Splendid supporting actors will be greatly missed

The name of the first person in the obituaries section did not sound familiar but I recognized his face; Alan Rickman, an English actor who passed away last week at the age of 69. In "Love Actually," he was a husband who buys a necklace for his girlfriend without his wife`s knowledge and gets annoyed when `Mr. Bean` takes too much time on packing the necklace. In the "Harry Potter" series, he showed impassioned performance as Professor Snape. I did not know his name but I felt as if I lost someone I once knew.

While top stars who always act in leading roles seem far different from ordinary people, supporting actors and actresses with their impressive acting skills appear much more familiar to the audience. An actor or actress who draws attention from the audience as much as the main actors and actresses is called a "scene stealer." Last September, The 1st Scene Stealer Festival was held in Jeju-do where actors and actresses specializing in supporting roles stood on the red carpet under spotlight, which was very impressive.

`Reply 1988` that ended on Saturday was loved by different generations from the 20s to the 50s. The drama will stay in people`s memory for a long time because it did not adopt unrealistically dramatic developments (which is popular these days) and it provided the audience with nostalgia for life in the past, combining generations together. Another key to the success of Reply 1988 was the casting; the middle-aged women trio ("Lady Cheetah," Bora`s mom, and Sun-woo`s mom), Jung-bong who seems dumb but adorable, the dean of students of Ssangmun High School who is always excited, young Jin-joo who demonstrated very well-controlled acting skills, and many other actors and actresses. It is sad that I cannot see those characters anymore who are so realistically acted that they feel like my own neighbors.

The success of a drama or a movie depends on not only who are cast in the leading roles but also how well the supporting roles are performed. What made Reply 1988 appealing was the touching stories of the people who are living in Ssangmun-dong in 1988 and the excellent acting of the scene stealers. That is why I was glad to hear that Ahn Jae-hong (Jung-bong) was third in television commercial appearances following Lee Hye-ri (Deok-sun) and Park Bo-gum (Taek). I wish that those who work hard outside the spotlight would be recognized and appreciated in reality as well.