AO EXCLUSIVE: Bae Suzy, Nam Joo Hyuk, Kim Seon Ho, and Kang Han Na welcome fans in the growing journey of “Start-Up”

Start-Up stars Bae Suzy, Nam Joo Hyuk, Kim Seon Ho, and Kang Han Na together with Director Oh Choong Hwan joined the exclusive online Netflix Asia Pacific press conference for Start-Up on October 12, assuring viewers of an encouragement, youthful, and growing journey along the way.

The said Netflix’ original Korean series tells the story of four individuals who face various challenges as they started their career path in the business world trying to prove their selves and skills.

According to Director Oh Choong Hwan, in the ups and downs of the story, the viewers will be seeing how the characters grow and foster friendship with one another while we learn life lessons as we get to know them more.

“It’s about love, but not just about love, it’s about having a vision for your life and working hard for your vision,” he added.

Why they chose their characters

Bae Suzy who plays the character of Seo Dal Mi has a dream of becoming the Korea’s Steve Jobs; and to take it into an account, she has a lot of working experiences in different jobs.

When asked in the press conference why she chose the role, Suzy replied, “I was drawn to the story and the complex relationships. Start-Up felt original and fresh, and I also enjoyed the encouraging message for youths.”

Moreover, as it was known to be Suzy’s second time working with the director and writer Park Hye Ryun, she shared, “I worked with writer Park Hye Ryun for my first appearance in a television drama, so we have a meaningful relationship. I am excited to work with her again and hopefully as a more mature actress this time.”

On the other hand, Nam Joo Hyuk is playing the character of Nam Do San, the founder of Samsan Tech who tries to prove his capabilities in the start-up world.

His character was once the pride of his family for being a math genius, but now he is labeled as a disgrace to his family who has been losing investments for two years.

“The character seems a bit lacking, but as the story unfolds, he grows. I saw some overlapping relationships with my character as well. We are around the same age, so I could feel what he is feeling. I wanted to grow together with Do San,” Nam Joo Hyuk recalled.

Kim Seon Ho who also joins the cast as Han Ji Pyeong, the head of SH Venture Capital’s senior team and known as the Gordon Ramsay for his impressive investment skills and sharp remarks, shared in the press con that the drama is comfortable, warm, and fun to watch.

Kang Han Na who completes the cast plays the character of CEO Won In Jae, who has everything in life such as beauty, money, and other resources; however, she finds herself hiding in their family name and aims to prove her own skills.

“Won In Jae, as a CEO, is an amazing businesswoman. However, deep down I feel sympathy for her. I hope viewers can relate to her and cheer her on for her personal happiness,” she said.

Preparation for their roles

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As Start-Up is a whole new level of youth drama about growing up and giving encouragement, the four main casts prepared themselves to give justice to their respective roles.

Kang Han Na shared that the writer let her watched some videos of successful CEOs to portray her character well and even decided to cut her hair short.

The writer also gave a lot of reference materials and details to Kim Seon Ho about his character, which is the epitome of a rich and successful person and he managed to analyzed the speech style he used.

Kim Seon Ho was also surprised when the director revealed that he is a fan of his variety show 2 Days & 1 Night and had a talk with the show’s creator about Kim Seon Ho’s personality that get Director Oh Choong Hwan to know him more.

Nam Joo Hyuk also prepared by looking back to his life and looking forward to his future as he can relate with his character named Nam Do San.

He stated, “It was not hard to pull off the nerd aspect of my character because I realized his qualities were within me. When I get nervous in real life, I tremble so I used that in my acting.”

Bae Suzy beside him smiled and replied, “Joo Hyuk is a simple, pure, and adorable nerd,” that also made Nam Joo Hyuk laugh and took it as a compliment.

In addition, Suzy also shared her experiences, which she is also not very familiar with the concept and also looked up to some young CEOs to portray her role and read the script a lot with Seo Dal Mi’s perspective.

Moreover, despite the tension in the drama reaching their goals, the director revealed that the set has some outtakes because of laughter and they would just look at each other and break out into laughter.

Chemistry of the two leads

Director Oh Choong Hwan happily addressed that he wants to give himself a pat on the back for casting the two main leads and hopes that the world might remember these two beautiful and sparkling people on the screen together.

Nam Joo Hyuk shared that he really looked forward to acting with Bae Suzy after he heard the casting, and said that they have good chemistry after they met in the drama.

Suzy commented that there were a lot of good energies in the set, and mentioned that Nam Joo Hyuk also created a good synergy between them.

“He is Do San himself and I was able to immerse myself in my role because of him. He is bright and bubbly,” she complimented.

Message to the viewers

Director Oh Choong Hwan hopes that in this drama, people would feel comforted, heal some wounds, like how Suzy was comforted by the screenplay and helped her to look back on his life.

Suzy, Nam Joo Hyuk, and Kim Seon Ho are looking forward to everyone to watch and enjoy Start-Up— the heartwarming drama with so many wonderful people.

Kang Han Na sincerely said, “Our drama series is truly a sparkling story that will create a fire in your hearts. It is a good drama to watch with someone you love, your family, or even on your own. I hope you tune in for the first episode on the 17th.”

Are you getting more excited to embark on a start-up journey and grow as an individual with Bae Suzy, Nam Joo Hyuk, Kim Seon Ho, and Kang Han Na?

Let us experience and relate to the life of the four main leads in finding their own path in Start-Up companies while proving their selves at the same time this coming October 17 at 10 PM PST.

Watch Start-Up’s trailer below.

Photo courtesy of Netflix and tvN