'The point men' that impressed Hyun Bin's Jordan negotiation story revealed

The movie 'Negotiation' revealed the behind-the-scenes story of filming in Jordan, which was not smooth from entry to completion of filming.

The movie 'Negotiation' (director Lim Soon-rye), which depicts the negotiation operation between a diplomat and a local National Intelligence Service agent who headed to Afghanistan to rescue Koreans who became hostages of the Taliban in the worst kidnapping incident, revealed the story behind the eventful filming in Jordan.

'Negotiation', the first Korean film to show Afghanistan, a land of chaos, on screen, was filmed in Jordan, which had similar scenery, safety, and filming infrastructure conditions, instead of Afghanistan, where actual filming was impossible.

The production team planned to film 80% of the film overseas first, but heard that Jordan had completely banned entry of foreigners due to the unprecedented pandemic. In the worst situation where they could not find another location, the filming team, which started filming in Korea first, chose a two-track strategy of filming in Korea and seeking permission to enter Jordan at the same time. The production team, who made a choice with an uncertain outcome, was finally granted exceptional entry permission by the Jordanian government authorities, and the 'negotiation' team entered Jordan on a special flight through the blocked skyway. The process of entering Jordan, in which local filming itself almost failed, can be seen as the first 'negotiation' operation carried out by 'negotiation'.

Although it was successful to come to Jordan with an exceptional entry permit, self-quarantine was unavoidable. The actors and production crew came up with video calls while isolating each other in solitary confinement, which opened up a new world of communication. After enduring a lonely time alone in the unfamiliar land of Jordan, they encountered familiar faces non-face-to-face, ate and talked with the camera on, and even fell asleep. The actors and production crew, who spent time together that they would not have experienced had it not been for the short period of quarantine in a foreign country, were able to build unforgettable memories unique to the 'Negotiation' team and complete extraordinary teamwork.

Due to the short filming period, the actors and staff began to experience homesickness. Among them, Hwang Jeong-min, who is a fan of authentic Korean food, cooked his own food, including soaking cucumbers and boiling soybean paste stew brought from Korea, and distributed it to the actors and staff. As Hyun Bin and Kang Ki-young said, “When filming was over, they went to their dorm and made dinner,” and “When I was young, I was playing at the playground and around 6 o’clock, I could smell the smell of food being cooked, and when I passed by my senior’s room, it was exactly the same feeling.” It is said that Hwang Jeong-min, who became a ray of light for those who miss the taste, was called ‘Home Cook Teacher Hwang’.

The movie ‘Negotiation’ will be released on January 18th.

Choi Ji-ye, Ten Asia Reporter wisdomart@tenasia.co.kr