Development A longtime book lover, director was introduced to the novel—a collection of four short stories—by a friend. She went to propose the idea directly to the film production company, Whale and Organic. She later met with the author,
Sang Young Park, who secured the adaptation rights, and spent a year working on the screenplay. She went onto direct the film and was credited as the planner, screenwriter, and director. The director stated that developing the character of Jae-hee was one of the most difficult parts of the process. She constantly questioned how bold she could be and where to draw the line. At one point, when asked how she hoped Jae-hee would come across in the film, she immediately replied that she wanted her to be a character who is loved. E.oni said she genuinely liked the portrayal of Jae-hee in the original novel, which motivated her to search for a new story arc for the character in the film. She found Jae-hee, with her boldness and openness, to be admirable and even enviable—someone quite different from herself. Because the original story is told from Young's—here renamed Heung-soo— perspective, many aspects of Jae-hee remained hidden. E.oni wanted to fully explore the charm of the character and experience a sense of catharsis in the process. As a director who enjoys examining the dynamics between two characters,
Jae-hee was exactly the kind of story she was drawn to. E.oni explained that the script was written by a team of five women, including herself, the screenwriter, and the producer. They drew on their own life experiences to shape the story, aiming to present situations that would resonate with audiences. She emphasized that these additions were not made to follow trends, but to reflect relatable realities. The film also features a change in music. While the characters sing
Fin.K.L's "
Eternal Love" in the novel, this was replaced in the film with
miss A's "
Bad Girl, Good Girl." According to the director, the lyrics felt like a perfect match for the characters and even resembled a letter from Heung-soo to Jae-hee, prompting the change. Another difference involves the character Su-ho. In the novel, Su-ho appears to have taken his own life. However, in the film, his storyline diverges. E.oni explained that although Su-ho is depicted as someone with a privileged background who struggles with his identity, she couldn't accept the idea of his story ending in death. She questioned whether such an ending was necessary for the film and decided to portray a different path. A new detail added in the film shows Heung-soo's mother, Myeong-sook, having gone to see
Call Me by Your Name alone—conveyed visually through a ticket stub. While this action doesn't resolve the conflict between a mother and her gay son, the scene was included to suggest that Myeong-sook is at least trying to understand and make an effort.
Casting Kim Go-eun, who plays Jae-hee, was an actress whom director E.oni had wanted to work with from the early stages of the screenplay. However, after Kim confirmed her casting, it took over a year to find a suitable co-star because of Heung-soo being a gay character, which made it challenging to find a suitable actor. At one point, when E.oni feared the film might not move forward due to casting difficulties, she discovered actor
Noh Sang-hyun through the drama series
Pachinko. Kim Go-eun also shared that she had waited two and a half years for the project to be finalized after first receiving the script. She said she was drawn to the sincerity and natural flow of the story, and appreciated how the narrative unfolded in a candid, conversational way. ==Release==