Level: Beginner (TOPIK 1–2)
On August 1st. 2026, some exciting anime movie news suddenly popped up.
Agami (아가미), a feature-length animated film based on the novel by Gu Byeong-mo, is coming soon.
And the voice of one of its characters, Kang-ha (강하), is none other than actor Kang Haneul.
Then, on August 1, ATNINE FILM (엣나인필름), the company promoting the film, announced a fun interactive event:
목소리의 주인공을 찾습니다
“Find the owners of these voices.”
Participants are asked to listen to four voice files and guess who the voices belong to.
Those who guess correctly can win invitations to the first screening of Agami.
And there was one more little clue hidden in the audio files:
아가미 #0909
#0909 means September 9.
It looks like the date marking our first encounter with the movie has been cleverly woven into the promotion, too.
What does 아가미 mean?
아가미
= gill
= えら（鰓）
In Korean, 아가미 means the gills of a fish or another aquatic animal.
And, by the way, among fans, Kang Haneul’s jawline is sometimes jokingly described as having “gills” (아가미).
But of course, this 아가미 has nothing to do with his jawline. 😂
(For reference, “jaw” in Korean is 턱.)
Agami is a feature-length animated film based on Gu Byeong-mo’s novel.
In the story, a boy named Gon (곤) develops 아가미, allowing him to breathe underwater. The story then unfolds around the people living by a lake.
And the character voiced by Kang Haneul?
You guessed it:
강하 (Kang-ha). 😂
The voice of Kang-ha has finally been revealed through this event.
Well…
There is only one thing to do.
Listen.
And since we have the chance, why stop at simply listening?
Let’s actually practice the lines while listening to Kang Haneul’s voice.
Listen, speak, and sync with Kang Haneul 💙
The best part of this event?
We actually get to hear Kang Haneul’s voice. 💙
…Well, technically, the point of the event is to guess who the voice belongs to.
So yes, we listen first to figure out who it is. 😂
But it would be such a waste to stop there.
Why not listen to the audio, learn what the lines mean, move our mouths, and try saying them just like Kang Haneul?
In other words:
Listen → understand → speak → shadow.
The actual lines
You can listen to the audio here:
Here is the full dialogue:
“비공개로 돌리시기 전에 우연치 않게 인어 남자에 대한 이야기를 읽었습니다.
아마 제가 알고 있는 사람 같습니다.
관심 있으시면 연락주세요.”
What does it mean?
“I happened to read something about a merman before it was made private.
I think it may be someone I know.
If you’re interested, please contact me.”
Now let’s look at some of the expressions in the actual dialogue.
Useful expressions from Kang-ha’s lines
| Korean | Meaning | Key point |
|---|---|---|
| 비공개로 돌리다 | to make something private | 비공개 = private; -로 돌리다 = to make/change into |
| ~하기 전에 | before doing ~ | Verb + -기 전에 |
| 우연치 않게 | by chance, coincidentally | 우연 = chance, coincidence |
| 인어 남자 | a merman | 인어 = mermaid/merman; 남자 = man |
| ~에 대한 | about, concerning | ~에 대한 + noun |
| 아마 ~ 같습니다 | I think ~ / It probably seems like ~ | 아마 = probably; 같습니다 = seems/is likely |
| 제가 알고 있는 사람 | a person I know | 제가 = I; 알고 있는 = knowing; 사람 = person |
| 관심 있으시면 | if you’re interested | 관심이 있다 = to be interested; -시- = honorific |
| 연락 주세요 | please contact me | -아/어 주세요 = please do ~ |
Shadowing with Kang Haneul’s voice
Here is a simple way to practice:
① Listen normally
↓
② Check the full dialogue
↓
③ Pause after each sentence
↓
④ Copy Kang Haneul’s pronunciation
↓
⑤ Say it together with the audio
↓
⑥ Finally, try saying it without the audio
This is a form of shadowing, a popular language-learning technique.
