Choo Ja-hyun

This is a Korean name; the family name is Choo.
Choo Ja-hyun
Born Choo Eun-joo
(1979-01-20) January 20, 1979
Daegu, South Korea
Residence Beijing, China
Other names Qiu Ci Xuan
Ethnicity Korean
Alma mater Dankook University
Occupation Actress
Years active 1996-present
Agent Mooshin Entertainment (Korea)
CHS Media (China)
Religion Christianity[1]
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised Romanization Chu Ja-hyeon
McCune–Reischauer Ch'u Ja-hyŏn
Birth name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised Romanization Chu Eun-ju
McCune–Reischauer Ch'u Ŭnju

Choo Ja-hyun (born Choo Eun-joo on January 20, 1979) is a South Korean actress. Best known in Korea for the films Bloody Tie (2006) and Portrait of a Beauty (2008), Choo has mostly worked in China since 2007, notably in television drama The Temptation to Go Home (2011).[2]

Early life

Choo Eun-joo was born and raised in Daegu, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. The only daughter of a cosmetologist and a white-collar worker, her parents divorced when she was 18 years old. Choo graduated from Dankook University in 1997, with a bachelor's degree in Theater and Film.[1]

Career

South Korea

Using the stage name Choo Ja-hyun, she began her entertainment career as a model at age 17. She made her acting debut in 1996, and went on to appear in several television series, among them Successful Story of a Bright Girl (2002), Sunrise House (2002), and Apgujeong House (2003).[3]

Then after a decade in relative obscurity, Choo drew critical acclaim in 2006 for her portrayal of a ravaged drug addict in Bloody Tie, a film noir about the meth trade in 1990s Busan.[4][5] She won acting recognition from the Grand Bell Awards, the Korean Film Awards, and the Director's Cut Awards, as well as nominations from the Blue Dragon Film Awards and the Baeksang Arts Awards.[6][7][8]

She was then cast in the erotic period drama Portrait of a Beauty, based on Lee Jung-myung's novel Painter of the Wind which reimagined Joseon artist Shin Yun-bok as a woman disguised as a man.[9][10] Portrait of a Beauty became the 8th best-selling Korean film of 2008,[11][12] and Choo again received supporting actress nominations for playing a gisaeng who entertains noblemen by performing dances and poetry readings.

This was followed by Missing (2009), a slasher film in which Choo's character is determined to find her younger sister, who's been abducted by a psychopath farmer who rapes and murders young women.[13][14]

She starred in Loveholic in 2010, a character-driven romance drama directed by Kwon Chil-in. Choo played a self-destructive woman with a drinking problem and professional crises; she goes to stay at her friend's house until she sorts out her life, then has an affair with the latter's cuckolded husband.[15][16]

Choo next appeared in The Famished, a 27-minute short film about stage actors who eat their own memories to satisfy their hunger; it was included in the omnibus Short! Short! Short! 2010: Fantastic Theater.[17]

China

Choo had begun building her pan-Asian profile when she appeared in the 2003 Taiwanese drama Scent of Love, which ranked number one in the ratings when it aired in Taiwan.

Despite almost a decade of acting experience in her homeland, Choo later said she decided to launch her career in China for practical reasons, "I did not have a choice (but to debut in China). Acting is my trade, and I have to act to make a living, but in Korea the work was not steady enough for a stable income."[18] She was cast as Du Chun's leading lady in The Legend of the Banner Hero (also known as Clan Feuds), adapted from Taiwanese novelist Gu Long's wuxia novel of the same title. It was filmed in 2005, and aired in 2007.[19] In late 2007, Choo was part of the main cast of another Gu Long adaptation, The Legend of Chu Liuxiang.[20]

But it was her leading role as a betrayed wife in revenge melodrama The Temptation to Go Home (also known as Temptation of Going Home or Lure of Homecoming), a 2011 remake of Korea's Temptation of Wife (the original and remake both received high ratings), that catapulted Choo into stardom in Mainland China and made her one of the most sought-after Hallyu stars there.[21] Fluent in Chinese and English, Choo has since relocated to Beijing and concentrated on her acting career in China, with occasional forays in Korean cinema.[2] She uses the Chinese name Qiu Ci Xuan.

