratings were basically up to my expectations but it was still a bit behind the expectation of the majority of the crew. Anyhow, all the actors are very satisfied with the ratings."

The filming schedule was really tough for her and she felt overloaded. "The life of an actor seems really glamorous, but in reality it isn't. The shooting schedule was really tight and every time I could only sleep for a while. Of course I would hold grudges about this arrangement and there were indeed several times I thought of running away! But I knew that it was meaningless to keep on complaining and as an actor this is my responsibility to endure this hardship and complete the task at its best. Therefore I focused myself on every detail so as to achieve the best. The most diffcult period was early March, during which I hardly had any rest and I had to shoot the scenes non-stop and overnight. In the end I had to go to hospital to get an IV drip thrice. Although the filming was difficult, I felt encouraged by the whole crew and the good atmosphere. All the hard work was really worthwhile," she laughed.

Trying many lovely and kind characters, KHJ said, "I really want to try a villain role in my next project, such as the type of a cold and evil but lovely woman. As a thirty-something actress, I have not tried a villain role. This is quite a regret to an actor. I hope in the near future I can show off another aspect of my acting."

*credit: gelato