Park Hae Young shares her creative thinking: Starting from inner desire, she believes that sincerity can impress audiences from different cultures.

"My Runaway Diary" is performed by Son Seok-gu and Kim Ji-won. (Photo taken from Facebook)

[Reporter Liao Lihui/Report from Taipei] Park Hae-ying, a gold medal screenwriter who has delicately depicted the loneliness and emotional plight of modern people in works such as "My Uncle" and "My Runaway Diary", was invited by the Taipei Film Commission's "2026 Taipei Film Academy" to attend a film and television screenwriting lecture in Taiwan with Huang Luoqing, the producer of "My Runaway Diary" on the 2nd of last week, and shared filming secrets.

Park Hae Young, screenwriter of "My Uncle" and "My Runaway Diary" attended the lecture. (Provided by Taipei Film Commission)

Park Hae Young said that the global OTT platform allows South Korean works to be seen by the world, but she does not deliberately cater to overseas audiences, but starts from her inner desire. She believes that it can touch her own emotions and audiences of different cultures, making people feel that "there is also a me in that place." She also reminded creators that sincerity and basic skills are more important than pursuing novelty and tricks.

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Park Hae Young has won the Baeksang Arts Awards Screenplay Award twice. (Provided by Taipei Film Commission)

Park Hae Young imparted her own creative approach, and the first priority when choosing themes was "My inner desire is everyone's desire." She gave an example of the Korean drama "My Uncle" starring Lee Sun Kyun and IU because she wanted to show the humanity and charm of ordinary men, different from the common successful people or superpower male protagonists in Korean dramas at that time.

"My Runaway Diary" starring Son Seok-gu and Kim Ji-won comes from her pursuit of "why don't I feel happy" even after having successful works and fame. She writes the fatigue of daily work and the desire to liberate herself into the story, and describes it as a "drama for I people."

When asked about artistic and commercial aspects, Park Hae Young emphasized that "interesting" is the foundation of the work, and even asked the audience with a smile: "I tried very hard to write it to be interesting. Do you feel it?" She believes that screenwriters should think about how the story can make the audience feel and how to make them happy. The key to keeping the audience watching is to make them fall in love with the characters.

"We Are Trying to Overcome Inferiority" is performed by Goo Kyo-hwan. (Courtesy of Netflix)

Take "We Are Trying to Overcome Inferiority" as an example. The protagonist may be "annoying" at first, but she hopes that through touching moments, the audience will gradually understand him and be willing to cheer for him after watching three episodes. When asked on-site how to make the audience continue to support such a character, the two speakers first responded humorously with "a handsome face makes people hate him", and then explained that the key lies in the design of the lines. It does not necessarily have to directly express the character's uneasiness, but also allows the audience to see the fragility under the annoying surface, and then generate sympathy and be willing to continue to support him.

A student asked if they are worried that AI will become powerful and replace the work of screenwriters? Park Hae-young said that the level of AI creation at this stage is still limited, and she mainly uses it to find information. She is also optimistic that in the future, if AI text creation can really touch people's hearts like real people's creation, and humans can co-create with AI, then creation will not be as hard as it is now, but can become enjoyment and interest.

This lecture also rarely invited Park Hae-young to share the stage with "My Runaway Diary" partner and senior producer Huang Luoqing. Huang Luoqing pointed out that OTT platforms allow Korean dramas to reach more global audiences, and producers must also think about how to package their works and select actors so that the stories can be seen by more people. Having collaborated with Park Hae Young on two works, he described the characteristics of Park Hae Young's works as "99% red pop and 1% blue rarity". He admitted that Park Hae Young's scripts are difficult to directly fit into existing market genres, but they have a unique and irreplaceable charm.

IU and Lee Sun Kyun performed in the Korean drama "My Uncle". (Photo taken from Facebook)

Huang Luoqing believes that Park Hae Young is good at presenting the characters' emotions in unexpected settings, such as the heavy footsteps and sighs transmitted through mobile phone eavesdropping in "My Uncle", and the "emotion watch" that reveals the inner heart in "We Are Trying to Overcome Inferiority", which all allow unspeakable feelings to be concretely presented. Even though her characters are flawed and injured, they have compromised with reality and still retain their own values ​​and principles, allowing the audience to see their own situations and understand the value of these ordinary people.

Huang Luoqing, the producer of "My Runaway Diary", shared the Korean drama development process and the cooperation experience between screenwriters and producers in the lecture. (Provided by Taipei Film Commission)

Huang Luoqing also praised Park Hae Young's lines for accurately expressing the audience's feelings. For example, "My Runaway Diary" used "worship" to carry the character's emotional longing and further explore the happiness of being a human being. Huang Luoqing said: "Park Hae-young's works do not easily promise happy endings. Even if the story ends, the characters still have to face the reality of tomorrow. This sense of reality that does not avoid difficulties but maintains hope is what resonates and leaves a warm breathing space for the audience."