Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective
Shin Min-a
South Korean actress (born 1984) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Remove ads
Yang Min-a (Korean: 양민아; born 5 April 1984), better known by the stage name Shin Min-a (신민아), is a South Korean actress and model best known for starring in television dramas A Love to Kill (2005), My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho (2010), Arang and the Magistrate (2012), Oh My Venus (2015), Tomorrow, With You (2017), Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha (2021), and Our Blues (2022).
Remove ads
Career
Summarize
Perspective
1998–present: Modeling
Shin began her career as a model for the teen magazine KiKi in 1998, under her birth name, Yang Min-a.[6] Without her knowledge, a friend applied her to the magazine's model competition, which Shin won.[7] She first made a name for herself starring in commercials for brands such as Samsung[8] and Korea Telecom 018, in which her line "love moves about" gained popularity amongst Korean youth.[7]
Along with Kim Hyo-jin, Kim Min-hee, and Yang Mi-ra, she was considered one of the "four teenage commercial stars",[8] and a representative of the "N generation" (a Korean analogue to the millennial generation).[9] She has since become one of the most in-demand and highest paid commercial endorsers in South Korea.[10]
Notable among her forays into branded entertainment is the 2008 multi-episode Summer Days opposite Hyun Bin and Ryoo Seung-bum for LG Xnote featuring music by You Hee-yeol,[11] as well as Friends & Love, a movie-style extended advertisement for Giordano in 2011 costarring Jung Woo-sung and So Ji-sub.[12]
In 2009, Shin went to Milan, Italy to shoot a photo spread for Elle Korea with Calvin Klein model Jamie Dornan.[13] In 2011, she was chosen as the first Asian model for the DIY Project ad campaign of American clothing brand Rag & bone,[14][15] and in 2012 was featured in The New York Times's T Magazine.[16][17]
Shin is Roger Vivier's Maison Ambassador for Korea.[18] On 11 November 2021, she was appointed as Gucci's brand ambassador with Lee Jung-jae.[10][19]
2000–present: Acting
Shin started acting by starring in music videos.[8] In 2000, she was cast in the high-budget music video for Jo Sung-mo's "Do You Know", as a Vietnamese girl who falls in love with a Korean soldier during the Vietnam War.[20][21] Ahead of her film debut in Volcano High, she adopted the stage name Shin Min-a, to avoid confusion with the actress Yang Mi-ra.[22] While Volcano High started production earlier, her first appearance as an actress was in the melodrama Beautiful Days.[23] She took five months of acting lessons in preparation for her role. Regarding it, she stated to The Dong-A Ilbo: "It was a completely different role than my regular image [...] At first, it was awkward, but I'm confident I won't get criticized for 'clumsy acting'."[24]
In 2003, she took the main role in the college romance movie Madeleine with Jo In-sung.[25] For her role as a hairdresser, she practiced hairdressing for three months before the movie started filming.[25] She then took on her first main TV role as a boxer in the series Punch, training under the wing of the boxer Kim Ju-hee for two months.[26] The drama's director, Lee Hyun-jik, praised her, saying, "Min-a might be a rookie actor, but she's so enthusiastic sometimes we worry someone might get hurt, and she also excels in expressing emotions."[27] Her role earned her a New Star Award at the 2003 SBS Drama Awards.[28]
In 2005, she took on a supporting role in Kim Jee-woon's noir film A Bittersweet Life, reuniting her with previous co-star Lee Byung-hun.[29] She then portrayed a deaf character in Sad Movie.[30] This was followed by leading roles in the melodrama A Love to Kill with Rain,[31] romantic comedy series The Beast and the Beauty with Ryoo Seung-bum,[32] and psychological thriller Lucifer with Uhm Tae-woong and Ju Ji-hoon.[33] In the 2007 film My Mighty Princess, Shin simultaneously played two characters.[34]
As Shin entered her mid-twenties, she began showcasing more maturity in her choice of roles. In Go Go 70s, Shin played a sexy counterculture singer[35][36] and won numerous accolades for her portrayal. She then acted as an unfaithful wife in The Naked Kitchen,[37] and a cynical young woman in search of her father in Sisters on the Road, a critically acclaimed indie film which also stars fellow actress and close friend Gong Hyo-jin.[38] But Shin became best known for her portrayals of supernatural horror icons revamped into endearingly innocent yet spunky heroines in the rom-com My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho (2010),[39] and the historical drama Arang and the Magistrate (2012).[40][41][42]
After appearing in The X, a 2013 spy thriller short film directed by Kim Jee-woon,[43] Shin returned to the big screen in 2014 with Gyeongju, an introspective arthouse romance opposite Park Hae-il.[44] This was followed by the romantic comedy film My Love, My Bride, where she and Jo Jung-suk played a newly married couple; it was a remake of the same-titled 1990 hit that starred Choi Jin-sil and Park Joong-hoon.[45][46][47]