When Choo appeared in a semi-nude hanbok photo shoot for a Chinese magazine in 2011, she was criticized by Korean netizens for "damaging the national costume's image."[22] Because of the controversy, she closed down her Twitter account and is instead active on the Chinese microblogging platform Weibo.[23] Choo's old nude photos were also leaked to Chinese websites that year; her Chinese agency said the photos had been taken for personal reasons and threatened legal action against those circulating them.[24][25]

She continued playing lead roles in Chinese television dramas of various genres (epic, fantasy, period drama, contemporary romance), such as Wipe Out the Bandits of Wulong Mountain (2012), Turbulence of the Mu Clan (2012), Hu Xian (2013), Legend of Southwest Dance and Music (2013), Xiu Xiu's Men (2014), and Gorgeous Workers (2014).[26][27]

Filmography

Film

Year English Title Original Title Role Notes
1996 The Adventures of Mrs. Park 박봉곤 가출 사건 Hye-soo
2005 Short Time 이대로, 죽을 순 없다 Yang Jung-ae
Travel in Fog 안개 속의 여행
2006 Bloody Tie 사생결단 Ji-young
2008 Portrait of a Beauty 미인도 Seol-hwa
2009 Missing 실종 Hyun-jung
2010 Le Grand Chef 2: Kimchi Battle 식객:김치전쟁 Seong-chan's mother (cameo)
Loveholic 참을 수 없는 Ji-heun
2011 Short! Short! Short! 2010:
Fantastic Theater
환상극장 Lee Seo-yeon segment: "The Famished"
(허기)
2014 The Boundary 全城通缉

Korean television

Year English Title Korean Title Role Network
1996 18, Feeling of Growing Up 성장느낌 18세 SBS
1997 Miss & Mister 미스&미스터 SBS
1998 The Eldest 맏이 MBC
1999 KAIST 카이스트 SBS
The Last War 마지막 전쟁 MBC
2000 Legends of Love 사랑의 전설 SBS
Because of You 당신때문에 Ahn Soo-eun MBC
Cruise of Love 사랑의 유람선 KBS2
2001 Outing 외출 Jung Nan-young SBS
2002 Successful Story of a Bright Girl 명랑소녀 성공기 Hwang Bo-bae SBS
Sunrise House 해뜨는 집 Jung Mi-hee SBS
2003 Apgujeong House 압구정 종갓집 Eldest daughter SBS
S#arp 1 반올림1 Lee Ok-rim's narration KBS2
2004 Oh Feel Young 오! 필승 봉순영 Heo Song-ja KBS2
2005 Family Scandal 가족 연애사 Sun-ah OCN
2010 A Man Called God 신이라 불리운 사나이 Seo Mi-soo/Choi Kang-hee MBC

Chinese television

Year English Title Chinese Title Role Network
2003 Scent of Love 恋香 Jeon Ho-yeon/Yin Xiangzhi TTV
2007 The Legend of the Banner Hero 大旗英雄传 Shui Lingguang CCTV-8
The Legend of Chu Liuxiang 楚留香传奇 Shi Guanyin CCTV-8
Let Love Rain Like Pearls 让爱化作珍珠雨 Bei Xinru
2011 The Temptation to Go Home 回家的诱惑 Gao Shanshan/Lin Pinru Hunan TV
2012 Wipe Out the Bandits of Wulong Mountain 新乌龙山剿匪记 Chen Feng Jiao Hunan TV
Turbulence of the Mu Clan 木府风云 A Leqiu CCTV-8
从将军到士兵 Guan Biyun
2013 Hu Xian 狐仙 Nie Xiaoqian HNTV
Legend of Southwest Dance and Music 舞乐传奇 Ye Shaluo CCTV-8
2014 长安三怪探 Wei Ruozhao SDTV
Xiu Xiu's Men 秀秀的男人 ZJSTV
Gorgeous Workers 华丽上班族 Zhang Wei JSTV

