Gu Hye Sun is an accomplished actress, producer and composer, but she's not a person who is easily satisfied. She's always looking for new ways to express herself. Other performers might have been satisfied to continue acting after onscreen romances with actors as appealing as Lee Min Ho and Lee Sang Yoon. But not Gu Hye Sun.
She's always looking for other creative outlets and that means she must face the possibility of rejection every time she tries something new.
TV Report recently interviewed Gu at YG headquarters. She spoke about coping with the criticism she faced after the first showing of her latest film "Daughter." And the interview showed that there is something of Geum Jan Di, in her. She shows the same determination and courage that endeared viewers to her beloved "Boys Over Flowers" character.
When her film "Daughter" was released, there was plenty of criticism to go around. Critics said that the film about the relationship between a daughter and mother was contrived and overly sentimental. And although she intended to create a small independent film, it was also criticized for not selling enough tickets.
Critics summed up her effort by saying she would wait a while and get more experience before directing another film.
But Gu Hye Sun cheerfully brushed the criticism off.
"I don't mind," she said. "I have to do something with the energy I have now."
And while she can understand that critics want her to get more experience, she says this is just the way she is and who she has to be. She has to express herself.
"Everyone has different energy and I think if I don't use it up now there are going to be side effects."
The 30-year-old actress says she has to express what she feels when she feels it even if it's not enough. Even if the results are not perfect.
"I don't think perfection is the goal," she told TV Report. "I don't want to be the best with something perfect. Ninety-nine percent of the people here have not been perfect yet."
She's young and single and wants to try as many creative avenues of expression as possible. She used to worry more about the opinions of others when she was in her 20s but now she worries less.
"Things will change when I have a family of my own but now this life based on my own thoughts is only possible because I'm single."
Her film "Daughter" was shown at the Korean Cinema Today section of the Busan International Film Festival. It is the third feature film she directed. She not only directed it but also played the role of the daughter. Her last appearance on the small screen was in "Angel Eyes."