[HanCinema's News] Shin Hyun-been Talks About "Monstrous"

Actress Shin Hyun-been recently conducted an interview for the TVING mystery thriller "Monstrous" in which she plays a leading role, which takes place in a small town. Shin Hyun-been claimed to have not been especially drawn to the genre when selecting the role. Shin Hyun-been claimed that rather than genre, it is characters who she is drawn to, and that the story of "Monstrous" was appealing to her from that perspective.

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Shin Hyun-been said that she was also interested to work with director Jang Kun-jae, saying that she was impressed with his prior work. Primarily a film director, Jang Kun-jae is perhaps best known for the marital perspective drama "Sleepless Night" in 2013 and the travel-themed "A Midsummer's Fantasia" in 2014, both of which are typically considered independent films. Shin Hyun-been also said she had a positive opinion of other actors who had signed up for "Monstrous" before her.

Shin Hyun-been stated that watching "Monstrous" herself she thought that there was more of a interactive vibe between the characters in contrast to the spookier undertones with which the drama was originally filmed. Shin Hyun-been called that filming experience a new experience. Shin Hyun-been also noted that she likes to challenge herself with such new experiences, particularly in regards to impossible characters or impossible situations.

In "Monstrous" Shin Hyun-been plays a woman who drifts apart from her husband after the death of their daughter and now lives alone. Despite this framing, Shin Hyun-been claimed that she did not think of her character background as being one that needed to be exposited as a tragic one. According to Shin Hyun-been, her character loses herself as a consequence of the tragedy, and it's this mental state that is most relevant for the action of the show.

Additionally, Shin Hyun-been did not see her character as developing or changing over the drama. Rather, the relevant change took place between flashback periods and the modern portion of the story. To Shin Hyun-been, this created a kind of special endless personal hell that was critical to the backdrop of her character as well as the story. "Monstrous" premiered on April 29th on the South Korean streaming service TVING.

Written by William Schwartz