A few months ago, an actress familiar to many who watch K-Dramas gained attention for an unexpected complaint — only receiving ahjumma roles throughout her hard-earned career.
From her roles in When The Camila Blooms…
Kim Sun Young in “When The Camellia Blooms.” | @jellyfish_ent/Twitter
…to her memorable character in Reply 1988, Kim Sun Young used the screen time she was given in her parts to make a lasting impact on viewers despite the difficulty she found in building up her career.
Kim Sun Young in “Reply 1988.” | tvN
In an episode of “Song Yoon Ah by PDC,” a YouTube series hosted by actress Song Yoon Ah, Kim was brought to tears while talking about her passion for acting, explicitly mentioning how she had been typecast and the difficulties it brought.
Your browser does not support video.
I can’t get enough of acting, and I’m in love with it. But right after ‘When the Camellia Blooms,’ I starred in ‘Crash Landing on You.’ Both were middle-aged-woman roles. And after playing a middle-aged woman twice in a row, that image must’ve settled with me. I keep getting offers for similar roles. Not that I have a problem with middle-aged women’s roles. But it could be a middle-aged woman who commits filicide. Or a burglar. Just some substance. Anything. But my roles never go outside of the marketplace…and I can’t keep repeating what I’ve done before.
I’ve blamed others, and I’ve blamed myself for it quite a bit. I took it out on myself a lot because there were no limits to how harsh I can be on myself. When I was alone, I crawled way deep into a hole. So you could say I fell into a slight depression. I didn’t express it openly, of course…I don’t know how to put it. I just sincerely wanted to do acting but didn’t get the chance to. And I feel like I’m finally ready to do good acting.
— Kim Sun Young
She was recently rewarded for all her hard work with a prestigious award!
The film Concrete Utopia was released earlier this year, starring Lee Byun Hyung and Park Seo Joon. The film follows the residents of an apartment complex after a massive earthquake, with Kim Sun Young playing the president of the women’s association of the residence.
| Lotte Entertainment | Lotte Entertainment
In addition to the film being nominated for multiple awards at the 59th Grand Bell Awards, Kim Sun Young received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the movie, which she won!
Amazingly, she was also nominated for Best Actress for her lead role in Dream Palace, though she did not win. Dream Palace was ultimately awarded The Focus of the Grand Bell Award in the Film Section, showing just how great her performance was.
Congratulations to Kim Sun Young!
