The upcoming film "CSAT: Secret of Exam Questions", which draws attention with its fascinating subject matter centered around South Korea's College Scholastic Ability Test, is slated for release this October.
"CSAT: Secret of Exam Questions" is a chaotic mission comedy following Maeng Bo-ram, a high school Korean language teacher from a small provincial town who accidentally ends up joining a sequestered committee for 40 days to work on the CSAT—classified as a Level 2 national secret in South Korea—as she struggles to create "flawless questions" free of typos and controversies. This marks the feature directorial and screenwriting debut of Lee Yong-jae, who previously explored the theme of education through individual storytelling in "In Our Prime".
Lee Sun-bin stars as Maeng Bo-ram, the Korean language teacher who enters the CSAT camp due to an administrative error, alongside Yoo Jae-myung as Moon Ju-yeol, the head of the Korean language test committee; Kim Young-min as Park Kyung-tae, the head of the review committee; and Jeon Seok-ho as Gi Jun-su, an official from the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation who actually manages the 40-day quarantine. This marks their first time working together. They are joined by Kim Kyung-min, Lee Jin-hee, Hwang Bora, Jung Soo-young, Lee Joong-ok, and Ryu Kyung-hwan as test committee members with diverse majors and personalities who fill the secretive CSAT camp.
Released to commemorate 100 days until the CSAT, the launching poster features a CSAT Korean language test paper filling the screen with a computer-use marker resting on top. Underlines, circles, and traces of erased and rewritten text are visible across the reading passages, while light and shadows filtering through blinds cut across the test paper, hinting at the atmosphere of the room. The title "Secret", written in bold red colored pencil, captures attention and sparks curiosity about the hidden story within.
The accompanying launching trailer opens with scenes of South Korea on the day of the CSAT. Against the backdrop of cheering crowds in front of test centers, flight takeoffs and landings controlled to accommodate the listening test, police cars transporting test-takers, temples with ongoing prayers, and the stock exchange opening at a delayed time, the phrase "Level 2 National Secret" appears to build curiosity. Following the subtitle "Top Secret Project," buses loaded with luggage, baggage security checkpoints reminiscent of an airport, a banner reading "We warmly welcome the CSAT test committee members to your entry," and a hand quickly highlighting precautions on a confidentiality pledge flash by. With the phrase "The secrets of exam creation that the entire nation never knew are revealed!" opening the door to the sequestered 40 days, committee members are shown grabbing each other by the collars over a single line of a reading passage, followed by the bewildered face of Maeng Bo-ram (Lee Sun-bin) caught in the middle, raising anticipation for where the tension and laughter in this room will burst. The trailer concludes with the copy "2027 CSAT, D-100 Ahead" and a countdown screen, signaling the official countdown to its release.
As the first Korean film to unveil the sequestered 40 days of the test-creation headquarters that the entire nation has been curious about, "CSAT: Secret of Exam Questions" is scheduled to be released in theaters in October.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kim Ji-hye)
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