The story unfolds as a producer storms into his office late at night, visibly agitated. He takes a deep breath and sits down at his laptop, typing furiously. The scene cuts to an empty bar where Gyeong-se is contemplating the upcoming premiere of his screenplay. He's stressed about his self-confessed muse, Hwang Dong-man, an aspiring director.
Dong-man has got under Gyeong-se's skin in a big way, especially after an infamous encounter at Director Choi's kimchi stew restaurant. Dong-man declared he wasn't a fan of spicy food but still wound up stuffing his face. Gyeong-se was overshadowed by this boisterous newcomer who kept talking the entire time. Gyeong-se couldn't even tell his funny stories because Dong-man kept interrupting.
What really tipped the scales was when Gyeong-se confided in his colleague, quietly mentioning that his film might not do too well. Dong-man overheard and immediately smirked, joking about how he'll end up like Dong-man if he's not careful.
While Gyeong-se is in the prime of his life, the same can't be said for Dong-man. He wakes up late and tries to sneak out of his apartment, but he soon attracts the attention of his landlord, who's desperate for rent. Dong-man lectures in his free time, telling aspiring screenwriters that he sees poverty as a blessing sent by the Gods. He believes this helps to hone a writer's real experiences.
Dong-man is the very definition of poor, but success has alluded him all this time. His resentment over his lack of success isn't helped by the loan sharks he owes money to. Dong-man used loan sharks to fund his cat's surgery, and after some pretty nasty threats towards his livelihood, our protagonist needs to make some money - and quick. His real desire is to become part of "The Eight," which are a group of the eight most successful directors in the business, including Gyeong-se. Between them, they've won tons of awards and made some great screenplays... except Dong-man. He's the only one who hasn't debuted and sticks out here like a sore thumb.
Dong-man's resentment spills over at the dinner table, where Gyeong-se speaks up and challenges him over his talents. Gyeong-se brings up how he's constantly pedalling the same story (namely that of his emotion watch). The dinner is supposed to be a celebration for Gyeong-se's movie release, and those around the table aren't best pleased with Dong-man's boisterous attitude.
Gyeong-se is close to exploding, especially when Gyeong-se smiles and utters "congrats!" The big director heads outside and stewing over this, eventually deciding that Dong-man's screenplay, "Weather Maker," isn't any good and he should just nip this in the bud already.
Jun-hwan stands as the sole exception to the harsh treatment of Dong-man, seemingly an outlier in the company's consensus to sever ties and let Dong-man go. This is all overheard by Byeon Eun-a, a producer at Choi Film who has earned the nickname "The Ax" for her scathing screenplay critiques. Recently, she's lost some of her edge, particularly after her boss reprimanded her for a poor performance.
On her way home, Eun-a crosses paths with Dong-man, who's currently dancing at the railway crossing with headphones on. As they stand together, they engage in some awkward banter, where Dong-man reveals that he feels recharged when he talks. He even admits that if he has nobody to talk to, he heads to the rooftop and shouts. Eun-a has actually heard him doing this from her own room. She admits this to him and eventually asks Dong-man to show her his screenplay so she can give it a read. Dong-man is genuinely shocked and his emotion watch is constantly buzzing too.
Eun-a heads home, where we see that she lives with her mother, who works hard selling gimbap from their house. As for Dong-man, he's betting everything on his screenplay, "Weather Maker," and has managed to get himself into the final running at the 2025 Korean Film Association. If he wins, he'd get a sizable investment to make his film a reality. Naturally, Dong-man is nervous and although he does practice his speech every chance he gets, it's not good news.
At the bus stop, Dong-man deliberates over how he could have improved and shows nothing but disdain toward Gyeong-se, whose new film "Sister Vengeance" seems to be doing well at the box office. Dong-man is pissed, believing Gyeong-se phoned in the whole movie and hasn't even tried. He badmouths the production that night during Gyeong-se's celebration dinner and he's not exactly quiet about it. When he belittles the lead actress and her perceived lisp, it doesn't take long for her to confront Dong-man. After all, given that he's never directed a big budget movie, he's left with egg on his face.
Everything becomes too much for him and after making a big scene, Dong-man leaves the party early, eventually sprinting down the street and cursing the world.
The following day, Gyeong-se's anger simmered over from Dong-man's rudeness at the premiere, spilling into his driving. He lashed out at a random passerby and chased after him, ultimately crashing into a street sign and knocking himself unconscious - a fate better than being arrested, one might say!
In the morning light, Dong-man reflected on the events that had transpired, and they weighed heavily on his mind. As the sun began to shine, Eun-a finished reading Dong-man's screenplay and seemed to like it. Dong-man was summoned to see Eun-a at Choi's firm.
Choi Dong-hyun, the man in charge, wanted Eun-a to brutally dismantle Dong-man's screenplay in front of him, but she struggled to do so. Eventually, Eun-a pointed out the flaws in his work, including the lackadaisical motivation of the characters and how Dong-man should have created some powerful characters, given that power is what we all crave. "A creator can't create what he doesn't possess," she said.
Back at her desk, Eun-a ended up with a nosebleed, her emotion watch glowing red. As for Choi, he let rip, grilling into Dong-man and talking about how he'd wasted 20 years of his life pursuing this.
While Dong-man headed home and tried to fill the hole in his heart with food, Eun-a sat at the bar and listened as the rest of The Eight belittled and badmouthed Dong-man. They brought up his constant critiques and how he never shuts up, but she obviously knew why he talked so much. She snapped at them all before leaving.
Eun-a understands where Dong-man is coming from, and both of them are wandering through life, lost. Will they find solace in each other?