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
2006 7th Busan Film Critics Awards Best Supporting Actress
Bloody Tie
Won
43rd Grand Bell Awards Best New Actress Won
27th Blue Dragon Film Awards Best New Actress Nominated
5th Korean Film Awards Best Supporting Actress Won
Best New Actress Won
9th Director's Cut Awards Best New Actress Won
2007 43rd Baeksang Arts Awards Best New Actress Nominated
2009 46th Grand Bell Awards Best Supporting Actress
Portrait of a Beauty
Nominated
30th Blue Dragon Film Awards Best Supporting Actress Nominated
17th Korean Culture and Entertainment Awards Excellence Award, Actress in Film Won
2012 CCTV Chinese TV Star of the Year Awards International Cooperation Award Won
2013 2nd APAN Star Awards Achievement Award N/A Won
2015 10th Seoul International Drama Awards Mango TV Popularity Award N/A Won

References

  1. 1 2 "Choo Ja-hyun (Chu Ja-hyeon 추자현)". Korea Tourism Organization. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  2. 1 2 Park, Jin-hai (19 June 2013). "Korean stars faring well in China". The Korea Times. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  3. Naldi, V. X. "Success Story of a Bright Girl (2002, SBS drama special)". Koreanfilm.org. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  4. "사생결단 (Bloody Tie) Press Screening Report". Twitch Film. 18 April 2006. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  5. "CHU Ja-hyeon". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  6. D'Sa, Nigel (26 July 2006). "43rd Crowns King and the Clown". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  7. "Hong Sang-soo Named Best Director". KBS Global. 22 December 2006. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  8. Yi, Chang-ho (28 December 2006). "Director's Cut Awards Diversity of Films". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  9. "Portrait of a Beauty Most Anticipated Film in Fall". KBS World. 10 September 2008. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  10. Yang, Sung-jin (13 October 2008). "Legendary painter Hyewon hits silver screen". The Korea Herald via Hancinema. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  11. "Provocative Portrait of a Beauty Tops Movie Chart". The Chosun Ilbo. 24 November 2008. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  12. "The Best Selling Films of 2008". Koreanfilm.org. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  13. Elley, Derek (25 August 2009). "Review: Missing". Variety. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  14. Vijn, Ard (1 August 2009). "Kim Sung-hong's Missing (Sil Jong) Review". Twitch Film. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  15. Giammarco, Tom. "Secret Romance". Koreanfilm.org. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  16. "Review: Loveholic". Variety. 2 November 2009. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  17. Lee, Hyo-won (2 May 2010). "Rising directors explore fear, fantasy". The Korea Times. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  18. Choi, He-suk (19 January 2015). "Choo Ja-hyun says she began her Chinese career from scratch". K-Pop Herald. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  19. 韩国女星秋瓷炫大旗英雄传享受飞翔(图). Sina.com (in Chinese). 20 April 2005. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
  20. 图文:楚留香传奇发布会--韩国演员秋瓷炫. Sina.com (in Chinese). 6 December 2007. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
  21. "Export of Korean pop culture is evolving: KOTRA study". The Dong-a Ilbo. 11 July 2011. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  22. 추자현 화보논란, 中 남성잡지 '한복 세미누드'. TV Daily (in Korean). 3 September 2011. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  23. Chung, Ah-young (13 August 2013). "How to rule on Weibo". The Korea Times. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  24. Tian, Tian (16 March 2011). "Choo Ja Hyun Regrets Nude Photo Incident". CRI English. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  25. "Actress Chu to take legal action over nude photos". The Korea Times. 16 March 2011. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  26. 秋瓷炫迟帅主演狐仙 樊少皇和徐锦江助阵. Xinhuanet (in Chinese). 23 July 2013. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
  27. Xu, Jia (7 May 2015). "Korean Stars Over China". Korean Cinema Today. Retrieved 2015-05-31.

External links

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