(Following Interview 2) Actress Lee Sun-bin recently shared her experience of being deeply shocked upon seeing her on-screen appearance in the upcoming film ‘CSAT Secret’.
Embracing an Unglamorous Transformation for ‘CSAT Secret’
On the afternoon of the 21st, an interview with Lee Sun-bin, the lead star of the movie ‘The Secret of CSAT Production’ (directed by Lee Yong-jae), took place at a café in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul. The comedy film follows Maeng Bo-ram, a local high school Korean language teacher who accidentally joins a 40-day top-secret government camp to create flawless CSAT exam questions.
Addressing the massive buzz surrounding her visuals at the 31st Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), Lee said, “I’m grateful people thought I looked pretty at BIFF. Our staff worked really hard. My appearance varies significantly depending on makeup, and it often looks different on screen. Sometimes the makeup suits me well in person but translates differently on camera, or I look better on days I do very little. My visual fluctuation is extreme. I prepared for BIFF while shivering from the cold, and the staff were just as nervous.”
Overcoming Visual Fluctuations and Insecurities
She continued, “It was my first BIFF. I had no idea there would be so many people at the open talk, and the red carpet had two or three stages. I was surprised. It was the first time I walked such a long red carpet after my debut. Since I had to pretend to be composed and relaxed—which is difficult for me—I hoped that finishing my look with makeup would hide my nervousness. The stylists poured so much affection and spent hours making sure I looked good. Knowing they spent two or three hours standing to do my makeup made me feel relieved rather than proud when people said I looked great.” She also jokingly added, “Once you look good once, the next time is even more terrifying,” bringing laughter to the room.
In ‘CSAT Secret’, Lee plays Maeng Bo-ram, an enthusiastic Korean teacher who enters the CSAT camp due to an administrative error, surprising audiences with a somewhat tacky visual style. Discussing her role, Lee noted, “Whenever actors take on a character, they naturally want to show a new side of themselves. It feels like a destined mission to figure out what kind of image or point I can bring to the table. Just like I tried curly hair and a regular office style in ‘Work Later, Drink Now’, or freckles and a late-80s hairstyle in ‘Boyhood’, I thought hard about what Maeng Bo-ram should look like.”
She explained her detailed choices: “When thinking about what kind of appearance would instantly make older colleagues think ‘she’s a newbie’ upon seeing me, I opted for coffee-colored stockings instead of skin-colored ones, an awkward skirt length that was slightly too big rather than a fitted suit, and simply tied-back hair. My skin was already deeply tanned from shooting my previous project in Jeju Island, which my makeup artist loved. We didn’t do any foundation matching, contouring, or facial feature highlighting. I shot the film without caring about puffiness. While close friends teased me, the most common feedback I got was that ‘Maeng Bo-ram was there, not Lee Sun-bin.’ People said it felt like watching a stranger act.”
She added with a chuckle, “I’m not sure if that was a compliment, since it implies my appearance fluctuations were severe, but people also said they couldn’t recognize me and laughed as soon as I appeared on screen. That was the exact reaction I wanted. Since I wanted to be seen strictly as Maeng Bo-ram, I felt the visual and physical approach worked and was thrilled to show a completely new side of myself. People around me even told me the character grows on you, so I felt it was a success.”
Reflecting on her career of choosing grounded roles over glamorous ones, Lee was asked if she had any lingering regrets about not looking pretty on screen. She responded, “A close high school friend recently sent me a captured comment reading, ‘I honestly have no idea what Lee Sun-bin actually looks like.’ That friend used to tell me the same thing all the time. But I take it as a compliment. My image really does change drastically depending on makeup, and while I used to have a dilemma wondering what my true face is, I knew it was a huge advantage for acting. As I take on new roles and show different faces, my outer complexes seem to disappear. It actually makes me let go even more.”
She candidly added, “Since most of my previous projects didn’t involve heavy makeup and often featured desaturated looks, I generally have no aversion to letting go or looking ruined on screen. It was so comfortable, though I didn’t expect to pull it off to this extent. I didn’t make any special effort to gain weight or look puffy, but it just happened naturally. Personally, I thought, ‘Of course, looking tacky is much easier and comes more naturally to my face.’ Getting glammed up requires two to three hours of makeup, but this took only 10 to 15 minutes. I have no aversion to it, and I have zero fear of future transformations or unglamorous styles. I can always show my pretty side at events or variety shows.”
Although she previously admitted at a press preview that she was shocked and dismayed upon first seeing her monitor during ‘CSAT Secret’ filming, Lee laughed, “I was so surprised. I knew how it would look, but seeing it on a massive screen made me go, ‘Who is that?’ and I briefly entered a period of denial. After watching it a few times, it grew on me. If I had tried to project Lee Sun-bin in that moment, it would have looked like fake acting. Trying to act young or ignorant while maintaining my usual makeup-driven look would have only shown Lee Sun-bin. So while I was initially shocked, the character grew on me the more I watched.”
Explaining that she intentionally avoids checking monitors too frequently during shoots, she concluded, “Once you see your monitor, your brain is heavily influenced by visual feedback, which can lead to over-restricting your expressions in subsequent takes. Since then, I trust the director’s ‘OK’ sign during filming and review the monitors later in post-production. That’s why I was even more surprised seeing it on screen, but I am extremely satisfied. I think it made the character of Maeng Bo-ram feel all the more authentic.”
‘CSAT Secret’ is scheduled to be released on the 28th.