One of the best things about practicing with movie and drama lines is that you can hear Korean at a natural speaking speed, with real pronunciation, intonation, and rhythm.
And this time, there is an extra bonus:
You get to practice with Haneul’s voice. 💙
That makes repeating the same line over and over feel a little less like studying, doesn’t it?
Three useful Korean expressions from Kang-ha’s lines
The dialogue contains not only useful vocabulary, but also expressions that you can take directly into your own Korean.
Here are three worth practicing.
① 아마 제가 알고 있는 사람 같습니다.
“I think it may be someone I know.”
- 아마 = probably, perhaps
- 제가 알고 있는 사람 = a person I know
- 같습니다 = seems / I think it is
The useful grammar point here is:
아마 ~ 같습니다
= “I think it’s probably ~” / “It seems like ~”
아마 means “probably” or “perhaps,” while 같습니다 means “it seems” or “I think.”
The pattern 아마 + sentence + 같습니다 is useful when you are making a guess without being completely certain.
For example:
아마 한국 영화 같습니다.
= I think it’s probably a Korean movie.
아마 그 사람이 맞는 것 같습니다.
= I think that’s probably the right person.
아마 내일 비가 올 것 같습니다.
= I think it will probably rain tomorrow.
Once you get used to 아마 ~ 같습니다, you can use it whenever you want to express a polite guess or impression.
② ~에 대한 이야기를 읽었습니다
“I read a story/article about ~.”
- ~에 대한 = about / concerning
- 이야기 = story, talk
- 읽었습니다 = read
The key expression is:
~에 대한
It is a very useful way to say “about” or “concerning” something.
For example:
한국에 대한 이야기를 읽었습니다.
= I read something about Korea.
영화에 대한 이야기를 읽었습니다.
= I read something about the movie.
So when you want to say “about ~” in Korean, ~에 대한 is a very useful pattern to remember.
③ 관심 있으시면 연락 주세요.
“If you’re interested, please contact me.”
Now this one is especially worth remembering. 💙
있으면
= if there is / if you have
있으시면
= if you have / if you are… (honorific)
The -시- expresses respect toward the person you are speaking to, while -면 means “if” or “when.”
So:
관심이 있으면
→ if you are interested
becomes the more respectful:
관심 있으시면
→ if you are interested
And:
연락 주세요
= Please contact me.
The grammar -아/어 주세요 is a basic and very useful way to ask someone to do something.
So:
관심 있으시면 연락 주세요.
means:
“If you’re interested, please contact me.”
And honestly…
If Kang Haneul says it in that voice,
how are we supposed to NOT contact him? 💙
How difficult is this Korean for TOPIK?
The expressions in this dialogue range from basic to slightly more intermediate.
Overall, I would say the vocabulary and grammar are suitable for TOPIK 1–2 level learners, especially if you are already familiar with basic verb conjugations and sentence patterns.
But when you actually listen to Kang Haneul saying the lines, you might notice something else:
“Wait… that was fast.”
Even when you know all the vocabulary and grammar, real spoken Korean adds:
- speaking speed
- connected sounds
- intonation
- rhythm
That is why understanding a sentence and actually being able to say it at the same speed and rhythm are two different skills.
So instead of stopping at:
“I understand what he said.”
let’s aim for:
“I can say it like him, too.”
That is exactly where shadowing can help.
Clementine’s Note 🍊
At the fan meeting, VIP attendees were quietly told about Kang Haneul’s voice-acting project before it was officially announced.
For about a week after the July 25 fan meeting, I got to enjoy the little feeling that we were secretly sharing the same piece of information.
Looking back, that was a pretty special week.
And then, finally, Kang-ha’s voice was released to the public.
And what does he say?
관심 있으시면 연락 주세요.
“If you’re interested, please contact me.”
💙
Yes! I’m interested! VERY VERY interested!
Of course I’ll contact you! ✋❤️
…And there goes my imagination again😂
