Kim So eun

Acting career

Kim So-eun made her acting debut with a bit part in the 2004 film Two Guys, when she was in junior high school. She then appeared in minor roles on TV and film, including Sisters of the Sea and The Show Must Go On (where she played Song Kang-ho's daughter).

Kim rose to fame in 2009 with her supporting role as the heroine's best friend, Cha Ga Eul in the popular television series Boys Over Flowers. Kim gained praise for her versatility since she also portrayed Chae Shi-ra's childhood counterpart Hwangbo Soo in the period epic Empress Cheonchu, for which she learned how to ride a horse and shoot with a bow and arrow. She portrayed an older mid 20s woman by joining the cast of romantic comedy series He Who Can't Marry, a remake of Japanese drama Kekkon Dekinai Otoko.

She landed her first leading role in the 2010 daily drama A Good Day for the Wind to Blow (also known as Happiness in the Wind), which further raised her Korean Wave profile. She then starred in weekend drama A Thousand Kisses (2011-2012), which explored age differences in relationships.

In 2012, she starred in the ten-episode Chinese drama Secret Angel, which aired on the portal website Sohu.com. She returned to Korean television in the cable drama Happy Ending. That same year, she also appeared in Music and Lyrics, a reality show in which an actress and a male musician are paired together to collaborate, as lyricist and composer respectively, in creating a song. Kim and Lee Junho (from boyband 2PM) composed the song "Love is Sad," which Lee also recorded; it was released as a single and featured on the soundtrack of Feast of the Gods.

After playing Princess Sukhwi in the period epic Horse Doctor (also known as The King's Doctor, 2012-2013), Kim starred in After School: Lucky or Not (in the Korean title, bokbulbok refers to a game of chance, literally meaning "Luck, No Luck"), opposite the 5 members of actor-idol group 5urprise, which was distributed via SK Telecom's online and mobile portals. Kim played a timid girl who gets invited to a high school club, and encounters fantastical "missions" every episode, which draws out her bright, lively personality.

She and Victoria Song (member of girl group f(x)) were also chosen to host Glitter, a variety show on the lives of trendy twenty-somethings.

In 2014, Kim starred in the horror film Mourning Grave, playing a ghost girl who forms a friendship with a ghost-seeing high school boy Kang Ha-neul. This was followed by a leading role in Liar Game, a Korean drama adaptation of the titular Japanese manga by Shinobu Kaitani. Kim also joined the fourth season of reality show We Got Married, where she was paired with Song Jae-rim in a "virtual" marriage; it boosted their popularity as a couple and as individual celebrities.

In 2015, Kim starred in the webtoon adaptation Scholar Who Walks the Night, playing dual roles as a nobleman's daughter and a vampire's past love. She is set to launch her activities in China through the romance film Sky Lantern (also known as Lover of Days Past), a Korean-Chinese co-production film in which she stars opposite Taiwanese singer-actor Aaron Yan. Kim will play a young lantern designer trying to move on after losing a loved one. She was cast on the web drama created by Samsung company Falling for Challenge alongside Xiumin.She was also cast on KBS's radio program Volume Up as a special DJ, standing in for the show's regular DJ, Yoo In-na, who had to film for a drama.

In 2016, Kim signed with new management agency Will Entertainment.

In 2016-2017, she starred in SBS Drama Our Gap-soon as the main character Shin Gap Soon, together with her co-star in We Got Married, Song Jae-rim, for 61 episodes. She won an acting award at SBS Drama Awards in 2016. She then appeared in variety show Knowing Bros as one of the guests together with singers Hwang Chi-yeul and John Park. In July 2017, she was one of the participants in reality show Battle Trip and she went to Poland and Hungary with her best friend actress Jo Bo-ah.

In 24 July 2017, the news confirmed that she will star as a protagonist in KBS Drama Special You're Closer than I Think together with actor Lee Sang-yeob; the drama is scheduled for broadcast in September 2017.

Other activities

As a child, Kim trained professionally as a national athletic skier. Her training was put on indefinite hold after being scouted as a professional model in a 2003 junior advanced skiing and snowboarding competition in Pyeongchang, Gangwon-do. She retained her interest in the sport, appearing in 2012 instructional videos for Hongcheon's Vivaldi ski resort.

Kim has since endorsed products including Clean and Clear, KTF Telecom, Del Monte, Samsung Anycall, Pocari Sweat, Nongshim snacks, Maxim Coffee, P&G Wella Hair, Clinique Cosmetics, Hyundai You & I, clothing brand Clride.n, Orion Choco pie, J.estina jewelry, Bonjuk Food Chains, Lotte iTime, Candy Crush Soda and G-Market, and has appeared in magazines such as Allure Korea, High Cut, Vogue Korea, InStyle Korea, Elle Girl Korea, Harper's Bazaar, CeCi, L'Officiel, Esquire Korea, and Nylon Korea.

A regular advocate of art films, youth activism, and eco-living, she served as the goodwill ambassador for the 2009 Korea International Youth Film Festival, the 2009 University Fashion Week, the 2011 Jeonju International Film Festival, the Golden Cinema Festival in 2013 and 2014, and the 2014 Green Film Festival.