A funerary portrait of director Ahn Pan-seok is displayed at his funeral altar at Seoul National University Hospital in Seoul on Friday. (Yonhap) The recent death of Ahn Pan-seok, the director of hit dramas "Behind the White Tower" in 2007 and "Something in the Rain" in 2018, has sparked tributes across Korea's entertainment industry.Kim Hye-soo, who starred in Ahn's series "Jjak," which means "partner" in Korean, told reporters Thursday that the news of his death had left her "numb and heavy-hearted.""He did not let go of his role as a director until his very last breath," she added. "I highly respect him for putting his all into directing until the end."B.A. Entertainment, one of the production companies behind Ahn's 2025 series "The Art of Negotiation," said, "Ahn always tried to make enjoyable, touching and deep stories. The scenes and stories he sought to create will always remain in our hearts."Ahn was known for a hyperrealist directing style inspired by "The Poetics of Aristotle," which he used as a reference for his work.His signature approach involved capturing scenes with long takes and full shots and giving them a distinctive color palette, establishing what came to be recognized as the "Ahn Pan-seok drama."He also worked to improve working conditions on set. Rather than simply issuing instructions or orders to actors and staff, Ahn was known for building scenes through constant dialogue with them.Even when the industry was full of last-minute scripts and live filming, Ahn's meticulous preparation was always known to have helped ensure adequate rest for the cast and crew.Son Ye-jin, who played the lead in "Something in the Rain," described Ahn's production as "a set where human rights are respected" during a press event in 2018."From now on, I don't think I will be able to work with any other director," she said.Ahn joined MBC in 1987 and began directing television dramas under the conviction that "all dramas should be real."He died Wednesday while receiving treatment for a brain hemorrhage.