“Extraordinary Attorney Woo” star Ha Yoon-kyung recalls managing her own life during unknown days

Actress Ha Yoon-kyung recalls her days of obscurity, when she had to manage her own schedules alone without an agency, before gaining public recognition through the success of the ENA drama “Extraordinary Attorney Woo.” Even after rising to stardom with the work, which recorded a peak viewership rating of 17.5%, her modest daily life continues to show her affection for independent films.

In the 412th episode of the MBC variety show “The Manager,” which airs on the 22nd, Ha Yoon-kyung is shown visiting the Jeongdongjin Independent Film Festival, one of her favorite film festivals.

From the moment she heads toward the festival, Ha reminisces about her early days as an actress. During that time, working without a separate agency, she had to carry a single suitcase herself to manage various schedules. It was a period when she had to prepare everything from her hair and makeup to the necessary supplies needed on set.

Even now, having become a star actress, traces of that lifestyle remain. Ha revealed that for simple premiere schedules, she attends wearing self-selected civilian clothes and performing her own hair and makeup. It seems her way of managing her daily life hasn't changed much, even after becoming accustomed to the glamorous entertainment industry.

For Ha, independent film is a realm that goes beyond mere acting credits and touches upon her identity as an actress. She stated, “Going to film festivals is healing for me,” and shares that she maintains her affection for independent films while continuing busy activities with works such as “Undercover Miss Hong” and “Apartment.”

Upon arriving in Jeongdongjin, Ha reunites with the cast and crew of the film “Coming of Age.” She presents gifts she prepared personally for her senior actors and uses her characteristic sociability to lead a comfortable atmosphere on set. She also enjoys the festival by engaging in candid conversations with colleagues during a Jajangmyeon meal, a long-standing tradition of the Jeongdongjin Independent Film Festival.

The romance of the festival continues even in wind and rain. Ha walks along the beach in the rain with the “Coming of Age” team and actively takes the initiative to meet audiences and promote the work. Even after growing into a public star, she shows a desire to keep the distance between the film production site and the audience close.

The work that imprinted Ha's name on the public is the 2022 drama “Extraordinary Attorney Woo.” She played the role of Choi Soo-yeon, a lawyer at the law firm Hanbada, acting as a reliable colleague and friend to the protagonist, Woo Young-woo. In particular, she earned the nickname “Springtime Sunshine” by delicately portraying the warm and realistic personality of Choi Soo-yeon.

“Extraordinary Attorney Woo” wrote a new history for ENA dramas at the time, recording a peak viewership rating of 17.5%. Driven by the explosive popularity of the work, Ha also rose to become a noteworthy actress in an instant, but her acting career was not built overnight.

For Ha, who has steadily built her career centered around the stage and independent films, the Jeongdongjin Independent Film Festival is a space where the past and present intersect. The sight of an actress, who once dragged a suitcase to manage her schedules alone, now returning to the independent film scene after making her name known to the public, shows that an actor's success is not necessarily completed solely by the number of commercial hits.

In particular, the part where Ha says, “Going to film festivals is healing,” symbolically shows that for an actor, film is a profession and simultaneously still an object of affection. Her attitude of not forgetting her starting point and the creative site even after reaching stardom adds another layer of meaning to this trip to Jeongdongjin.