Jung Woo-Sung is not your average Korean movie star. He's soft-spoken, reserved, and very gentlemanly, almost aristocratic in his mannerisms. There's nothing loud about him, his words or his style.
Dressed in a crisp linen suit that's matched with bolts of blue from his navy houndstooth shirt and tie, Jung looked perfectly suited to be the new face of Longines's Master collection. On his wrist was the new Master Moonphase which he kept well hidden under his shirt cuff.
Unless it's time for photos. That's when he breaks out the smiles and his watch. He knows how to be a good ambassador and holds deep regard for Longines, and its CEO Walter von Kanel.
Otherwise, as a general rule, the actor-director prefers to stay low-key and is often caught in a pensive mood.
But does that make him a boring person?
In the 15 minutes we spent with Jung, who is also Korea's first UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, we discovered that beneath the placid exterior lies a man who just loves good movies and who is always on the hunt for a good story.
ESQ: As Longines’ ambassador for elegance, what does being elegant mean to you?
JUNG WOO SUNG: Elegance is not something you get just by dressing up. It’s a philosophy. You don’t get to say you’re elegant; it’s an evaluation by others. I think that Longines is a brand that embodies this philosophy very well.
ESQ: Lots of people wear certain watches to express a stylistic choice. What does yours say about you as a person?
JUNG WOO SUNG: I’m all for being quiet, but in a way that people around me still know I’m good at what I do. I’m wearing the Longines Master Moon Phase. What I like about this watch is how it’s not loud and showy at all. Everything on the dial is so peaceful and quiet, and yet it manages to express its uniqueness.
ESQ: What kind of roles push you the most as an actor or filmmaker, and what roles inspire you the most as a person?
JUNG WOO SUNG: I’ve watch so many movies it’s difficult for me to narrow it down. But then having watched so many movies, I do get a lot of inspiration from some of them. However, it’s not like watching action movies make me want to go out and make one already. What I really like, though, is to look inwards of a human being, search deeply into a character. I am drawn to making movies about the various lives people lead. Yes, I would very much like to make a movie on this theme.
ESQ: How do you deal with criticism?
JUNG WOO SUNG: There will always be both positive and negative comments about my work but I try to remember that it may not all be directed towards me. So I will evaluate the comments carefully and single out the areas for improvement.
ESQ: So how would you like people to perceive you?
JUNG WOO SUNG: I believe in interpersonal relationships enough to rely on them as a yardstick for my own identity. So while I will not question another person’s evaluation of me, I think it’s also possible to have a pretty decent gauge on my behaviour through those relationships.
