Adaptation of the Champion webcomic “New Member”! “Perfectionist workaholic minister” Kwon Hyuk meets “newbie in the workplace” Moon Ji-yong

(Cover image source: Wanji Entertainment)

The web drama “New Member”was exclusively broadcast on Watcha from December last year to February this year. Every time it releases stills, posters and trailers, it has received great response.

It was already ranked second on Watcha’s Top 10 rankings for the first time, and has been firmly at the top since the second week! The drama has been pre-sold to more than 130 countries around the world, and has become the top ten Korean dramas in various regions. Due to the enthusiastic response, the play was adapted into a movie version of “The Young Man in the Workplace”. The movie shows unforgettable and unprecedented scenes in the drama, such as Jong Chan and Seung Hyun’s bedroom scenes, etc., thus arousing the curiosity of fans of the webtoon “New Member”. Audiences are very much looking forward to the continuation of the popularity of the movie version of “The New Kid”on the big screen.

The first film invited to participate in the “Jeonju International Film Festival”

As the first film to be officially screened at the Jeonju International Film Festival, “The Workplace”marks an original film with a new look. It is no longer as simple as an adaptation of a webtoon. Following the “Quanzhou International Film Festival”, it was successively invited to participate in the “Pink Apple Film Festival”in Switzerland and the Hong Kong Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.

Related movies 1

Adapted RIDI’s popular online novel “The Rebirth of a New Employee”into a movie!
“Newcomer”is adapted from the webcom “Newcomer”and tells the story of an office romance between Zhong Can, a workaholic advertising company manager, and Yu Shengxian, an intern who has grown up late. Since its first release in 2016, it has attracted widespread attention for its realistic depiction of the main characters’ experiences at work and love. Based on its solid plot, the novel was adapted into a webcomic of the same name in 2020, and won the Best Webcomic Award at the RIDI BL Comic Awards in the same year, proving its popularity. It consistently ranks among the most popular online novels on the “RIDI”platform and continues to sell well, proving its continued popularity. “New Worker”depicts the tense office life and the adventurous romance between 27-year-old intern Yu Shengxian and his boss, 34-year-old planning department manager Jin Jongcan.

A perfect adaptation that surpasses the original work!
In order to create a work that can be recognized and satisfied by fans of the original novel and webcomic, all staff and actors put in a lot of effort from planning, casting, filming to post-production. In order to create the virtual reality plot in “The Workplace”, the crew strives to pursue high-quality plots in all aspects, such as asking people who are working in advertising companies to provide opinions and asking fans who love this theme to improve the theme effect. The engaging main characters are most in tune with the original novel. Not only the two main characters, Jong Chan and Sung Hyun, but also other characters like Sung Hyun’s reliable supporter Ji Lian. Through the perfect casting and the exquisite details of the director, this film is not only an adaptation of the original work, but more attractive than the original work, and meets the expectations of fans of the original work and this subject.

Related movies 2

Kwon Hyuk and Moon Ji Yong fit perfectly! Their adventurous office romance begins!
Director Kim Cho Kwang-soo is known for discovering new actors, and this time he once again attracted public attention by casting new faces. Kwon Hyuk was chosen to play the role of “Jong Chan”who is smart and has perfect qualities. In the JTBC drama “Elegant Friends”, Kwon Hyuk starred as the young rival of the protagonist Angong Cheol (played by Yoo Jun-sang). He immediately grabbed the audience’s attention with his powerful performance. Later, he also played the protagonist Jung-hoon in the MBC TV series “A Beautiful Dinner”and received praise for his stable performance. He also appeared in the tvN one-act drama “O’PENing – My Beautiful Apartment”, showing a variety of charming characters. appearance, expanding the range of his acting skills.

Moon Ji-yong first stood out in commercials such as ‘KT GiGA Genie’, ‘Chevrolet’ and ‘HiteJinro’. He was chosen to play the role of Yu Sung-hyun, an intern with a personality as cute as a puppy. He made his debut as an actor in 2018 with his performance in the online drama “Afternoon in a Small Town”. He played an infatuated fool who only serves one person wholeheartedly, making the audience’s hearts beat. Later, he participated in works such as “Kissing the Monster”and “One More Time”, showing his talent as an actor by playing different roles.
Once the movie stills of Kwon Hyuk and Moon Ji-yong were released, they received a lot of enthusiastic responses, saying that they “100% match”the original characters. The two actors deliver immersive performances that make their characters more engaging, and their chemistry is expected to attract viewers who yearn for a heartwarming love story.

Related movies 3

A story that any young person of this era can relate to! First job, first company, first day on the job, first meeting, and first love!
Sung Hyun, a 27-year-old intern who has never been in love, arouses the sympathy of the audience by experiencing the first moments that any young man of this era would experience. Watch as he experiences the events of his first social life, such as getting his first job, entering his first company, first day on the job, first meetings, heart-pounding first dates and relationships. etc., reminding viewers of their own first memories and immersing them in the story.

