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Coffee Prince Behind-the-Scenes Special


(Someone should Photoshop Gong Yoo’s head into this pic. PS challenge anyone? 😉 )

 
I don’t have that much to say about the Coffee Prince special — first because a lot of it is merely recaps of the series, and is better enjoyed by watching the special oneself rather than reading me recapping someone else’s recap. I figure redundancy is best avoided when possible. And it is possible here, because WITH S2 is subbing this special, and I’ll be providing some of the translation, so you’ll be able to catch it soon enough. (Note: Special episodes are a lot of work — there’s a ton more talking than in a normal episode, so the sheer volume of lines to be translated and timed is pretty hefty. Just a fair warning.)

Anyway, so I’ve just noted some interesting points. (This is by no means a comprehensive summary.)

SONG OF THE DAY

Cloud Cuckoo Land – “나의 이름을 불러줘” (Call my name) [ zShare download ]

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

 

CASTING

YOON EUN HYE felt it would be a challenging character for her, but from the very first scene, and every scene thereafter, the more she read, the more appealing the character became. In the words of PD LEE YOON JUNG, “She [Yoon Eun Hye] seemed like she’d put everything into the character. So even if she’d been a brand-new actor, I think I would have worked with her.”

Yoon Eun Hye is known for having an easy-going personality, and although I don’t know much about her, she comes off as someone who isn’t very vain, who doesn’t consider herself particularly beautiful: “It’s not like I’d become an actress because I had a pretty face, so I felt I couldn’t let go of this opportunity to take a step forward and advance.”

Initially, after GONG YOO signed on as Han Gyul, he had the realization that this wasn’t just an ordinary role. In the PD’s words, when Gong Yoo heard about Yoon Eun Hye’s casting, he said, “I don’t know much about what kind of person she is, but she won’t be the problem — the issue will be my own acting skills.”

On casting LEE EON as Min Yub, PD Lee Yoon Jung: “When he came in and sat down, I fell for him within the first five minutes.”

 

COUPLES

Not much to say here, because this segment revisits what we know about the relationships, and though it’s interesting to hear how the different couplings are described, that can wait for the fully subbed version.

One magazine editor and commentator notes that lots of women insulted CHAE JUNG AHN‘s Yu Ju, but in truth, many women act like her all the same. She might reject a man romantically, but she might still spend time with him, calling him to go see a movie, etc.

Gong Yoo on Han Gyul’s character: “Han Gyul hasn’t ever properly loved before. He was like a baby. But now he’s met a truly strong match. It’s the first time he’s loved like this in his life. So, he doesn’t calculate or plan like other people, but throws all his passion into following his heart.”

 

LOCATIONS

 
So many fans came to the Coffee Prince shooting site — even on days without filming — that a simple thing like Gong Yoo going home for the day (in red shirt) was like a mob at a music concert.

Rather than making an impressive, handsome new set of the Coffee Prince cafe from scratch, the MBC art department tried very hard to make it seem like a place that the Princes themselves had put their hard effort into renovating.

 

 
Han Gyul’s Apartment. Penthouse feeling, in a spacious, roomy place close to the sky.

Han Sung’s House = lovers’ oasis.

Yu Ju’s Apartment. One secret about her apartment: It was decorated exactly in the style of the PD’s own home, down to the littlest details.

 

FASHION

Eun Chan’s style — comfortable, worn-in, not following any of the trends. Ironically, her style has now become a trend, as well as her short hairstyle.

Han Gyul’s style — European dandy boy. The type of clothes girlfriends want to dress their boyfriends in.

Yu Ju’s style — romantic and casual, with a minimum of accessories and flourishes.

 

BEHIND THE SCENES

STAFF: The hard-working crew worked straight through from the start of filming back in April through its end in August. Sleeping whenever they could, making rain on sunny days, dealing with sudden rain on shoot days that are supposed to be clear. Crew members estimate every member lost at least 5 kilograms from all strenuous hours and work they put into filming.

 
Writer LEE JUNG AH, PD Lee Yoon Jung

 

“In 2007, these people’s challenge in making the most delicious coffee in the world has now come to its end. But its fragrance will remain behind, for us to feel for a long while.”

 

Coffee Prince is…

“A changing of lanes.” (Lee Eon, “Min Yub”)

“Good fortune.” (Kim Jae Wook, “Sun Ki”)

“Another beginning.” (Kim Dong Wook, “Ha Rim”)

“For me, Coffee Prince was like a benefactor.” (Chae Jung Ahn, “Yu Ju”)

“A spring breeze?” (Lee Seon Kyun, “Han Sung”)

“It renewed my passion.” (Gong Yoo, “Han Gyul”)

“Something brimming, full… memories, sadness, feeling like I’d really die after it’s over…” (Yoon Eun Hye, “Eun Chan”)

“Like the summer of 2007.” (Kim Chang Wan, “Mr. Hong”)

It’s the Summer of 2007. (subtitle)

 
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I'm getting excited to see this. Thanks for putting up screencaps of the episode! And Thanks to Dramabeans and the other translators for all their hard work! Thanks~

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thank you!

