Born in 1980, JANG So-yeon had always dreamed of becoming an actress. While still in high school, she met by chance a student of the Korean Academy of Film Arts who then cast her in his graduation film, <Tear Puddle> (1999). Without any preparation, she had to play a pregnant teenager having a miscarriage in a scene shot guerilla-style at a busy intersection of Seoul. Although she majored in English and Chinese language, thus bypassing acting school, she explains that t...
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Born in 1980, JANG So-yeon had always dreamed of becoming an actress. While still in high school, she met by chance a student of the Korean Academy of Film Arts who then cast her in his graduation film, <Tear Puddle> (1999). Without any preparation, she had to play a pregnant teenager having a miscarriage in a scene shot guerilla-style at a busy intersection of Seoul. Although she majored in English and Chinese language, thus bypassing acting school, she explains that this choice was still motivated by her dream of a career in acting, as she believed knowing foreign languages would help her land roles. In 2001, she appeared in an uncredited role in the indie darling <Take Care of My Cat> (2001), soon followed by another in <Desire> (2002). At that point, having noticed she had trouble separating her roles from real life, she determined it was better for her to quit acting and moved to Canada. There, she worked as a TV reporter, but she couldn’t help but keep thinking about acting. She eventually came back to Korea a year later and joined the Theater Yeonwoo Company. She resumed her screen career with short appearances in films like <Mr. Gam’s Victory> (2004), <Murder, Take One> (2005), and later <Unstoppable Marriage> (2007). While on stage she has played a wide range of roles, in cinema she is usually cast as a wife and/or mother. Although she is best known for her roles in TV series such as <Behind the White Tower> (2007) and <Secret Affair> (2014). After a supporting role in <My Dear Enemy> (2008) and her participation in NA Hong-jin’s <The Yellow Sea> (2010), as well as bit parts in <Silenced> (2011) and <Veteran> (2014), she received a more substantial role for NA’s following title <The Wailing> (2016). In 2018, she gained wider recognition in the romantic TV series <Something in the Rain>, in which she played the best friend and big sister of the lead couple.
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