Fasten Your Seatbelt (film)

Plot

A plane headed from Tokyo's Haneda Airport to Seoul's Gimpo Airport with a Hallyu star on board runs into an unexpected storm and is in danger of crashing. A plane full of absurd characters―both crew members and passengers such as a businessman, a monk and a paparazzo—go through a series of comical shenanigans.

Cast

Production

Ha Jung-woo said he'd always had the desire to study about film more, so he seized the opportunity to approach this movie not as an actor but as a director. "Having pondered what kind of film I should make, I came to the conclusion that I would only be satisfied if the audience could enjoy it and get some laughs. This naturally led me to write a comedy," Ha said.

Ha reportedly wrote the script based on his friend and fellow actor Ryoo Seung-bum's real-life experience. The flight from Seoul to Tokyo normally only takes about two hours, but Ryoo once experienced plane turbulence that went on for almost seven hours, during which he genuinely thought he was going to die.

Ha cast Jung Kyung-ho in the leading role as an arrogant and paranoid Hallyu star. Ha and Jung belong to the same agency Fantagio, and were both theater majors at Chung-Ang University. This was Jung's first acting job after his discharge from mandatory military service, and his character's appearance and wardrobe was inspired by K-pop star G-Dragon. Most of the actors in the cast have also worked with Ha before—even the music director, a colleague he first met while working on My Dear Enemy in 2008.

The film was shot in 20 days, and producer Kwon Nam-jin described Ha as a director who makes "quick and rational decisions" while making the atmosphere on the set bright and funny. In order to build a strong ensemble, one of Ha's casting conditions was to read the screenplay every day with the entire cast for two months, conducting intensive rehearsals as if they were preparing for a stage play.

Box office

Though ultimately not a big hit, due to its low budget Fasten Your Seatbelt broke even in just four days, attracting 200,000 viewers in the first six days of its release.

Awards and nominations

2014 8th Osaka Asian Film Festival

2014 50th Baeksang Arts Awards

2014 34th Golden Cinema Festival