Baek Ji-won

In this Korean name, the family name is Baek.

Baek Ji-won (Korean: 백지원; born April 30, 1973)^[2] is a South Korean actress. She graduated in Horticultural Science from Kyung Hee University.^[3][4] She made her acting debut in 1996 in play My father got cancer. She is known for her role in television series Once Again (2020), apart from that she appeared in film Solace (2007) and television series The Fiery Priest (2019) and Do You Like Brahms? (2020). She has appeared in television dramas Encounter (2018–19), Racket Boys (2021), Melancholia (2021).^[5]

Baek Ji-won
Born	(1973-04-30) April 30, 1973 (age 52) South Korea
Education	Kyung Hee University (BSc in Horticultural)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1996–present
Agent	Lead Entertainment[1]
Korean name
Hangul	백지원
RR	Baek Jiwon
MR	Paek Chiwŏn

Career

Baek Ji-won grew up in an ordinary family with one brother and one sister, none of whom were artists. Despite being a quiet and diligent student, she found herself drawn to a friend at Ewha Girls' High School who exuded a unique and free-spirited vibe as a member of the drama club. Intrigued, she joined the drama club out of curiosity. However, her parents opposed her desire to major in drama in college, so she pursued horticulture instead. To satisfy her passion for acting, she continued to participate in the school drama club. After college, she joined the Yeonwoo Theater Company. Her debut performance was in 'My Dad Has Cancer' in 1996, which her father attended and saw her act for the first time.^[6]

Baek naturally expanded her field to movies and dramas without ever auditioning for them herself. She was always focused on her performances, and it was usually the production team that noticed her talent and cast her. In 2012, she gained recognition on TV with JTBC's How Long I've Kissed, directed by Ahn Pan-seok and written by Jeong Seong-ju. The casting director who saw Baek's performance recommended her for the role.^[6]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2003	If You Were Me			[7]
2006	Solace	Sim In-sook
2007	Attack on the Pin-Up Boys
2011	The Apprehenders	Social worker
2013	Montage	Detective
2014	Han Gong-ju	Head Nurse
2017	The Poet and the Boy	Teok Joo-ga-ri
2018	In Between Seasons	Sook-jung
2019	Family Affair
2022	Birth	Mother Kursula		[8]
2023	Dream	Sun-ja		[9]

Television series

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2012	How Long I've Kissed			[6]
2014	Secret Affair	Wang Jeong-hee
2015	Heard It Through the Grapevine	Yoo Shin-young
	I Have a Lover	Choi Jin-ri
	The Family is Coming	Choi Dal-ja
2016	A Beautiful Mind	Wife of glioblastoma patient	Cameo (Ep. 6)
2017	Woman with a Suitcase
	Lucky Romance
	Reunited Worlds	Landlord
	My Golden Life	Soon-Ok Cho
	Mad Dog	Oh Seo-ra
	Fight for My Way
	Super Family	Sex education teacher
	Innocent Defendant	Eun-hye's aunt
2018	About Time	Wife	Cameo (Ep. 1)
	The Undateables	Bong Sun-hwa
	Your Honor	Cha Hong-ran
	Lawless Lawyer
2019	Encounter	Joo Yeon-ja		[10]
	My Fellow Citizens!	Park Jin-hee
	Everything and Nothing	Doctor	Cameo (Ep. 1)
	The Fiery Priest	Kim In-kyung		[11]
	Trap	Ms. Joe
	Be Melodramatic	Jeong Hye-jeong		[12]
	Miss Lee	Choi Yeong-ja
	KBS Drama Special	Tony	Episode: "Understanding Dance"
2020	Tell Me What You Saw	Kim Na-hee	Cameo (Ep. 6–8)
	Once Again	Jang Ok-ja
	How to Buy a Friend	Oh Jung-hee		[13]
	Mystic Pop-up Bar	Mrs. Andong	Cameo (Ep. 2)
	Awaken	Lee Taek-jo
	Do You Like Brahms?	Lee Soo-kyung
2021	Racket Boys	Shin Song-hee		[14]
	Sell Your Haunted House	Lee Eun-Hye
	The Road: The Tragedy of One	Kwon Yeo-jin		[15]
	KBS Drama Special	Yoon Kwang-sook	Episode: "Scenery of Pain"	[16]
	Melancholia	Min Hee-seung		[17]
2021	Snowdrop	Choi Mi-hye		[18]
2022	Extraordinary Attorney Woo	Han Sun-young		[19][20]
	Cheer Up	Hwang Jin-hee		[21]
2024	Cinderella at 2AM	Kim Hee-sook	Cameo (Ep. 7–8)	[22]
	Parole Examiner Lee	Choi Hwa-ran		[23]
2025	Kick Kick Kick Kick	Baek Ji-won		[24]

