Promoting a movie typically involves appearing on variety shows or at events to attract attention to the film. Scheduled events like the press conference for Veterans and Seo Jin-tae's appearance on a job-experience variety show were part of the movie's promotion strategy.
For Ha-eun, who had already experienced similar activities, this wasn't entirely new territory.
"Two nights and three days—what a fun time that was."
Promoting a drama like The Moonlight That Parts the Clouds had some parallels with promoting a film like Veterans, though the two differed in some specifics. From an actor’s perspective, however, the experience wasn’t drastically different.
The key difference was that movie promotions weren't limited by the type of broadcasting station, providing a wider range of variety shows compared to drama promotions.
"I don’t remember if it was a zookeeper gig in my past life, though..."
In any case, as a lead actor in Veterans, Ha-eun was destined to be swept up in the film’s promotional activities.
"Will I get to feed them myself?"
Ha-eun felt confident about any variety show appearance. Having made memorable appearances on the top shows of the three major networks, she now considered herself a seasoned veteran in entertainment.
Although the choice of variety shows for Veterans wasn't something Ha-eun had control over, she patiently awaited news from the marketing team.
Meanwhile, the team was focusing on pairing Seo Jin-tae with Yoo Sung-jae, another lead actor in the film, for promotional appearances.
"Considering they play senior and junior police officers in the film…"
"And they have several scenes together, so emphasizing their synergy as a duo makes sense."
While Ha-eun played the antagonist, Seo Jin-tae and Yoo Sung-jae were detectives whose differing investigative styles and action sequences created a compelling dynamic. Naturally, the marketing team wanted to highlight their chemistry.
"But... Sung-jae’s agency flat-out refused."
"Apparently, he’s terrified of bugs and large animals. They’re worried he might actually faint during filming."
Due to Yoo Sung-jae’s personal concerns, the planned joint appearance fell through. Considering Ha-eun as a replacement seemed equally unlikely since, being a high school girl, she might also be afraid of animals.
"...? Did you mention the mealworms?"
"Of course. She even said she’s jealous of animals that get such nutritious snacks."
"Jealous? Wait… is she thinking of a fennec fox?"
In the end, the participants for the job-experience show Job People were finalized as Seo Jin-tae and Ha-eun. Given Ha-eun’s enthusiasm and her proven track record in variety shows, there was no reason to reject her participation.
As time passed and the finalized plan for Job People was sent to Luna Entertainment, the discussions continued.
"Bears can maul people, Ha-eun. I really think this is dangerous..."
"Relax, unnie. I’ll just toss the food from the car."
"What if it rips the door off?"
"Then I’d have to fight for my life. Just kidding. No one can beat a bear."
A slight difference of opinion arose between Ju Jung-yoon and Ha-eun about the necessity of including predators like tigers and bears in the shoot. While Ju Jung-yoon considered it excessively dangerous, Ha-eun thought it would make things more exciting.
Ultimately, Ha-eun’s stance won. As the primary participant, her wishes carried the most weight.
However, Ju Jung-yoon’s concerns didn’t entirely disappear.
"If you stick your hand out the window, you’ll be tiger food. Don’t stick your hand out. And when feeding giraffes, wear gloves..."
Even on the day of filming, Ju Jung-yoon couldn’t stop worrying and lecturing Ha-eun.
Knowing that her manager’s words stemmed from genuine concern, Ha-eun couldn’t resist teasing her. She promised to take a selfie with a tiger mid-meal and post it on Instagram after the show aired.
"Yep. It’ll look great on my feed."
"Are you fearless...?"
"They all look cute to me."
Ju Jung-yoon, visibly distressed, looked entirely unlike the composed manager she usually was. Meanwhile, Ha-eun casually sipped her strawberry smoothie.
"It’s all safe, anyway," Ha-eun thought to herself.
Finally, the van arrived at the filming location for the Job People opening scene. The door opened slowly, and a group of VJs immediately pointed their cameras at Ha-eun.
Ha-eun, ever polite, greeted the staff as she stepped out of the van. Among them was the show’s host, Na Jae-hyuk, who had been chatting with Seo Jin-tae.
After exchanging greetings, the opening segment introduced the participants, including a warm welcome for the zookeeper who would guide them for the day.
