[ Asia Economic ] “It was a process of making pots with materials of gold and silver.”
Choi Yoon-man, the cinematographer who captured the scenery of the Netflix drama ‘Glitched’, summarized the drama this way. Another protagonist of the play, which spans 65 years from the 60s through the 80s and 90s to the present day, is the era itself.
Through set and location filming, the sea village of Jeju Island and downtown Seoul were brought to life. The scene where Gwansik (Park Bo-gum) jumps into the sea to swim to Aesun (IU) at the breakwater was shot in three places. Gwansik on the boat was filmed in Busan, Aesun looking at him in Jangheung, and also on a set.
Art directors Ryu Sung-hee and Choi Ji-hye recalled that the biggest challenge was how to express ‘time’. They solved it using elements expressible through art such as color, pattern, and texture, saying “Beyond reproducing the era, it was important to realize spaces that reflect the emotions and memories between characters. The focus was on creating spaces that reflect the emotions of the time rather than realism,” they said.
Moreover, resonating with the younger generation was important too. The art team stated, “After thorough verification of that period, we reproduced the styles, fonts, colors, and layouts of banners, flyers, and posters, crafting each one by hand until final printing.”
Securing a large set site to replicate the village and streets of Jeju Island was also a task. The production team finally secured an appropriate site in Andong after traveling nationwide. On the set, they replicated Jeju stone walls with basalt imported from Vietnam and Cheorwon, instead of the basalt which could not be imported from Jeju to the mainland.
The scene where Geum-myeong (IU) and Young-beom (Lee Jun-young) part during military leave was a composite of separately filmed characters and backgrounds, and the scene on a stormy ship was completed with the combined efforts of the special effects and CG teams.
The marketplace where Aesun sold cabbages changes over time into a market selling fish and vegetables, and eventually into a space where middle-aged Aesun spreads her mulch. Additionally, the cafe Hwiangsa where Aesun had a matchmaking meeting with Sanggil (Choi Dae-hoon) later becomes Suni’s Three Aunts’ Restaurant. These places, symbolizing the characters’ survival stories and the era’s changes, were designed with transformation in mind during the stage of set composition. Differences in material for the signs and stalls and road surfaces were used to symbolize each era.
The emotional waves crashing through life were greatly influenced by music. Music director Park Sung-il said, “We chose to focus on emotions over genre. Unfamiliar music could disrupt the viewer’s emotional flow,” he said.
In episode 1, they completed unique music using traditional Western instruments. They used traditional instruments without embracing traditional rhythms. The theme for Aesun was played with a traditional flute instead of a Western one, and the gayageum was integrated into a disco rhythm popular in the Western 60s and 70s.
Familiar songs to the public such as ‘Spring’ by Kim Jung-mi, ‘Yeah Yeah’ by Jang Deok, ‘Please smile’ by Ham Joong-ah, ‘Only You’ by Lee Chi-hyun and Friends, ‘Teacup’ by Nogojiri, and ‘By the Ear’ by Jeong Mi-jo are played. Music director Bang said, “The music of masters like Shin Joong-hyun, Yoo Jae-ha, Kim Kwang-seok, and Cho Yong-pil holds powerful strength,” and noted that “Younger generations today may not know these songs as they are famous to those over 40 years old.”
Overseas copyright regulations are stringent and demanding. Regarding using ‘Yesterday’ by the Beatles, one of the groups with the most complex copyright issues, the director noted, “It consumed immense cost and time for final approval,” and remarked, “This is the first instance of a Korean drama using an original song by the Beatles.”
It was also a challenge technologically. After music editing, we did surround mixing with Dolby Atmos. Dolby Atmos is a more advanced surround mixing technique than the commonly used 5.1 surround mixing in theaters. Music director Bang explained, “When the beachfront village ambience moves forward, the music naturally shifts back, and during scenes like Gwansik crying after losing Dongmyung to a typhoon, the sound also cascades down like the camera does from sky to ground enabled through technical attempts.”
이이슬 기자 ssmoly6@asiae.co.kr
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