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Thanks Javabeans!
i haven't had the opportunity to watch it yet.
the screencaps are great!
canyayasis

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Coffee Prince is... graceful, passionate and pioneering!

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what a blast, can't thank you enough!!!
it has been a brewing summer that will keep me warm till the balmy fall

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Absolutely wonderful way to close the series. Just like putting on the postage stamp, after sealing the envelop. Wish we could hear more from the writer and PD and their thought process on some of the scenes.
As for YJ's character, she wasn't bad. Perhaps, she followed Shakespeare's advice "... to thine own self be true." And, she had to sort this out with her love for HS.
Sarah, a million thanks isn't enough for what you've given us via this blog. Not just the recaps, but the sharing of opinions and ideas, gaining new perspectives that enhance our personal identities and learning to communicate with other interesting commentators. Bravo to you always!

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A massive "thank you" yet again Javabeans! *hearts* Another wonderful job.
*sniffles* I'm already missing Coffee Prince ..................... T_T

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Coffee Prince is.... falling in love again like it's the first time; And you know what they said about first love.

No matter how hard it is to let go, what's over is over.

It's the end of a summer break; the end of our short-lived summer love. But it shall remain in our memory for a very long time. Thanks again, Javabeans!

Seal it and take it away! Coffee

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i heart this show too much to let it go... i will now wait for the dvd... thank you for ur great summaries javabeans!
PEACE out!

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Thank You Dear Javabeans
Coffee Prince is the time of lovely love, it's my summer love.
Thank you again and again and again for your tasty Coffee Cups summaries in this summer.
You are my Dreambeans dear javabeans.
Your sincerely

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two images are not shown..

but thanks for sharing. ;) im specially loving the 'behind the scenes' & 'specials' when it comes to series.. hope theyre gonna include it when it comes out in dvds.

thanks javabeans! more power!

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Thankkkkkkkkksssss aaaa millllionnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!

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thanx a lot,its good to know that they are going to upload it with english sub-titles.iwas so touch w/ yeh,it looks like the whole cast and crew are realy good friends,yeh is so sweet w/ her coleagues.surely miss cp.again tnx for the summaries

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im downloading this right now!

thanks for this recap
can't wait to see this

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thank you for the summary

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I'm gonna cry. I miss them already... I heard from Isak yesterday, (live at the COEX for Drama sales event and there's a booth for Coffee Prince there, of course with coffee serving i guess) that at MBC there's already a mini Coffee Prince shop. I wish I am in Seoul now...

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i am with YEH on what is CP....I feel gutted that it is finished....my mondays and tuesdays are certainly very cold...*sigh*.

thanks for all your effort.

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I think that teardrops of "Yoon Eun Hye" is the best part of "Coffee Prince Special".
She cries and said "The wrench of parting makes me crazy".

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Javabeans, it is overwhelming..., even this drama was ended but your behind the scene-special brings me for special memory one to adore for, you are so fast, blast, faboulus and always update. Your written always shocked me so that i used to wating your written no wonder much respons you rhad eceived for your written. Coffee prince is realy romantic and love surrounding for each episode. I wish i am in seoul course i would visit the coffee scene where the beautifull atmosfire was built there, but indonesia is to far from there. Thank you javabenas, i wait another dramas for your written.

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Thank you Javabeans for doing all of this for Coffee Prince. You're a heaven sent to all of us.
You did great, congratulations!

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Yep. Summertime is over and we're back in the real world. But CP was a refreshing treat! And lounging here at Javabeans crib with fellow CP addicts has been phenomenal! It left an impressive mark in (all my) kdrama history. Nice to have accidentally linked here and met a great camaraderie of funny, insightful, and passionate people in this crazy cyber world! See you later! :)

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Awww!!!!!! I will be following all of these actors to see how they do after this awesome drama, man what should I watch now.....hehe...I have lots more episodes of Golden Bride to keep me from dying!!!

Please more and more innovative dramas should happen, and expand the Korean Drama world!!!

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thanks for recapping the special!!!!!!!
loved this series! EC was super cute

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Coffee Prince is....

"Totally addicting"

Thanks again Javabeans!

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they really should make coffee princess next! lol... i can't wait til they release this drama on dvd. i dont care how much will cost me but im sure gonna buy it! =)... hey dramabeans, can you feature the band, "the melody". i really like their songs and possibly put their lyrics too. i like their "goodbye" song. it makes me think of coffee prince being over.

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Now that Coffee Prince is over, what's your next project? :D

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THANK YOU. KAMAPSUMNIDA xxxxxx

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thank you.i haved seen the sceens special , a beautiful story behind many people hard-working.oh,my god .Most of time ,we always take attention on the actors ,but ignore the workers.

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I just simply love this kdrama... it's addicting..although it already ended, I still look forward to watch it every night. I just can't stop watching it over and over. Just like Coffee.. you need to have at least one cup a day!

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javabeans.... kudos to your passion ;)

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i am just particularly curious about YEH's reaction towards the ending of CP. she seems to be crying a lot. of all of them she's the most emotional and utterly affected that CP is actually finished. whereas GY seems to be a little detached.

