Producers Jo Wook-hyung, Kim No-eun, and Won Seung-jae shared the behind-the-scenes story of 'I Want to Date Even Though I'm Forever Single'.
Netflix's 'I Want to Date Even Though I'm Forever Single' is a makeover dating reality show that helps forever single individuals who are clumsy at dating experience their first love. Although awkward and clumsy, it evokes memories of first love and resonates with viewers, capturing the hearts of audiences worldwide. It achieved the feat of ranking in the top 10 of Netflix's TV series (non-English) for two consecutive weeks.
Actors Seo In-guk and Kang Han-na, broadcaster Lee Eun-ji, and singer Car the Garden served as 'Somm Makers' and MCs. A total of 12 participants, including Min Hong, Hyun-kyu, Jae-yoon, Yeom-myung, Seung-chan, Mi-ji, Sang-ho, Lee Do, Jeong-mok, Ji-yeon, Ji-soo, and Seung-ri, participated. In the final episode, Jeong-mok, Ji-yeon, and Ji-soo ended up as a couple.
PD Jo Wook-hyung commented on the scene where Jae-yoon hid in the reed forest to avoid the participants, saying, "People ask how we could not know, but the participants were wearing microphones for audio. The sound coming through the microphone was loud, but on-site, it was windy, dark, and the distance was far, so we didn't think there was anyone there, which is why others didn't know either."
He continued, "We had multiple monitors on-site, and the camera director said, 'Isn't that a person over there?' When we looked, at first we thought someone had collapsed from drinking, but then we realized that was the situation."
PD Won Seung-jae added, "At first, we didn't catch it either. Looking at what was captured on camera, it seemed close, but it was a place with elevation changes. Jae-yoon saw the female participants, but the female participants couldn't see Jae-yoon. It was a structure that was impossible to know."
PD Kim No-eun also shared, "I initially thought, 'Is something wrong?' I was surprised at first. I realized it later when I saw the footage."
Additionally, PD Jo Wook-hyung expressed his gratitude towards Jae-yoon, saying, "In my case, I empathized with Jae-yoon. I also have a middle school son, and there are parts that I worry about or feel are lacking. At first, I thought Jae-yoon was acting, but the more we talked, the more I got drawn in. He speaks slowly, but if you listen carefully, there are many deep stories."
He continued, "What stood out to me was that Jae-yoon said to date, he needs to become a man, and to become a man, he needs to become a person, but he feels like he hasn't become a person yet. Hearing him say he wants to become a person through this program made me think I wanted to work with him. Seo In-guk also said he didn't expect such a friend to come out and wanted to help him a lot."
PD Jo Wook-hyung reflected on the show's immense popularity, saying, "My wife also said she learned a lot from life. I felt a lot of emotions too. I realized how foolish I was in the past and how many silly things I did; it felt like watching a replay of those moments. I'm very grateful for the support from the viewers."
However, he noted, "I think everyone wants to hit a home run. Not everyone can hit a long ball, and that's not possible. Looking at it differently, even if they couldn't hit a timely hit, everyone did their best in their respective positions. Sometimes they struck out, and we found all those moments endearing. I'm still grateful for that aspect."
Finally, PD Kim No-eun shared, "With the participants' permission, I want to share that our growth character, Jae-yoon, recently started dating. It was two weeks ago. I heard it's with an older woman," bringing attention with the happy news.
[Yang So-young, Star Today Reporter]
