Han Sun-hwa

Han Sun-hwa
Han at the "Save Me 2" Production Presentation
Han in 2019
Born (1990-10-06) October 6, 1990 (age 33)
Occupations
  • Singer
  • actress
Years active2009–present
AgentKeyEast
RelativesHan Seung-woo (brother)
Musical career
GenresK-pop
Instrument(s)Vocals
Labels
Formerly ofSecret
Korean name
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationHan Seon-hwa
McCune–ReischauerHan Sŏnhwa

Han Sun-hwa (born October 6, 1990), also known mononymously as Sunhwa, is a South Korean singer and actress. She is a former member of the South Korean girl group Secret. She made her television debut in 2004 while participating in SBS' Superstar Survival as a finalist, and in 2009, she was a regular cast on a variety show called Invincible Youth. Aside from music, she also ventured into acting and made her debut in the 2010 drama, More Charming By The Day. She also acted in several dramas with supporting roles in Ad Genius Lee Tae-baek, God's Gift - 14 Days, and Marriage, Not Dating.

Early life

Han Sun-hwa was born on October 6, 1990, in Buk-gu, Busan, South Korea. She has one younger sister and one younger brother, Han Seung-woo. Han's mother gave birth to her at the young age of 20. As the eldest child, she took care of her younger siblings by cooking them food and tutoring them when both of their parents had to work. During the East Asian Financial Crisis in 1998, Han's family struggled and recalled that her dream of being an entertainer was getting dim.

Ever since she was young, Han had an interest in art and had always dreamed of becoming an artist. She took after-school art programs in elementary school and managed to win several awards from various art competitions. However, after seeing one of BoA's performances on television, she realized her dream was singing and dancing.

Career

2004–2008: Career beginnings and struggles

Since then, Han began auditioning for various recording companies; she entered the S.M. Entertainment Youth Best Competition but was eliminated. In 2004, Han started auditioning at companies besides singing competitions. In 2005, she became a finalist on a talent show called Superstar Survival along with 2PM's Taecyeon, Lee Junho and Chansung. During the show, Han received vocal and acting training; however, she was eliminated in the fifth episode and went back to Busan.

Following her setback, Han went back to being an ordinary high school student. However, there was a big change in the way Han's peers looked at her: due to false rumors, they thought she was a JYP trainee; Han admitted she became afraid of people because of the jealous stares. Teacher Sung Yong-ho, in charge of the school choir, helped Han by giving her chances to participate in competitions; then, she was admitted to Baekjae Art College. A few days before the college entrance ceremony, she got a call from an agent who watched Superstar Survival and became a trainee in TS Entertainment.

2009–2013: Secret, Invincible Youth, acting debut and rising popularity

Han hosting Music Core in September 2012

In October 2009, Han, along with Jung Ha-na, Song Ji-eun and Jun Hyo-seong, debuted in the group Secret; prior to their debut, the group was on a documentary show called Secret Story which chronicled their debut process.[better source needed] In the same month, Han was chosen as a regular cast member of a South Korean variety show called Invincible Youth; the news that a girl group member who hadn't debuted yet would be selected for a variety program caused a huge sensation.

Secret released their debut single "I Want You Back" in October 2009. In April 2010, they released their first mini album entitled Secret Time which spawned the hit single "Magic" and served as their breakthrough song in South Korea. The same year, Han made her acting debut in the sitcom More Charming By The Day. She next starred in the workplace drama Ad Genius Lee Tae-baek. On December 28, 2010, Han made a cameo appearance on MBC's daily sitcom, All My Love , playing Gain's old college friend.

In 2012, for the year end SBS Gayo Daejeon show, SBS created four idol super groups, a fan vote placed Han into the group designated Mystic White, the group working with producer Kim Do-hoon, created the song "Mermaid Princess" the profits of which was donated to charity.

2014–present: Focus on acting

In 2014, Han got her first lead role MBC's weekend drama Rosy Lovers alongside Lee Jang-woo. CNN International Seoul listed Han as one of the nine rising "it" stars in Korean entertainment citing her as a "multi-tasking" artist. The same year, her performance in tvN romance drama, Marriage, Not Dating earned her a nomination for "Best Youth Actress" at the 16th Seoul International Youth Film Festival.[citation needed] She also won two best new actress awards from MBC and SBS Drama Awards for her roles in Rosy Lovers and fantasy thriller God's Gift - 14 Days.

It was confirmed on September 26, 2016, that Han had not renewed her contract with TS Entertainment and would leave the company in October. On October 14, 2016, Han joined Huayi Brothers as an actress.

In 2017, Sunhwa starred in the office comedy series Radiant Office, as well as teen drama School 2017. In 2018, Sunhwa was cast in MBC's weekend drama My Contracted Husband, Mr. Oh.

In 2020, Sun-hwa was cast in the romantic-comedy drama, Backstreet Rookie, alongside Ji Chang-wook and Kim Yoo-jung, based on a webtoon of the same name. She played Dae-hyun's (Ji Chang-wook) girlfriend and former boss, also a convenience store headquarters Public Relations team leader. In July 2020, she confirmed her appearance in JTBC's drama Undercover, a remake of 2016 BBC miniseries of the same name.