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I almost didn't want to watch the special episode..but after I saw this/your blog, I got so excited to watch this last episode..thanks javabeans! :)

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Thanks for all your summaries - I haven't seen it yet but I'm already looking forward to getting a copy of the series. Great job. :)

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thank you, javabeans .

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31rtj1203

Ah you know us emotional girls!!! cry at the drop of the hat, we will...

apparently YEH was very emotional at the end of filiming the Vineyard Man as well - if I remember correctly, there is even footage of her crying saying goodbye to the dog on the set of that drama...she's probably just one of those people who is very emotional at the end of shootings.
She obviously became very close to some of her fellow actors and didn't want it to end. It's strange format that the koreans use for taping their dramas - I'm not aware of it being done anywhere else - usually, the dramas are shot over a period of time (well in Australia anyway), and only once the final episode is finished are they shown on TV. And even then the dramas go on FOREVER AND EVER rather than just 15 or 16 episodes (HOME AND AWAY is on episode i don't know what but the drama has been showing on TV for the last 20 YEARS) which probably means that if there is a longer time span people are not thrown together constantly in such a short period of time. But in Korea the drama is shot at the same time it is shown on TV - shorter period of time, longer work hours, you form those bonds in a different way and on a different level emotionally...

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Peace everyone. Time to get back to real world. Move on guys!! I've watched the whole series two times so far, and I found out it's really dangerous for man to watch this kind of drama. During watching CP, I was so happy but it hurts every at the end of shows. I don't know what it was. I can't descirbe, but it was like some thing cold stuck in my chest. Thus iIll bury Yun Eun Hae in my heart and i'll live my life again. Bye Yun Eun Hae.

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Thanks for the special episode and for all the recap you did!!You are really great!!=]

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Thanks so much Javabeans! I enjoyed every episode with you. YOu're insights were all great. I wonder what will be the next kdrama project you will do (^-^). will keep visiting your site everyday. You've become a habit already, LOL. God bless =)

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i watch the special and some of the bts,as well as the fan meeting of GY,i find YEH very emotional and attach to the cast and crew.and one thing i notice isn't she extra sweet or kinda flirtateous w/ GY,they keep on teasing w/ each other and they even wear a matching colour tops on the final day party.well just asking,its not bad if they could end up together coz i dont like Kim Jong Kook to YEH

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currently watching Arirang's Pop 'n Seoul and saw Chae Jung Ahn/YU ju's MTV. She's singing some kinda techno song She sings well and good dancer too. She's soooooo thin!!! i envy her =(

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Oh well, all good things end eventually(sigh!). I'm looking forward to checking out your next labour of love project. It's been a wonderful time and something to look forward to every week.

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i miss Coffee Prince much......its really a nice drama....tnx Javabeans...

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aww now im sad that its all over now :[ it was such a good drama!

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my heart is skipping....
now it stops.

its done... :(
im so sad.... i loved the show so much....

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The fashion part was the best part in the special...just my opinion. Funny how my mom says that yoo ju's clothes were the fashion like 20 years ago. haha so cute.

Everyone is all depressed that it's over and I've got to say I'm pretty darn depressed myself. This is one of those show that's going to live in my memories forever. I mean like...I watched some parts like over and over and still get the same reaction. Now that's impressive. I love this show way too much haha :)

thanks dramabeans for summarizing this entire series and spending so much time on it. you're the best! :)

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thanks for the insight Cheesey! one thing i failed to do was watch the Vineyard Man. well, i actually did. But got bored halfway through the 1st episode and so decided to ditch it altogether.

anyway... i'm just as depressed as everyone here. i can totally understand javabeans' seemingly futile search for a new and if possible similarly exciting drama to watch. i am now trying to be content with watching HANA KIMI.as the plot is akin to CP. trouble is, the pacing of the story and the uploading of episodes aren't as fast as CP's.

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can someone tell me if GY and YEH are realy going out for real bec i read one comment from soompi thread that they are since episode 12.well they look good together but i think GY is too good for YEH,besides in the special and in the bts it seems like YEH is the one who keeps on flirting GY,and what happen to KJK if this is true.YEH really likes guy who are about to enter the military.poor GY

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...It's over.... *tear*

Javabeans, I...abosolutely....LOVE YOU.

*speechless*

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Back to the real world huh......
Thank you so much dramabeans for everything you did. I am really going to miss coffee prince. Hope everything goes well for the actors/ actresses.
I'll miss everyone who comment on this page.
Back to the real world everyone........... See you

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thank u javabeans, it was a great drama and a great blog.

to Lyka: no, GY n YEH are not going out (no news about it anyway, they even said they were wondering why they are not being linked to each other).

and i certainly don't think YEH was being flirty at all but just friendly (which she is in real life). watch the BTS and NGs and you'll notice that she was sweet to all her co-stars (CJA, the 3 princes, Mr Hong and Sseulja the dog) and the PD (she kept on hugging her) and the crew (she treated everyone to dinner at the last night of CP shooting).

as for her crying so much, she said at GY fanmeet that it's because she's overwhelmed with the love she's been getting coz of CP, that she was hurt so much coz she had so many antis as she was a singer before but that now she is considered an actress.. so CP is very special to her.

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