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| Director Lee Kyoung-mi poses after a video interview with The Korea Times, Oct. 5. / Courtesy of Netflix |
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Director Lee Kyoung-mi, who has made a strong impression on viewers with her relatable female protagonists in films such as "Crush and Blush" and "The Truth Beneath," said her new series "The School Nurse Files" is a coming-of-age drama of a female hero with supernatural abilities.
The six-episode series stars Jung Yu-mi as Ahn Eun-young, a high school nurse who tries to protect students from what she calls "jellies" using rather unlikely tools ― a multi-colored toy sword and a BB gun.
The jellies are invisible "blobs of greed" that can stick to humans and manipulate their actions. They are unleashed when Hong In-pyo (Nam Joo-hyuk), a teacher of Chinese characters, accidentally breaks a containment seal on an urn in the school basement. Then, Ahn and Hong team up to fight off these supernatural creatures.
"Ahn Eun-young is pretty badass. Although she doesn't feel inclined to help others, Ahn accepts her fate to fight off the jellies and grows into a better version of herself," she said during a video interview with The Korea Times held via Zoom, Monday.
The director agreed that jellies are one of the lead characters in the series, as students haunted by jellies are bound to experience unfortunate events. "In each of the episode, Ahn has to defeat different shaped jellies. I wanted them to look colorful and cute, but at the same time, strange and disgusting," she said.
Lee referenced wildlife documentaries when developing the characteristics of the jellies. "I took ideas from marine creatures, wild animals and insects to come up with which colors, size and sounds would match each of the jellies. These characteristics added a sense of realness for the audience," she said.
Like the plot that centers on strange events, the series does a profound job of creating multi-dimensional characters. It introduces a cast of new faces who made the characters their own with vivid bemused portrayals.
"There were numerous auditions for supporting roles, and it was a lengthy process. Oh Kyeong-hwa and the younger version of Ahn Eun-young's character were cast three days prior to the start of shooting," Lee said.
"Since the series is available in 190 different countries, I wanted to avoid similar-looking celebrities and show a diverse range of Korean actors who may leave a strong impression on international viewers."
On working with Chung Se-rang, who wrote the novel of the same name and penned the screenplay, Lee said the experience of understanding a world created by someone else was truly amazing.
"There was no need to persuade or compromise with Chung because she shared a few minor things that she didn't want to change and was open to the rest," she said.
Thanking viewers for leaving positive reviews, Lee also hinted at the possibility of the series to return for a second season.
"I enjoyed reading people's reviews online over the Chuseok holidays. A lot of the comments were encouraging and thought-provoking," Lee said. "I don't know if there will be a season 2, but I intentionally left some clues for viewers to wonder what kind of adventure awaits and what stories are left untold."
"The School Nurse Files" is currently playing on Netflix.
