Song Joong-ki on Playing a 19-Year-Old in ‘Bogota: City of the Lost’: “I Felt Awkward at First Since I’m 35”
During an interview held at a café in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul on December 23, Song Joong-ki discussed the challenges of portraying the life story of a single character in the movie “Bogota: City of the Lost” (directed by Kim Seong-je).
“Bogota: City of the Lost” tells the story of Guk-hee (Song Joong-ki), who travels to Bogotá, Colombia on the opposite side of the globe with new hopes after the IMF crisis. The film follows his entanglements with Soo-yeong (Lee Hee-joon), a power figure in Bogotá’s Korean community, and Sergeant Park (Kwon Hae-hyo).
On playing Guk-hee from his teens to his 30s, Song Joong-ki shared, “It wasn’t so much pressure as it was awkwardness. Being 35 and asked to play a 19-year-old made me feel so embarrassed that I even declined at first.”
He explained, “I thought it was something younger actors should do. It was more awkward than burdensome. But then I thought, ‘Why not do it while I can?’ Once I adjusted, I focused on believing that I could resolve it by properly portraying Guk-hee.”
When asked if he had to use special makeup to look younger, Song Joong-ki joked “I’m naturally baby-faced…“, drawing laughter. He added, “Since the sun is so strong there [in Colombia], many kids had freckles. We got the idea to add freckles as part of the makeup.”
Meanwhile, “Bogota: City of the Lost” is set to premiere on December 31.
