Director Lee Tae-gon depicts daily life of prosecutors

Director Lee Tae-gon answers questions at a press conference for his new television show "Diary of a Prosecutor" held at the Imperial Palace in Seoul. /Courtesy of JTBC

By Jung Hae-myoung

After success with JTBC drama “Age of Youth” season one and two, director Lee Tae-gon came back with new drama series entitled “Diary of a Prosecutor.” “Age of Youth” was popular among youths for depicting the hardship of 20-somethings living in contemporary society, where employment conditions are harsh.

The new drama series which aired on Dec. 16, is an adaptation of a book written by a real prosecutor, Kim Woong. Lee spoke of how he came to direct the show, the process of shooting it and the behind stories with the show's actors.

“After reading the book, I thought the story was great. Before, I had no interest in prosecutor organizations. I just thought it was an authoritative institution, but after reading the book, I was deeply interested in how prosecutors work and live. I felt they were human beings who are no different to salaried men in an office,” he said.

“From then I got together with the writer for the script. We met several prosecutors and heard their stories which are also comprised in the show.”

To the question of whether he had any difficulty adapting the script from the book, he said: “There are no dramatic characters from the book. Although I took the idea from the book, I only took some of the episodes,” he said.

“There were some touching moments from the writer's attitude and thoughts. I tried to emphasize that in the show. There are many things that are new in the television adaptation, but my biggest concern was how to contain the essence of the book. Some episodes were reborn as comedy and some as tragedy,” Lee said.

Yet, he was aware of the social situation in Korea revolving around the prosecution system in Korea. “I first read this in March, and so many things have changed since then. I know there is social conflict and divided public opinion regarding this organization, but our television show tried to depict the daily lives of local prosecutors rather than touching on big issues,” he explained.

He also noted the chemistry between the actors. Since they were filming in South Gyeongsang Province, they were able to have some drinks with the crew, enjoying the local area in Tongyeong.

“In the show Lee Sun-woong (played by Lee Sun-gyun) and Cha Myung-joo (played by Jung Ryeo-won) are nemeses, but in real life they are really close friends. Both were having so much fun together that I was worried it might affect the characters in the show,” he said laughing.