Park Bo Young was like a teacher to me. Personally, we were good friends, but at the same time, I admired her acting and learned a lot from her.
With or without the idol tag, I believe I will be recognized for what I have done.
When I was living an almost mechanical lifestyle as an idol, I was constantly wrapped up in thoughts about who I was. That's when I entered a phase in which I was trying to discover myself. Because I was able to get past that difficult phase, I now realize how important it is to protect myself and my identity.
The things I talk about with childhood friends are inevitably different from the things I talk about with friends who are the same field as me.
When I think of my fellow members, I get a little choked up. I genuinely want for them all to succeed and be happy... Since we went through difficult periods together, I think it's important for us to support each other's endeavors... This is why I don't want to associate the word 'disbanded' with ZE:A.
When I first started my acting career, I only knew what my acting teacher taught me. When a director gave me an impromptu direction, I didn't know what he wanted me to do, and I wanted to escape from the place.
I feel responsible, as many other people's lives hang on the success of a drama in which I appear. But in essence, I think having various experiences and dialogues with different people helps me improve my acting more than taking lessons.
I have been a fan of Yoo Ah In's for a long time. Every time I watched one of his films, I would think to myself, 'How does he act like that?' and greatly admired his acting abilities. I felt that I would be able to learn and improve a lot as an actor, just by observing.