In 2015, Shin and So Ji-sub were cast in the romantic comedy series Oh My Venus.[48] For her character, an overweight lawyer, Shin underwent a three-hour makeup/prosthetic session every shoot.[49] At the 2015 KBS Drama Awards, Shin won the Excellence Award, the Best Actress in a Miniseries award, and the Best Couple Award with So Ji-sub.[50] She also won the Outstanding Korean Actress award at the 11th Seoul International Drama Awards.[51]
In 2016, Shin was cast opposite Lee Je-hoon in the fantasy melodrama Tomorrow, With You, portraying a 30-year-old amateur photographer who finds out that her better half can time travel. The drama was fully pre-produced and premiered in February 2017.[52][53]
Shin took a break from acting for two years. In 2018, Shin was cast opposite Lee Yoo-young in the mystery film Diva, playing Yi Young, a diver who lost her memory after an accident.[54][55] The film marks the directorial debut of Cho Seul-ye. It was showcased in the Korean Fantastic features section at the 25th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival held in July 2021.[56]
In 2019, Shin returned to the small screen after three years in the political drama Chief of Staff opposite Lee Jung-jae, as Kang Seon-yeong, a lawyer turned politician.[57][58] In winter 2019, Shin reprised her role for the second season.[59][60][61]
In 2021, Shin reunited with director Yoo Je-won in Hometown-Cha-Cha-Cha, starring Kim Seon-ho and Lee Sang-yi. She played the role Yoon Hye-jin, a dentist who moved from the city to open a clinic in the seaside village of Gongjin. It was a remake of 2004 film Mr. Handy, Mr. Hong, which starred Uhm Jung-hwa and Kim Joo-hyuk. The series became a domestic hit with audience ratings peaking at 13.322% and went on to become one of the highest-rated television series on Korean cable television history.[62] Following its release on Netflix, Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha became one of the platform's most-watched non-English television shows. It remained on Netflix's non-English popular television show list for 16 weeks, and reached the top 10 charts in more than 20 countries.[63][64] It also on Netflix's Top 10 Chart for television shows for more than two months from its last episode.[65][66]
In October 2021, Shin went to Jeju Island to film Noh Hee-kyung's omnibus drama Our Blues, starring Lee Byung-hun, Cha Seung-won, Lee Jung-eun, Uhm Jung-hwa, Han Ji-min, and Kim Woo-bin.[67] Shin played Min Seon-ah, a divorcee with one child who came to Jeju and met her childhood friend Lee Dong-seok.[68] It premiered on tvN on 9 April 2022.[69]
Shin was cast in the movie Our Season in 2020,[70] which released in 2023.[71] The film was her first big screen role in three years after the thriller Diva.[72] Playing a woman whose dead mother gets a "trip from heaven" to visit her, Shin chose to appear in the film because of its heartwarming feel and relatable subject matter.[73] She played against type with a gloomier character, as in her previous project, Our Blues—explaining her choice, she stated that she wanted to play a variety of roles.[73] A writer for the Korean news outlet Dispatch, reviewing the movie, said Shin's performance with Kim Hae-sook was "like seeing a real mother and daughter".[74] The same year Our Season was released, Shin also returned to television with the series No Gain No Love; it began airing in August 2024.[75]
Others
After her travels were documented on the cable channel O'live in 2008,[76] Shin published a book titled Shin Min-a's French Diary in 2009.[77]
She has also contributed her vocals to several singles and soundtracks.[78][79]
Remove ads
Personal life
On 22 July 2015, Shin's agency, Mother Company Entertainment, and Kim Woo-bin's agency, Sidus HQ, confirmed their artists' relationship. They met each other as models for the same fashion brand two months prior.[80][81][82]
Philanthropy
Summarize
Perspective
Shin Min‑ah has shown a long‑standing, wide‑ranging commitment to philanthropy, beginning around 2008. By 2015 it was reported that she had donated a total of ₩1 billion over the previous seven years through organizations such as the Community Chest of Korea (Seoul Fruit of Love) and Good Friends, which assists North Korean defectors.[83] By December 2022, her cumulative donations had surpassed ₩3.3 billion. In that period she donated ₩260 million at year‑end to institutions she supports regularly, including Community Chest of Korea (Seoul Fruit of Love) and Asan Medical Center, bringing her total contributions for the year to ₩360 million.[84] By 2025 her donation reached ₩4 billion.[85]
In recognition of her steady philanthropy, Shin received a Presidential Citation at the 4th Finance Day Commemoration Ceremony on October 29, 2019.[86] In 2024, she received the 'Good People Artist Award' at the 14th Beautiful Artist Award.[85]
