Shin Min-a

Yang Min-a (born 5 April 1984), better known by the stage name Shin Min-a, is a South Korean model and actress 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).

Modeling
Shin began her career as a model for the teen magazine KiKi in 1998, under her birth name, Yang Min-a. Without her knowledge, her friend applied her to the magazine's model competition, where she got first place. She first made a name for herself starring in commercials for brands such as Samsung and Korea Telecom 018, in which her line "love moves about" gained popularity amongst Korean youth. Along with Kim Hyo-jin, Kim Min-hee, and Yang Mi-ra, she was considered one of the "four teenage commercial stars," and a representative of the "N generation" (a Korean analogue to the millennial generation). She has since become one of the most in-demand and highest paid commercial endorsers in South Korea. 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, as well as Friends & Love, a movie-style extended advertisement for Giordano in 2011 costarring Jung Woo-sung and So Ji-sub.

In 2009, Shin went to Milan, Italy to shoot a photo spread for Elle Korea with Calvin Klein model Jamie Dornan. In 2011, she was chosen as the first Asian model for the DIY Project ad campaign of American clothing brand Rag & bone, then was subsequently featured in The New York Times's T Magazine.

Shin is Roger Vivier's Maison Ambassador for Korea. On November 11, 2021, she was appointed as Gucci's brand ambassador with Lee Jung-jae.

Acting
Shin started acting by starring in music videos. 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. 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. While Volcano High started production earlier, her first appearance as an actress was in the melodrama Beautiful Days. 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.'"

In 2003, she took the main role in the college romance movie Madeleine with Jo In-sung. For her role as a hairdresser, she practiced hairdressing for three months before the movie's filming went underway. 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. 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." Her role earned her a New Star Award at the 2003 SBS Drama Awards.

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. She then portrayed a deaf character in Sad Movie. This was followed by leading roles in the melodrama A Love to Kill with Rain, romantic comedy series The Beast and the Beauty with Ryoo Seung-bum, and psychological thriller Lucifer with Uhm Tae-woong and Ju Ji-hoon. In the 2007 film My Mighty Princess, Shin simultaneously played two characters.

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 and won numerous accolades for her portrayal. She then acted as an unfaithful wife in The Naked Kitchen, 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. 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), and the historical drama Arang and the Magistrate (2012).

After appearing in The X, a 2013 spy thriller short film directed by Kim Jee-woon, Shin returned to the big screen in 2014 with Gyeongju, an introspective arthouse romance opposite Park Hae-il. 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.

In 2015, Shin and So Ji-sub were cast in the romantic comedy series Oh My Venus. For her character, an overweight lawyer, Shin underwent a three-hour makeup/prosthetic session every shoot. Shin won Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries and with So Ji-sub, Shin won Best Couple Award from 2015 KBS Drama Awards. She also won the Outstanding Korean Actress award at the 11th Seoul International Drama Awards.

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.

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. The film marks the directorial debut of Cho Seul-ye. It was showcased in Korean Fantastic features section at 25th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival held in July 2021.

In 2019, Shin returned to the small screen after three years. She acted in the political drama Chief of Staff opposite Lee Jung-jae; as Kang Seon-yeong, a lawyer turned politician. In winter 2019, Shin reprised her role for the second season.

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. 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. It also on Netflix's Top 10 Chart for television shows for more than two months from its last episode.

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. Shin played Min Seon-ah, a divorcee with one child who came to Jeju and met her childhood friend Lee Dong-seok. It premiered on tvN on April 9, 2022, and aired every Saturday and Sunday at 21:10 (KST) with 20 episodes.

Shin was cast in the movie Our Season in 2020, which released in 2023. The film was her first big screen role in three years after the thriller Diva. 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. 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. 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."

Others
After her travels were documented on the cable channel O'live in 2008, Shin published a book titled Shin Min-a's French Diary in 2009.

She has also contributed her vocals to several singles and soundtracks.



Personal life
Since May 2015, Shin has been in a relationship with model-actor Kim Woo-bin. They met each other as models for the same fashion brand.

Philanthropy
In 2010, Shin donated 50 million won to build Korea's first multicultural school in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province. In August 2014, she participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge, a fundraising campaign underway by US ALS Association to develop treatments for ALS and to help patients.

In 2015, it was reported that Shin had donated a total of 1 billion won over past 7 years through 'Fruit of Love', a social welfare community chest and 'Good Friends' an association that helps North Korean defectors. In November 2016, she participated in 'Let's Share the Heart' talent donation: a campaign to raise funds for Hallym Burn Foundation.

In September 2019, Shin donated 50 million won to Seoul National University Children's Hospital. On October 29, 2019, at 4th Finance Day Commemoration Ceremony, Shin received the Presidential Citation in recognition of her consistent donations.

In February 2020, Shin donated 100 million won to the Seoul Community Chest of Korea (Seoul Fruit of Love) to be used for medical staff and vulnerable groups who are working hard to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In August, she donated 50 million to the Fruit of Love to help the victims of torrential rain. In December 2020, Shin donated 100 million won through the Hallym Burn Foundation, which she had been practising every year since 2015.

In December 2021, it was reported that she has donated 100 million won each to the Hallym Burn Foundation, Seoul Asan Hospital and to the Korean Developmental Society for psychological treatment of children suffering from the prolonged COVID-19 infection. In March 2022, Shin donated 100 million won to the Hope Bridge Disaster Relief Association to help the victims of the massive wildfire that started in Uljin County, North Gyeongsang Province, and has spread to Samcheok, Gangwon Province.

In December 2022, it was reported that Shin Min-ah's cumulative donation amount exceeds 3.3 billion won. Since 2009, Shin steadily donates to the cause such as supporting low-income youth and children with childhood cancer. In March, Shin donated 100 million won to the Hope Bridge National Disaster Relief Association to help restore forest fire damage. Shin also donated a total of 260 million won for the end of the year, to institutions where She used donate every year, such as Fruit of Love and Asan Medical Center in Seoul. Shin put out 360 million won this year alone.

On February 8, 2023, Shin donated 50 million won to the Hope Bridge Disaster Relief Society to help victims of the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake.