Tang Wei

Tang Wei Film Career:
Tang Wei made her film debut in Ang Lee's Lust, Caution, starring opposite Tony Leung.

She was born in Hangzhou on October 7, 1979, near Shanghai, China. As a teenager, Ms. Tang began modeling. In 2004, she made it to the final round of the Miss Universe pageant in Beijing. She graduated from China’s Central Academy of Drama with a major in Film Directing.

Tang Wei ws already a star in mainland China, having performed in stage plays and in the telefilm Jinghua Swallow. The latter earned her the Best Actress award at the 2006 CCTV Movie Channel Awards. She has also written short novels and stage dramas, and directed theater productions.

In 2008, the Chinese government blacklisted Tang Wei because of the sexual nature of her performance in Lust, Caution.

Yu Nan

Yu Nan Biography:
Born in 1978 in China, Yu Nan graduated from the Beijing Film Academy's acting department. A regular actress in Want Quan An's films, she made her debut in his film Luna Eclipse. Her performance caught the attention of French film producers who cast her in Karin Dridi's Fureur.

Since then, Yu Nan has starred in The story of Ermel , her second collaboration with Wang Quan an, which won her the Best Actress award at the Paris Film Fesvial. They worked together in

Tuya's Marriage which won the Golden Bear at the 2007 Berlin Film Festival. She next starred in Wang Xiaoshuai's In Love We Trust, winner of the 2008 Berlin Film Festival Festival screenplay award. Yu Nan had a featured role in the Wachowski Brother's new film Speed Racer.

Han Suk-kyu

Complete filmography:

Solace (2006)
A Bloody Aria (2006)
Forbidden Quest (2006)
Mr. Housekeeper (2005)
The President's Last Bang (2005)
The Scarlet Letter (2004)
Double Agent (2003)
Tell Me Something (1999)
Shiri (1999)
Christmas in August (1998)
The Contact (1997)
No. 3 (1997)
Green Fish (1997)
The Gingko Bed (1996)
Dr. Bong (1995)
Mommy, the Star, and the Sea Anemone (1995, cameo)

Han Suk-kyu (b. August 17, 1964) began his career in the early 1990's as a dubbing artist, before being cast in the TV drama Moon Over Seoul. By the late 90s he had become one of the most popular actors in Korea, starring in a series of both highly acclaimed and extremely popular films including Lee Chang-dong's debut film Green Fish, the groundbreaking gangster comedy No. 3, the hugely popular internet romance The Contact, Hur Jin-ho's classic Christmas in August, and the film that officially kicked off Korea's modern-day commercial boom, Kang Je-gyu's Shiri. At this time, Han was receiving a higher guaranteed salary for his films than any other actor (~$350,000 in 1999).

From 1999 until early 2003, however, Han took an extended leave of absence from filmmaking, only appearing occasionally on TV commercials. By the time of his return in the film Double Agent -- a spy film in which he stars with Ko So-young, which was a disappointment at the box-office -- he had lost his status as the most popular actor in the Korean film industry. The following year, his appearance in The Scarlet Letter with now-deceased actress Lee Eun-ju opened well, but failed to make a big impression with audiences.

Han's appearance in Im Sang-soo's political bombshell The President's Last Bang marked an impressive return to form, however, and even if it didn't translate into success at the box office, it showed that Han remained at the top of his form. For his next project Han discards his serious image to play a stay-at-home dad who dresses up as a woman in order to enter a TV quiz show for housewives.

Interview excerpts:

People say that you have benefitted from your voice. Do you think this is true? "I think so. When I first started acting on TV, people criticized me, saying I spoke like a 1960s movie star. Now I know how to control my voice. My experiences as a dubbing artist and a singer in high school taught me pronunciation and better control over the language." [Cine 21, #174, Nov. 3, 1998]

Shim Eun-ha

Complete filmography:

Interview (2000)
Tell Me Something (1999)
The Uprising (1999)
Art Museum by the Zoo (1998)
Christmas in August (1998)
Born to Kill (1996)
My Old Sweetheart (1995)



Shim Eun-ha (b. September 23, 1972) debuted in 1994 in the basketball-themed TV drama The Last Match, and quickly became the nation's most popular and talked-about star. After acting in three more television dramas and two lesser-known films (including Born To Kill with Jung Woo-sung), she made a permanent mark in the film industry with her performance in Hur Jin-ho's modern-day classic Christmas in August (1998). Later that year Art Museum by the Zoo, which presented a more down-to-earth side of the actress, saw her win over more critical praise for her acting abilities. Throughout this period, Shim consistently topped magazine polls as the most popular actress in the film industry.

In Tell Me Something, her star power combined with Han Suk-kyu to create one of the most highly anticipated works in Korean film history (though most viewers ultimately expressed disappointment at the film's convoluted narrative). The following year she appeared in Korea's first Dogme film Interview, which would end up being her last appearance.

In 2002, after rumors surfaced of an engagement which was later called off, Shim decided to give up her entertainment career. In the ensuing years, despite periodic rumors that she would resume her film career, Shim has tried her best to remain out of the public eye, studying in France and taking up painting. However despite (or perhaps because of) her long absence, she remains the undisputedly most popular actress of the last decade. In October 2005 she was married to a professor from Yonsei University, and at the time she re-affirmed that she will not return to acting.

Interview excerpts:

What kind of film would you most like to make? "Something provocative and urban, with a decadent feel to it. A film featuring great female attraction. Something like Beatrice Dalle in Betty Blue, perhaps. Is there anything that can compare to that film?" [Cine21, #182, Dec 1998]

Ahn Sung-ki

Partial filmography:

My New Partner (2008)
May 18 (2007)
Radio Star (2006)
A Battle of Wits [Hong Kong] (2006)
Hanbando (2006)
Duelist (2005)
Arahan (2004)
Silmido (2003)
The Romantic President (2002)
Chihwaseon (2002)
The Last Witness (2001)
Musa (2001)
My Beautiful Girl, Mari (2001, voice)
Kilimanjaro (2000)
Truth or Dare (2000)
Black Hole (1999)
Nowhere to Hide (1999)
Art Museum by the Zoo (1998)
Spring in My Hometown (1998)
The Soul Guardians (1998)
Taekwondo (1998)
Bedroom and Courtroom (1998)
The Adventures of Mrs. Park (1996)
Festival (1996)
Eternal Empire (1995)
The Taebaek Mountains (1994)
To the Starry Island (1993)
Two Cops (1993)
The Blue In You (1992)
White Badge (1992)
The Dream (1990)
North Korea's Southern Army (1990)
Chilsu and Mansu (1988)
Gagman (1988)
The Age of Success (1988)
Our Sweet Days of Youth (1987)
A Wanderer in Winter (1986)
Hwang Jin-yi (1986)
Eunuch (1986)
Deep Blue Night (1985)
Eo-Woo-Dong (1985)
Whale Hunting (1984)
Warm Winter Was Gone (1984)
Between the Knees (1984)
People in a Slum (1982)
Misty Village (1982)
Mandala (1981)
A Small Ball Shot by a Dwarf (1981)
Fine Windy Day (1980)
The Apron (1964)
The Housemaid (1960)
Teenagers' Rebellion (1959)
The Twilight Train (1957)

Ahn Sung-ki (b. January 1, 1952) is the consummate veteran actor, having starred in close to 70 films at the time of this writing. The local press has even dubbed him with the nickname, "The National Actor". He made his debut back in 1957 in The Twilight Train, a film by cult director Kim Ki-young. Two years later he would win the Best Child Actor Award at the 1960 San Francisco International Film Festival for Teenagers' Rebellion, another film by Kim. His oldest surviving feature is Kim's masterpiece The Housemaid (1960), which continues to amaze audiences to the present day.

As an adult, Ahn's filmography resembles a list of Korean cinema's greatest achievements. First gaining wide notice in Lee Jang-ho's acclaimed Fine Windy Day and Im Kwon-taek's artistic breakthrough Mandala, he also starred in some of the biggest hits of the 1980s by Bae Chang-ho (Whale Hunting, Deep Blue Night, Our Sweet Days of Youth), and in debut works by acclaimed filmmakers Park Kwang-su (Chilsu and Mansu), Jang Sun-woo (The Age of Success) and Lee Myung-se (Gagman).

In the 1990s he continued to take high-profile roles, such as Jung Ji-young's Vietnam War drama White Badge and the politically-themed North Korea's Southern Army, the smash hit Two Cops by Kang Woo-suk, Park Kwang-soo's To the Starry Island, Im Kwon-taek's The Taebaek Mountains and Festival, Lee Kwang-mo's acclaimed Spring in My Hometown, and Lee Myung-Se's Nowhere to Hide.

Ahn also took an active role in supporting Korea's Screen Quota System after the US began to place pressure on Korea to abolish the system in the late 1990s.

The early 2000s has seen Ahn continue to balance more popular works with films by veteran directors. Im Kwon-taek's Chihwaseon, in which he played a mentor to the lead character, became the first Korean film to win a prize at the Cannes film festival (Best Director). Ahn was also the obvious choice to play the nation's chief executive in the romantic comedy The Romantic President. Meanwhile Kang Woo-suk's big budget Silmido, in which he played a tough but loyal military trainer, became the first film ever to sell 10 million tickets in Korea.

Meanwhile Ryoo Seung-wan's Arahan (2004) presented Ahn with yet another new challenge: wire action. Known for the excellent physical condition he keeps himself, Ahn pulled this off without a hitch and then signed on for a role as a Chosun-era detective in Lee Myung-Se's stylish action/drama Duelist.

Interview excerpts:

What are your criteria for selecting a film? "The quality of the screenplay and the subject matter, particularly the subject matter. I look for something new. Unusual or creative films are good. The script should be somewhat unconventional; that's how I get engaged in a film. I don't like melodramas." [Cine21, #50, Apr 30, 1996]

Shin Hyun-june

Partial filmography:

Barefoot Gi-bong (2006)
Shadowless Sword (2005)
Marrying the Mafia 2 (2005)
Face (2004)
Blue (2003)
Guns & Talks (2001)
Siren (2000)
Bichunmoo (2000)
The Soul Guardians (1998)
The Story of a Man (1998)
Maria and the Inn (1997)
Channel 69 (1996)
The Gingko Bed (1996)
The Taebaek Mountains (1994)
Hwa-om-kyung (1993)
Son of a General 3 (1992)
Son of a General 2 (1991)
Son of a General (1990)

Shin Hyun-june (b. March 24, 1968) was an athletics major at Yonsei University before starting a career in modeling and acting in 1989. His film debut came in veteran director Im Kwon-taek's stylish Son of a General series, set under the Japanese occupation in the 1920s. For the first half of the 1990s he continued working with Im Kwon-taek and also acted in Hwa-om-kyung, Jang Sun-woo's award winning film based on the Avatamska Sutra.

In recent years Shin has turned more towards popular cinema, finding his greatest success in fantasy/sci-fi works such as The Gingko Bed, The Soul Guardians, and the Korean-Chinese coproduction Bichunmoo. In 2001 he starred in the third film by director Jang Jin (Guns & Talks), where he acted opposite TV star Won Bin and Shin Ha-kyun. He drew praise in this film for his acting, and the film went on to become hugely successful at the box-office. His next feature however, submarine drama Blue, proved a disappointment at the box-office. His next film saw him team up with actress Song Yoon-ah.

Moon Geun-young

Complete filmography:

Love Me Not (2006)
Innocent Steps (2005)
My Little Bride (2004)
A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)
Lovers Concerto (2002)
On the Road (2000)



Moon Geun-young (b. May 6, 1987), through a combination of excellent acting skills and a sweet, innocent-looking manner, became a superstar in Korea long before she turned twenty. Moon first started modeling at the age of 12, and then in 2000 appeared in the docu-drama On the Road by artist Choi Jae-eun. That same year she appeared as the younger Song Hye-gyo in the hugely successful TV drama Autumn Fairy Tale, which was exported throughout Asia. She then played the younger version of Lee Mi-yeon's character in the KBS drama The Last Empress.

Moon's first appearance in a film was in a supporting role as Cha Tae-hyun's younger sister in Lovers Concerto (2002). It would be the following year that she would be launched as a major star, however, with her role in Kim Jee-woon's successful horror film A Tale of Two Sisters. Together with fellow actress Im Soo-jung, Moon captured the attention of legions of fans, from teenage girls on up.

Her subsequent appearances have given her a reputation as being one of Korea's few (only?) genuine box office draws, who can sell millions of tickets even in a bad film. Although My Little Bride (2004), in which she co-starred with Kim Rae-won, was considered an entertaining commercial comedy (which sold three million tickets), Moon was given the entire credit for the two million tickets sold by her subsequent film, the poorly-constructed ballroom dance film Innocent Steps.

Son Ye-jin

Complete filmography:

The Art of Seduction (2005)
April Snow (2005)
A Moment to Remember (2004)
Crazy First Love (2003)
The Classic (2003)
Lovers Concerto (2002)
Chihwaseon (2002)
Secret Tears (2000)

Fansite:
http://www.mattube.com/hamil/

Son Ye-jin (b. January 11, 1982) has taken on a variety of roles in her career to date, propelling her to fame both in Korea and in other Asian countries. She first appeared in a supporting role in Park Ki-hyung's film Secret Tears in 2000, and then went on to take the lead in TV dramas such as Delicious Proposal, Sunhee Jinhee, and Daemang: Great Ambition. Her first high-profile role in cinema was in Im Kwon-taek's Chihwaseon, which screened at Cannes and took home a Best Director award in 2002.

The biggest success of her early career was in the subsequent films Lovers Concerto and The Classic. Both were solid mid-level hits in Korea, and The Classic in particular -- being a work of My Sassy Girl director Kwak Jae-yong -- received wide exposure in countries such as Hong Kong and China.

Son further solidified her status as a "hallyu" (Korean wave) star in 2003 by taking the lead in TV drama Summer Scent, a part of the hugely successful series of TV dramas including Autumn Love Story and Winter Sonata (though this drama would not attract the attention of the previous two). Her next two films also proved to be huge hits in Asia: A Moment to Remember, based on a famous Japanese TV series, set box office records in Japan and sold over two million tickets in Korea, while April Snow in which she co-starred with superstar Bae Yong-joon was also a smash hit in Japan and China (though not, incidentally, in Korea).

Son's most recent work sees her cast off her nice girl image to take on the role of a seductress in The Art of Seduction. From Marc 2006 she is also scheduled to appear in a TV drama together with Gam Woo-sung, playing the role of a divorced woman.

Kim Suna

Complete filmography:

She's On Duty (2005)
S Diary (2004)
Happy Naked Christmas (2003)
The Greatest Expectation (2003)
Once Upon a Time in Battlefield (2003)
Wet Dreams (2002)
Yesterday (2002)


Kim Suna (b. October 1, 1975) was born in Daegu and then spent much of her school years in Tokyo. After first appearing in a music video by Kim Hyun-cheol, she started appearing often on TV but did not emerge as a star. She would first become well known as a film actress, debuting in the big-budget box office failure Yesterday but going on to play a lead role as a student teacher in the unexpected hit Wet Dreams.

Following this, Kim began to establish a niche for herself in comedies, often appearing as a straight-talking and not particularly demure comic heroine. She appeared in three films in 2003: a memorable cameo appearance in the period comedy Once Upon a Time in a Battlefield, opposite Im Chang-jung in the strong hit The Greatest Expectation, and together with Cha Tae-hyun in the little-watched Happy Naked Christmas. In 2004 she took the lead role in S Diary as a jilted woman who decides to get revenge on her ex-boyfriends.

The early part of 2005 saw her star in the action-comedy She's On Duty, but she would follow this up by returning to the realm of TV dramas. It proved to be the best move of her career, as My Lovely Samsoon ended up becoming the most-watched drama of 2005. The forthright, independent personality she displayed in her leading role as a woman who finds unexpected success in life as a baker endeared her to women across Korea, and later Asia, establishing her as an top star.

Currently Kim is re-enrolled in college at Ball State University in the US as a piano major, presumably also brushing up on her English skills in order to further her career.

Bae Yong-joon

Date of Birth ~ August 29, 1973
Height/Weight ~ Height: 5’ 11” (180 cm) / Weight: 148 lbs (67 kg)
School ~ Seonggyoon University, Visual Arts
Blood type ~ O
Religion ~ Roman Catholic
Hobbies ~ Fishing
Marriage ~ Single
Web Site ~ http://byj.co.kr/

Filmography ~
Movies ~
Scandal (aka Secret Scandal)

Miniseries ~
Jeolmeoniui Yangji (A Place For the Young)
Papa
First Love
Barefoot Youth
Winter Sonata
Hotelier
Bae Yong-joon (b. August 29, 1972) spent the first nine years of his show biz career in TV dramas, gradually building up a tremendous fan base across Asia, and particularly in Japan, that has made him one of Korea's most famous stars. His debut came in the 1994 TV drama Love Greeting, and from 1995 to 2002 he went on to appear in nine more TV dramas. Have We Really Loved? (1999), Hotelier (2001) and especially Winter Sonata (2002) gave him tremendous exposure throughout Asia. In Japan in particular, Winter Sonata enjoyed unprecedented popular success, particularly among middle-aged women. Bae was subsequently dubbed with the honorific nickname "Yonsama", and became the most famous Korean star in Japan. Japanese prime minister Koizumi even joked, perhaps not untruthfully, that Bae's popularity had outstripped his own.

Meanwhile his film debut, outside of a brief walk-on in the film Bbilgu in 1995, came after he was already quite famous, in E J-yong's 2003 period drama Untold Scandal. The film, in which he portrayed a womanizing aristocrat quite unlike his popular image from TV dramas, was a hit in Korea and also performed well in Japan. By the time he made his second film April Snow in 2005, his popularity had grown to the extent that an intense media frenzy followed him throughout the shooting schedule. The film, about a man who discovers his wife's infidelity after she falls into a coma, opened weakly in Korea but set a new box office record for a Korean film in Japan.

In fall of 2006, Bae is scheduled to return to TV dramas with the lead role in Taewangsasingi, where he plays an emperor from the Goguryeo Dynasty who lived from 375-413.