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Source + Photos: Union News via Daum
by VITALSIGN on February 12, 2011

With idol stars beginning to dominate the acting field, trainees and acting hopefuls are now being advised to take a new course: debut as an idol, and then switch over to acting after three to five years.

The increasing popularity of idol roles is starting to crowd out opportunities for actual rookie actors, and many of them have started to become discouraged by this effect. Additionally, directors are less enthused to take a chance with a rookie actor as opposed to a successful idol star.

On February 13th, the CEO of Dream Capture stated, “There’s a lack of rookie actors these days, especially actresses. Whenever I find a decent actor, they’re all a part of some music agency. Since the idol industry is booming right now, all of the trainees have jumped ship. It’s quite difficult to find any rookie actors these days.”

He continued, “Even so, it’s still difficult to even cast an idol since their singing activities take first priority, and their companies often request a lot of things. Fresh talent is largely being picked up by major music agencies, so it’s difficult for acting agencies to find any.”

Broadcast producers are also of the same opinion. An anonymous drama PD commented, “Even if we try to find a fresh face, it’s hard to find one in an acting agency. These days, everyone does plastic surgery in the same manner so there’s no individuality. Even if idols aren’t that great at acting, I think dramas try to provide a certain freshness to viewers by casting idol singers.”

The director of SidusHQ, Jung Ji Chul, also added, “These days, younger kids just generally want to pursue singing instead of acting, which naturally leads to big music agencies picking up most of the talented trainees. You can tell just by the male actors. After Cho In Sung, there’s been a void before someone like Lee Minho came along. There’s definitely a shortage of interesting new actors in the field.”

With dramas being especially sensitive to viewer ratings, producers claimed that they would much rather put in a familiar face, as opposed to taking a chance on a new name.

The director of YG Entertainment, Kim Sung Hoon, stated, “The battle for viewer ratings has become more competitive than ever, which means it’s also become a lot harder for rookie actors to debut. Back in the day, rookies would get their names known through CFs and then advance into dramas, but now, actors go through three to five years as an idol before debuting as an actor.”

Kim continued, “Since there are less and less films and dramas centered around actresses, it’s also gotten a lot more difficult to find and train actresses as well. The movie industry still holds a high regard for actress Jun Do Yeon, which means there hasn’t been a new face to take her place yet.”

CEO Na Byung Joon of N.O.A Entertainment added, “Before, if we felt that a rookie had potential, we would not hesitate about casting them for the lead role in a film. However, the situation in the movie industry has gotten a lot worse, so people are less willing to invest in unknown talent. Because of that, producers are always using the same names, making it impossible for viewers to find new faces on the screen.”

Although there’s a lot of criticism about the influx of idols in the acting game, it doesn’t necessarily mean that idols are lacking in talent. Idols like Choi Seung Hyun, Park Yoochun, Ok Taecyeon, IU, and Lee Kikwang have all proven themselves to be a formidable force on their own.

Actress Yoo In Na is especially known for her 10 years of idol training before she finally hit it big with her acting in “High Kick Through the Roof” and “Secret Garden.”

YG Entertainment’s Kim continued, “Trainees under music agencies receive severe training in a lot of different areas. They’re made to debut as a singer, but they still take lessons in acting as well. Even if trainees are not able to debut, having trainee experience on your resume makes producers take another look at you because they know the amount of work involved with it.”

Most industry representatives have analyzed the ‘course change’ to simply mean that the new generation of debuts are more skilled and talented in a variety of areas, compared to their older seniors.

The CEO of CJES Entertainment, Park Chang Ju, concluded, “Young stars these days have a lot of talent because it is born out of hard work in training and rehearsals. They are able to handle both singing and acting. Even though they debut as a singer first, they are made to advance into acting once they have made a name for themselves.”

