K-drama star calls for improved work conditions1 min read
Reading Time: < 1 minuteHan Ye-seul, lead actor in the KBS drama “Spy MyeongWol,” has stated her intention to resume filming and returned to Korea.
But though the broadcaster has avoided having to replace a lead actress half way through filming, the fact that she ceased filming, demanding better working conditions, means the controversy surrounding Korean TV drama production practices has yet to subside.
No sleep
Filming through the night for several days in a row is an age-old practice on TV drama sets. On August 17, the manager of one actress who recently played the leading role in another drama said, “Once shooting for a drama begins, you work six days a week. You repeatedly stay up all night or get only about two hours of sleep. Even on the one day off, you get home at dawn so you can”˜t really call it a break.”
One veteran actor who appeared in a different drama said, “There are a lot of so-called “˜live broadcast shootings,’ where the show to be broadcast on a certain day is filmed on that day. I was amazed that the drama went out properly after filming like that.”