Web series

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2021	Mad for Each Other	Kim In-ja		[25]
2022	Anna	Hyeon-ju's mother		[26]
	Once Upon a Small Town	Jang Se-ryeon		[27][28]
2023	The Deal	Min-woo's mother		[29]
	Race	Kim Hee-young		[30][31]
2024	When Life Gives You Tangerines	Hong Kyung-ja		[32][33]

Stage

Theater

Theater plays performances

Year	Title		Role	Theater	Date	Ref.
	English	Korean
1996	My father, the talkative one, has cancer	떠벌이 우리 아버지 암에 걸리셨네		Yeonwoo Small Theater in Daehangno	Dec 22 to 31	[34]
2005	Asking the Blind Father for Directions	눈 먼 아비에게 길을 묻다	Aunt	National Theater's Byeoloreum Theater	May 4 to 22	[35]
				Seoul Arts Center's Jayu Small Theater	June 17 to July 17	[36]
2007	A Pleasant Deal	유쾌한 거래	Jeong-suk	Daehangno Showtic Theater Hall 1 from the 31st	May 31 to June 17	[37]
2009–2010	Ask the Blind Father for Directions	하류인생에도 삶은 있어	Aunt	Seondol Theater in Daehangno, Seoul	Sep 25–Jan 24	[38]
2010	Shoot My Heart	내 심장을 쏴라		Namsan Arts Center Drama Center	Oct 7 to 24	[39]
2011	Good News in Our Neighborhood	우리동네 굿뉴스		Daehakro Seondol Theater	Dec 13, 2011 to Jan 15, 2012
2011	The 32nd Seoul Theater Festival: If There's a Peach Blossom, Pine Flowers Will Fly	(제32회) 서울연극제: 복사꽃 지면 송화 날리고	Mother	Arko Arts Theater Small Theater	May 6 to 8	[40]
2012	I Miss Your Parents' Faces	니 부모 얼굴이 보고 싶다	Kim Ji-soo	Sejong Center for the Performing Arts M Theater	June 24 to July 29	[41]
2013	This is Home	여기가 집이다	Mrs. Yang	Yeonwoo Small Theater (Daehakro)	June 28 to July 21
2013	Where Are You Going, Mr. Recovery	어디가세요 복구씨	Park Soon-yi	Theater Laboratory, 1 Hyehwa-dong	Nov 1 to 17
2014	Living Double Life	살아있는 이중생 각하		National Theater Daloreum Theater	Sep 12 to 28	[42]
2014	Pillars of Society	김광보 연출 사회의 기둥들	Mrs. Holt	LG Arts Center	Nov 19 to 30	[43]
2016	Rain	비	Catherine	Project Box View	Nov 11 to 30
2017, 2018	Why Rooftop Garden Peppers	옥상 밭 고추는 왜		Sejong Cultural Center M Theater	April 12 to 22	[44]
2018	Termites in the Desert	사막 속의 흰개미	Yoon Hyun-sook	Sejong Cultural Center S Theater	Nov 9 to 25
2023	Cherry Orchard	벚꽃 동산	Lyubov Andreyevna Ranevskaya	Myeongdong Art Theater	May 4 to May 28	[45]

Awards and nominations

Award ceremony	Year	Category	Nominee / Work	Result	Ref.
APAN Star Awards	2022	Best Supporting Actress	Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Anna	Won	[46]
40th Dong-A Theater Awards[a]	2004	Yoo In-chon New Actor Award	Baek Ji-won	Won	[47]
KBS Drama Awards	2020	Best Supporting Actress	How to Buy a Friend Once Again	Nominated	[48]
SBS Drama Awards	2019	Best Supporting Team	The Fiery Priest	Won	[49]
		Excellence Award, Actress in a Mid-Length Drama		Nominated

Note

1. The Dong-A Theater Awards [ko] (동아연극상) established in 1964 to expand and develop the base of Korean theater, have contributed to the revitalization of Korean theater by selecting and awarding performers, theater troupes and organizations that have performed outstandingly every year.