This new ‘course’ just might be the explanation behind the sudden surge in idol debuts lately.

special thanks: BiBi at Kpopn
最近大家應該有發現偶像歌手們轉演戲都超成功，Dream High、成均館緋聞、原來是美男阿、天堂牧場等… 慢慢的，偶像們已經佔領了戲劇市場，新人演員們與受訓中的藝人也都上了一課：先以偶像出道，三、五年後再轉演戲。

偶像們開始佔領演戲的世界，也讓新演員們越來越少工作，導演們也比較偏袒偶像，因為看起來戲劇會比較多人在乎。可是阿，很多偶像歌手的時間很難配合，圈內人都大呼兩難。

2月13日，Dream Capture 的 CEO 說：「現在很缺乏新人演員，尤其是女演員。我只要是找到還不錯的演員，他們都是音樂經紀體系的藝人。因為偶像歌手這個市場越來越成功，所有的練習生都跳槽到音樂體系了。要找到新的演員真的很難。」

他又說到另一個難題：「找不到演員就算了，找到了很會演戲的偶像歌手，時間就很難配合，他們都以打歌的行程為主，而且他們的公司也會有很多要求。新的、有才華的藝人大部分都被音樂體系簽走了，戲劇體系的經紀公司也很難找到新人來簽。」

節目製作人也都有同樣的看法。某位匿名的戲劇 PD 說：「要找新人也很難找演藝經紀公司的新人。而且這個年頭，大家都整形成同一款的型，很難找到有特色的藝人。就算偶像不是很會演戲，我覺得戲劇會邀請偶像歌手來演，也是為了給觀眾新鮮感。」

經紀公司 SidusHQ 的董事 Jung Ji Chul 說：「這年頭，一般的小朋友比較想要唱歌，不是演戲，導致很自然的都是大型音樂經紀公司簽得到人。從男演員就看得出來。在趙寅成以後，好長一段時間才出現李敏鎬。演藝圈目前真的很缺乏新鮮的演員。」


另外，現在戲劇很競爭，每個節目都要搶收視，製作人也都承認他們比較敢帶給大家 "熟悉的臉孔"，新人、新名字真的比較冒險，但又不想要一直用一樣的演員，所以給偶像歌手第一次演戲比較令人覺得放心但又夠新鮮。

YG Entertainment 的董事 Kim Sung Hoon 說：「搶收視率的戰爭越打越烈，比以前都還要競爭，也代表著新人越來越難出道。以前，新人拍拍廣告就有知名度了，然後再接戲劇，但現在，演員要先做三到五年的偶像再轉戲劇做新演員… 因為越來越少由女演員做為主角的戲劇，也越來越難找和訓練女演員了。電影界還是很高舉全度妍，這也代表著還沒有女演員可以代替或是接班。」

N.O.A Entertainment 的 CEO, Na Byung Joon 說：「以前，我們只要覺得一個新人有潛力，我們就會毫不猶豫的請他來做主角。但是，電影的狀況沒那麼好了，所以大家也比較不敢投資沒人看過的藝人。因此，製作人都重複使用一樣的名字，觀眾們也很難找到新臉孔。」

雖然對於偶像轉演戲現象，還是有許多人批評和反對，並不代表偶像們沒有演戲的才華。像是崔勝賢 (Big Bang TOP)、朴有天 (東方神起 Micky)、玉澤演 (2PM)、IU (個人歌手)、李起光 (Beast) 等偶像歌手都已經證實了自己的多元化實力。

演員劉仁娜就是做了10年的偶像才演了「穿透屋頂的 High Kick」和「祕密花園」而轉演戲成功的女藝人。

YG Entertainment 的金董事繼續說到：「音樂經紀的練習生在許多方面都魔鬼訓練養成。他們是被打造成歌手，但也會上許多演戲課程。就算無法以歌手身分出道，或是沒有出道成功，"練習生" 出現在履歷表上，製作人就會多看你一眼，因為他們知道練習生有多辛苦，也知道花了多少心思成為藝人。」

許多演藝圈內人與首席代表們都分析這個「偶像轉演員現象」為「新一代藝人比以前的藝人還要多元化才藝」。

CJES Entertainment 的 CEO Park Chang Ju 的結論是：「現在的年輕明星很有才華因為他們苦練、受魔鬼訓練、還有練習。他們可以又演戲又唱歌，都做得很好。就算他們是以歌手身分出道，他們本來就被打造成可以轉演戲的藝人。」