Shengxian is an intern with a master’s degree who hopes to pursue a career in a field that interests him, although not related to the department in which he studied. But since it was his first attempt and it was a field he was not good at, he faced difficult times and was troubled by the unfriendly attitudes and unhappy looks of those who looked down on him. Despite such difficult circumstances, he still strives to do the job he loves. Seeing his hard work and his spirit of never wasting a day reminded young people of the days when they kept working hard for their dreams, making the audience support them.
Through its various characters, “The Job”creates a broader concept of sympathetic bonds. Through friends in different social statuses, such as Shengxian, who found his first job at an older age, and Zhilian, a college classmate who already holds a higher position in the company, the film tries to portray different characters. Can a close friendship since college days sometimes bring comfort/or sympathy?
Not only the planning team 1 to which Seung-hyun belongs and the planning team 3 to which Ji-yeon belongs, but also all the characters of the AR project are portrayed as possible in real life at least Characters you’ve met once before, which attracts the audience. Following “Misao”in 2014, which touched the hearts of all young people who have just started their careers, “New Generation”is expected to go beyond romantic themes and provide a different kind of comfort and empathy for young people in this era.

Characters and Actors

Zhong Can is the department manager of Planning Team 1 in a large advertising company. He is a very demanding super workaholic. He has won the title of Korea’s Best Advertiser for three consecutive years. More than half of the company’s turnover depends on him, but Not good at dating. He needs an experienced person to join his team, so he actually doesn’t like Shengxian, an intern with a master’s degree, occupying this position. But when he saw Shengxian’s positive performance and found that he was not only good at work but also outstanding in appearance, Zhong Can couldn’t help but help Shengxian. Zhong Can, a selfish workaholic, longs to become a better person after meeting Sheng Xian.

100% match to the original character｜ Quan He
Quan He: “I read the script of “The New Boy in the Workplace”in one sitting. I deeply resonated with this hopeful story. If you really love someone, you really can change each other and grow together. Most importantly, the script is fun to read.”With stable acting skills and a vision that is almost the same as the character, Kwon Hyuk perfectly performed the role of Kim Jong-chan and was praised by the director and staff. Kwon Hyuk, who has been busy with his acting career, is expected to make many viewers excited in “The Workplace”.

Partial list of works:
Movie
2023 [The Hotel]
2023 “The Point Men”
TV series
2022 “Missing: The Other Side 2”
2022 “Beautiful Apartment”[O’PENing -The Apartment is Beautiful]
2021 [A Good Supper]
2020 “Graceful Friends”[Graceful Friends]
2018 “Superstar Yoo Baek”[TOP STAR U-BACK]

Shengxian is the kind of person who can only read and knows nothing about other things. He holds a master’s degree from a top business school in South Korea, but has no other skills. As an older intern, he found his first job in a large advertising company, where he met his boss Zhong Can, a workaholic who only knew work and knew nothing about other things. On Shengxian’s first day at work, he fell in love with Zhong Can at first sight, having never been in love before. After completing the three-month internship period, Shengxian aims to become a regular employee and hopes to start a romantic relationship with Zhong Can. Shengxian is the kind of person who wants the best of both worlds.

Always full of surprises | Moon Jiyong
Moon Jiyong said: “I like the fact that Sunghyun is the new kid. As his first job, I sympathize with Shengxian’s common concerns. Because I am also an actor who has just started his acting career, so I can resonate with Shengxian even more. He will undoubtedly win the hearts of the audience. The new boy.

Partial list of works:
TV series
2022 Come Back to Me
2021 Kiss Goblin
2020 Afternoon in a Small City

Director | Kim Cho Kwang-soo
Director Kim Cho Kwang-soo, a Korean film director who has always dreamed of a world without discrimination and opened up new paths for many young people, presents a new movie “Newcomer in the Workplace”following “On the Same Rooftop”》. Widely loved by audiences for the unique light atmosphere and emotional directorial style of his films, his film credits include “On the Rooftop”(2021), “Only One Night”(2014), “Two Weddings and a Funeral”(2012), “Stay with Me”(2010), “Just Friends? (2009) and Boy Meets Boy (2008). His new work “The Young Man in the Workplace”captures a love story that takes place in a large advertising company with a fresh and warm visual aesthetic.
Director Kim Jo Kwang-soo said: “As a gay film director, my biggest disappointment is that it is difficult to focus only on the emotional scenes of the two main characters. Emotional drama is when two different people build relationships by meeting, falling in love, feeling happy, and quarreling over trivial matters. Before directing “The New Kid”, I was a little frustrated when faced with the challenges of gender identity and the obstacles of reality, which were stronger than the feeling of love. Being able to focus on the emotional scenes between Jong Chan and Seung Hyun, that’s probably why I felt more entertained and happier. “”The New Boy in the Workplace”will present the most beautiful and happiest love story.

Partial list of works:
Director
2021 Made on the Rooftop
2012 Two Weddings and a Funeral
2010 Love, 100℃
Producer
2019 Bad Cop “[Jo Pil-ho: The Dawning Rage]
2016 “Blossom”[Blossom]
2015 “Detective K: Secret of the Lost Island”[Detective K: Secret of the Lost Island]
2015 “Gyeongseong School: The Missing Girls”[ The Silenced]
2011 “Detective K: Secret of Virtuous Widow”[Detective K: Secret of Virtuous Widow]
2006 “The Days of Love in the Gay Bar”[No Regret]