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Oh Min-ae
South Korean actress (born 1965) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Oh Min-ae is a South Korean actress.[1] She is known for her roles in dramas such as Mr. Sunshine, My Liberation Notes, The Penthouse: War in Life and Blind.[2] She also appeared in movies The Running Actress, Memento Mori, One Line, The Outlaws and Race to Freedom: Um Bok Dong.[3]
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Oh Min-ae was born on September 10, 1965, in Seoul to an unwed single mother. She had to give up high school and support herself by doing odd jobs, such as newspaper seller, delivery work, bar waitress, and teaching aerobics. When she was 27, she visited a travel agency to inquiry about backpacking trip to India. During this visit, the travel agent guessed that she might be a stage actor. This sparked her interest, and the agent introduced her to an acquaintance in the theater world. Since then, she started her acting journey, starting from theater staff.[4][5][6]
She made her first film appearance in 1999 in Memento Mori. Starting January 1, 2000, she spent about a year and a half living as a monk at Cheongunsa Temple. After leaving the temple,she used stage name. She thought life must be hard because of her name, she wanted to be ordinary, so she used the characters for "female" and "hope." and resumed her activities as a theater actress under the name for ten years.[7][8]
In her 40s, Oh later got married and had a child. She also passed the high school equivalency exam and enrolled in the Department of Cultural Studies at Broadcasting and Communication University. She needs to make money for childcare so she decided to pursue career as counselor. She entered Soongsil University’s Graduate School of Social Welfare in 2010, where she earned a social worker license.[9][10]
Oh Min-ae established Dongjak Theater Association (동작연극협회) with fellow theater actors. It was approved as a branch of the Seoul Theater Association on August 12, 2013. Oh served as 1st branch president until 2017.[11][12] She took on various administrative roles, including serving in educational and volunteer work. Handling too many responsibilities led to depression. Financial difficulties forced her to also work as a card salesman. She rely on connections with junior colleagues in the theater. Due to her union status, she was required to do a performance called Forest Fire. Reading the play's script reignited her love of acting and made her realize she could no longer return to a salesman.[4]
In 2015, Oh served as director of 36th Seoul Theater Festival.[13] Oh, served as director for Dongjak Theater Association's 'Hongsiyeol-neun House' (written by Kim Jeong-suk, directed by Oh Min-ae, performed on March 10, 2016.[14] Dongjak Theater Association's 2nd Seoul Citizen Theater Festival entry, Their Chatter.[15][16]
On March 27, 2017, the founding ceremony of the Performing Arts Workers' Union took place at the multipurpose hall of the Good Performance Information Center in Marronnier Park, Daehak-ro, Seoul. Oh was elected as co-vice chairman alongside Cho Jae-hyun, while Lee Jong-seung was appointed as the first chairman.[17]
In 2018, the MeToo movement shed light on numerous sexual violence cases within the theater community. During this period, Oh played a key role in receiving reports of these incidents and helped organize a rally demanding accountability within the community.[18] These efforts led to personal challenges and legal troubles, including defamation lawsuits, which she handled without legal representation. Ultimately, these experiences caused her to step away from the theater scene.[4]
Acting in films had mostly been a side job, but in 2019, with her family facing financial difficulties, her in-laws offered to help her find another job. However, she felt she could not step back from acting. Determined, she declared, "Mother, please give me just three years to pursue this seriously. If I can't establish myself, I'll go roll kimbap at a shop." Around this time, she got the script for To Each Your Sarah. Her acting in this short film won her a special jury award at the 18th Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival, which led to many more roles in short films and a busy period where she made seven short films in just six months. This experience helped her move past earlier struggles and fully commit to her film career.[4]
Oh stars as In-sook in Beyond You, the third feature-length film by Park Hong-min. In-sook, who suffers from Alzheimer's, struggles to hold on to her fading memories and fails to recognize her daughter, Ji-yeon. As In-sook clings to her past, Ji-yeon navigates the memories of others, while Kyung-ho is drawn into reflections of the past. The film has been screened at various festivals, including the 25th Busan International Film Festival (2020), The 46th Seoul Independent Film Festival (2020), The 16th Osaka Asian Film Festival (2021).The 9th Muju Mountain Film Festival (2021).[19]
She featured in several independent films, including a supporting role in Yoon Seo-jin’s debut feature, Chorokbam. In Director Heo Jeong-jae's feature debut, The First Child, she played a Korean-Chinese nanny working for Park Ha-sun's character. She also did supporting role in commercial film Unframed, Soulmate, A Year-End Medley.
In 2021, Oh appeared in several short films includes Treetop (Udeumji), Woman Who Killed a Lion, The Granddaughter, Obituary, My Prayer, Training Session, The Noon of Seoul, Dinner Ceremony, Dink. Oh also portrayed the independent-minded Seo-am-daek in Lee Tak's film Wasteland, which was invited to the Jeongdongjin Independent Film Festival[20]and the 47th Seoul Independent Film Festival.[21]
Oh starred in Missing Yoon as Soon-yi, an impersonation singer of Yoon Si-nae, marking her first leading role in a feature film. Soon-yi had emulated Yoon Si-nae for two decades, driven by her deep admiration for the artist. To prepare, Oh studied Yoon's videos and honed her singing skills. She even met Yoon in person, carefully observing every detail of her appearance, from her wig and makeup to her gentle speech. For her performance, Oh received the Best Actress Award at the 23rd Jeonju International Film Festival.[9][22]
In Kim Jin-han's short film The Way to Rest, Oh takes on the role of Ha-eun's mother. The story follows Ha-eun as she returns to her hometown upon learning that her mother is terminally ill.[23] The film garnered the Excellence Award for Director Kim Jin-han, and Oh was awarded the Stella Award for her performance at the 9th Catholic Film Festival in October 2022.[24]
In the film Concerning My Daughter, directed by Lee Mi-rang and adapted from Kim Hye-jin's original novel, Oh plays the role of a mother. The story revolves around her character as she starts living with her daughter, Im Se-mi, and her daughter's same-sex partner, Ha Yoon-kyung. Together, they navigate their relationships and strive for a deeper understanding. The movie premiered at the Busan International Film Festival in 2023, where Oh won the Best Actress award. She also received Best Actress award at the 3rd Korea Art Film Association Awards in 2025 and the 12th Wildflower Film Awards in 2025.[25][26][27]
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