"So, which friend are we meeting first?"
"We’ll start with a long-nosed friend. But first, let’s get all three of you into uniforms."
"Oh, uniforms! I love it. Let’s go~!"
Na Jae-hyuk, with his characteristically approachable demeanor, led the shoot with ease, chatting naturally with the zookeeper. As a former comedian, he excelled at creating a friendly atmosphere, even among strangers.
Before long, they arrived at a massive elephant enclosure.
"Here’s a bucket of food for today. It’s pretty heavy, so two of you should carry it," the zookeeper said, glancing at the two male participants and leaving to fetch another bag of feed.
Yet, when he returned, it was Ha-eun—alone—hoisting the bucket.
"Wait, there are two grown men here. Why is Ha-eun carrying it?"
The zookeeper stared at Na Jae-hyuk and Seo Jin-tae with bewildered eyes, demanding an explanation.
"I lost in arm wrestling."
"Ha-eun said she could handle it alone and insisted on carrying it herself…"
Hearing what had transpired while he was away, the zookeeper could only gape, speechless, as Ha-eun, unbothered by the weight, seemed solely focused on feeding the elephants.
"I was going to take you to feed Tobi—a friend who only eats food handed directly to them," the zookeeper said hesitantly.
"Oh! I’ll feed Tobi too!" Ha-eun exclaimed, her enthusiasm uncontained.
"Well, Ha-eun seems excited," Na Jae-hyuk quipped.
And so, Ha-eun not only fed the elephants from the bucket but also had the opportunity to hand-feed cabbage directly to one of them. Her face lit up with amazement as the elephant happily devoured the cabbage.
Perhaps a bit too thrilled, Ha-eun began blurting out ideas.
"...This would make an amazing ASMR mukbang video."
Her imagination ran wild with potential content for Diah, her VTuber persona. Luckily, Na Jae-hyuk and Seo Jin-tae didn’t seem to grasp the full meaning of her words.
"Now it’s time for the men to work. Jae-hyuk and Jin-tae, let’s go clean up the elephant dung."
"Alright, have fun~," Ha-eun said with a wave.
Watching the two recoil at the sight of the giant piles of dung from the safety of the enclosure, Ha-eun snapped a few photos with the elephants she had just fed. Then they moved to the next activity.
The next stop was a lion enclosure—or more specifically, an underground area beneath the lion enclosure.
"It’s feeding time for Leo and Ray," the zookeeper announced.
"Our zoo’s lion cubs. They’re adorable."
Moments later, two lion cubs appeared, carried in the arms of a zookeeper. Once placed on the ground, the cubs hesitated for a moment before sprinting directly toward Ha-eun, cuddling into her arms.
"Wait, both of them went to Ha-eun?"
"Are they both male?"
Ha-eun was momentarily entranced by the unprecedented cuteness of the cubs, their soft paws resting on her shoulders.
"I want to keep them. No, I will keep them!" Ha-eun declared impulsively, her voice unfiltered as the microphone captured every word.
Almost immediately, the cubs began purring loudly.
"Did you hear that? They said they like me too!"
"Ahaha. I guess even lions appreciate a good face," Na Jae-hyuk teased.
"But, Ha-eun, keeping lions is illegal here. Let’s just feed them their milk for now, okay?"
Entranced, Ha-eun fed the cubs their bottles, unable to take her eyes off them. Every moment of her interactions with the cubs was being captured on camera.
"She really suits this setting," one of the staff remarked.
Sitting on the ground, feeding the cubs, Ha-eun exuded a youthful charm that harmonized perfectly with the playful cubs. Her innocent, almost childlike aura was emphasized in the scene.
"The lions are so affectionate," Na Jae-hyuk noted as he and Seo Jin-tae watched Ha-eun with the cubs.
Suddenly, one of the cubs got up and lightly patted Ha-eun’s thigh with its paw.
"Um, I think it’s asking you to play," Seo Jin-tae observed.
"Seriously, this much?" Na Jae-hyuk chuckled.
"Ha-eun, were you a lion in your past life?"
"I was human!" Ha-eun protested.
"Oh? How do you know?"
"Well, I mean… it just doesn’t feel like I was a lion, that’s all!" she stammered.