angel of lifestyle: SEO WOO

Actress Seo Woo was born in Seoul, South Korea on July 7, 1985 with the birth name of Kim Moon-Joo (김문주). She is the youngest of three daughters in her family. As the youngest child Seo Woo developed a charming personality effective for a young child to garner attention. Her childhood was typical for a Korean girl and she held no aspirations to become an actress during her school days. Seo Woo did take traditional Korean dance lessons for 8 years and also figure skating & violin lessons.

In 2007, Seo Woo made her debut as an actress in a supporting role for the film "My Son". Even at this time Seo Woo did not hold aspirations to become an actress. Seo Woo got the part after visiting the president of her current management company "Shim Entertainment" (심엔터테인먼트), whom she already knew & received an audition. During this time Seo Woo also appeared in a commercial for Lotte ice cream and in the MBC drama "Kimchi Cheese Smile".

kimchi cheese smile

In the following year, 2008, Seo Woo received her break out role in the critically lauded film "Crush and Blush". Seo Woo played pivotal supporting character Seo Jong-Hee - an oddball outcast middle-school student. Prior to filming "Crush and Blush," the film's director Lee Kyoung-Mi frequently called Seo Woo & listened to Seo Woo practice her lines, while also talking about herself and asking questions about Seo Woo. Through this process Seo Woo got closer to her character Seo Jong-Hee. As a result, Seo Woo won "Best New Actress" awards from 8 different domestic movie awards.

crush and blush

In 2009 Seo Woo took the lead role in the unusual MBC drama "Tamra, the Island" - a period drama set on Jeju Island that also stars French model Pierre Deporte. In "Tamra, the Island," Seo Woo plays Jang Beo-jin an impish young female diver on the island. The role was a challenge for Seo Woo because she has a fear of water from an early drowning experiencing. Although Seo Woo found it difficult at times, she did manage to finish her filming scenes after taking diving lessons for three months. "Tamra, the Island" received disappointing TV ratings, but the show did attract a fervent following by hardcore fans who protested loud and clear when MBC decided to shorten the length of the series.

A minor scandal also broke out during this time when netizens discovered Seo Woo was born in 1985 and not in 1988 (which was her reported age by her management company). When the discrepancy was discovered, her management company publicly apologized for the error and stated the error was their fault and not Seo Woo's.

Tamra The Island

During the filming of "Tamra, the Island," Seo Woo also received an offer to play the main character in the art film "Paju," directed by Park Chan-Ok. Initially, it seemed Seo Woo could not perform in "Paju" due to her shooting schedule in "Tamra, the Island," but a fortunate 2 month break allowed Seo Woo to take part in "Paju." According to director Park Chan-Ok, Seo Woo was cast for the lead role due to her exhausted eyes, which was shown on "Tamra, the Island." Director Park Chan-Ok felt those emotions would fit perfectly with her character's mysterious image in "Paju." Seo Woo and the film "Paju" received strong responses, especially from the film festival circuit.

paju

Since that time, Seo Woo has seen her popularity increase immensely and demand for her as an actress has also risen proportionally. In 2010, Seo Woo performed alongside celebrated actress Jeon Do-Yeon in the highly anticipated film "The Housemaid," directed by Im Sang-Soo. Seo Woo also plays the inverted Cinderella like character in the popular KBS2 drama "Cinderella's Sister," alongside popular actress Moon Geun-Young.