Shin has been actively engaged in public health sector. In August 2014 she took part in the Ice Bucket Challenge, a fundraising campaign by the U.S. ALS Association aimed at developing treatments for ALS.[87] She has made regular contributions trough several charity foundations, including a total of approximately ₩717 million to the Community Chest of Korea (Fruit of Love) by 2015. Since December 2009, Shin has been donating ₩2 million every month, with year-end donations ranging from ₩50 million to ₩100 million. In accordance with her wishes, the donations primarily support children and the elderly in difficult circumstances, covering medical expenses for children with burns, heating costs for the elderly living alone, and education for immigrant children.[84] In February 2020, she contributed ₩100 million to the Community Chest of Korea (Fruit of Love) to support medical staff and vulnerable groups during the COVID-19 pandemic.[88]
Shin's philanthropic efforts also extend to Good Friends, an organization she began supporting in 2010 after meeting them through writer Noh Hee-kyung. According to a Good Friends representative, Shin has donated a total of ₩290 million since 2010, which has been used to support single-parent mothers and children among North Korean defectors, providing essential services such as powdered milk, after-school programs, medical care, and kimchi.[84]
Shin also has made specific donations to help children with illnesses. In October, she participated in the "Ohui Beautiful Face Campaign" and personally delivered a ₩50 million donation to Seoul National University Children's Hospital. In September 2019, she donated ₩50 million to the same hospital.[89] Shin has also been a consistent supporter of the Hallym Burn Foundation since 2015, participating in the "Let's Share the Heart" talent donation campaign in November 2016. She made additional donations of ₩100 million in December 2020,[90][91] as well as another ₩100 million in December 2021.[92] Shin have been supporting Asan Medical Center since 2018.[93] In December 2021, she donated ₩100 million each to Asan Medical Center and the Korean Developmental Society to support psychological treatment for children affected by prolonged COVID-19 infections.[92]
She has also donated to disaster relief. In May, Shin Min-a donated 100 million won to Nepal earthquake relief efforts via The Korean branch of JTS (Join Together Society), an NGO dedicated to eradicating hunger, disease, and illiteracy.[83] In August 2020 she donated ₩50 million to Community Chest of Korea (Seoul Fruit of Love) to assist victims of torrential rains.[94] In March 2022, Shin donated ₩100 million to the Hope Bridge Korea Disaster Relief Association,[a] to help victims of the large wildfires that began in Uljin County and spread to Samcheok.[96][84] On 8 February 2023, Shin donated ₩50 million to the Hope Bridge Disaster Relief Society to help victims of the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake.[97] In March 2025, Shin donated ₩50 million to the Korean Red Cross to help wildfire victims in the Ulsan, Gyeongbuk, and Gyeongnam regions.[98]
In education and other areas of social support, Shin donated ₩50 million in 2010 to help build Korea’s first multicultural school in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province.[99]
Remove ads
Filmography
Film
Television series
Music video appearances
Remove ads
Discography
Book
Remove ads
Accolades
Awards and nominations
State honors
Listicles
Remove ads
Notes
- The Hope Bridge Korea Disaster Relief Association is a non-profit organization established in 1961. It was founded by newspaper companies, broadcasting companies, and social organizations with the aim of providing assistance to individuals affected by unforeseen disasters. Originally known as the "Korea Flood Damage Response Committee," it initially focused on providing financial aid for the victims of Typhoon Sarah in 1959. In 1964, the organization was renamed the "Korea Disaster Response Association" to expand its relief efforts and promote a culture of donation within society. In 2001, with the amendment of the Disaster Relief Act, The Hope Bridge Korea Korea Disaster Relief Association became the only relief organization in the country authorized by the government to raise and distribute donations for domestic natural disasters.[95]
- Shin Young-kyun Arts and Culture Foundation)
- Shin Min-a mentioned together with Song Hye-kyo and Son Ye-jin with 2.2% of Gallup survey respondent
- Joy News 24, an entertainment economic magazine, conducted a survey from 12 to 19 October 2021, about dramas, movies, actors, singers, and entertainment programs that shone in 2021 in celebration of its 17th anniversary. About 200 people in the industry participated in the survey, including executives at entertainment companies and broadcasting companies, producers of film and broadcast content, and reporters from the entertainment department. The results of the survey are presented by category.
- 3 votes each, tied with Go Doo-shim, Kim Hye-ja and Lee Jung-eun
Remove ads
References
External links
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Remove ads