In 2022, Han made a special appearance in the SBS drama Why Her. She later appeared in the drama O'PENing – First Snow, which is a solo drama with Lee Jae-in and Kang Gil-woo.

Artistry

Musical style and influences

Han has said from childhood that she has been influenced by pop and R&B groups such as Fin.K.L, S.E.S. and Shinhwa. Han credits BoA as one of her major influences and idols. She also credits BoA's singing and dancing as influencing her to pursue a musical career.

Image

"I have somewhat of a wacky and laid back personality, and especially when I'm on set, I think I naturally become the "White Paper" character. Even when we were filming, the wrong answer tended to come to mind first. Of course there were times when I did it just for fun."

—Han, on her "White Paper" character.

"White paper", or "baekji" in Korean, is a term coined by netizens and the cast of Invincible Youth, which is an English equivalent of the "dumb blonde" persona portrayed by Han in that show. She played a huge role in increasing Secret's popularity through Invincible Youth and other variety shows because of her dumb blonde persona.

Endorsements and other activities

Aside from her works with Secret, she also became active in acting, modelling and frequently participating in variety shows. In November 2010, Han won the best wedding dress idol award on MBC's Bouquet which landed her a magazine cover feature on Wedding 21's December issue.

On February 2, 2011, Han guested on the KBS's Lunar New Year special, Idol Health Beauty Contest, during which she was chosen as the star with the healthiest and most beautiful skin.[better source needed] Han, along with many other female idols, participated in a skin evaluation by selected professionals. In the end, results showed that Han's skin appeared 10 years younger than her actual age. In April 2011, Han was chosen as the model for the cosmetics company The Skin House. Han reportedly received a $100,000 deposit for her six-month contract. She was the company's exclusive model from 2013 until May 2016.[citation needed]

In February 2015, Han signed a deal with popular handbag brand St Scott London as their exclusive model for Spring/Summer 2015 collection.[better source needed] In August 2015, it was announced that Han, along with Super Junior's Choi Siwon, would be the honorary ambassador of the 11th Jecheon International Music & Film Festival (JIMFF).[citation needed]

Along with Secret, Han has been featured as a model for various endorsement deals such as Grand Mer, Nike, Nene Chicken, Good Day Soju[better source needed] and Parkga among others. Along with Jun Hyo-seong, B.A.P's Kim Him-chan and Bang Yong-guk, Han was chosen as a model for Kellan sportswear 11/12 Winter Collection in September 2011.

Discography

Singles

List of singles, showing year released, selected chart positions, and name of the album
Title Year Peak chart
positions
Album
KOR
Gaon

KOR
Hot
As lead artist
"Everything Is Pretty"
(with Youngjae)
2012 22 18 Non-album single
"The Night With You" 2021 Work Later, Drink Now OST
As featured artist
"My Boo"
(Untouchable feat. Jun Hyo-seong & Han Sun-hwa)
2009 Untouchable: First Mini Album
Collaborations
"M인어공주 (Mermaid Princess)"
(with Jiyoung, Bora, Han Sun-hwa, Gayoon & Lizzy)
2012 SBS Gayo Daejun The Color Of K-Pop – Mystic White
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2021 Street of Movies Kim Hyeon-joo
Tomb of the River Han Bo-ram
2022 Daemuga Morning drama actress Special appearance
Winter Outside the Window Young-ae
2023 Honey Sweet Eun-sook
TBA Letter from Kyoto Hye-yeong Thesis film of the Korean Academy of Film Arts
Girls in the Cage

Television series

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2010 More Charming by the Day Kim Tae-hee
2011 All My Love Han Sun-hwa Cameo (Episode 27)
2013 Ad Genius Lee Tae-baek Lee So-ran
2014 God's Gift - 14 Days Jenny
Marriage, Not Dating Kang Se-ah
Rosy Lovers Baek Jang-mi
2017 Ice Mound Han Young-sil / Jang Ha-da
Radiant Office Ha Ji-na
School 2017 Han Soo-ji
20th Century Boy and Girl Jung Da-young Cameo
2018 My Contracted Husband, Mr. Oh Jang Eun-jo
Tempted Lawyer Cameo
Drama Stage – Goodbye My Life Insurance Yoon one act-drama
2019 Save Me 2 Go Eun-ah / Go Madam
2020 Backstreet Rookie Yoo Yeon-joo
2021 Undercover Young Choi Yeon-soo
2022 Why Her Kang Eun-seo Cameo
O'PENing – First Snow Seo Jin-ah one act-drama; season 5
2023 The Woman Who Plays Eun-ha

Web series

Year Title Role Note Ref.
2021–2022 Work Later, Drink Now Han Ji-yeon Season 1–2

Television show

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2005 Superstar Survival Contestant Finalist
2007 Dizzy Blind Date
2009 Secret Story Cast member
2009–2010 Invincible Youth Season 1
2010 I Need a Family As second daughter (Season 4)
Entertainers Host
Bouquet Cast member
Goguma
2012–2013 We Got Married With Hwang Kwanghee
2017 King of Mask Singer Contestant As "Lady Gaga" (Episode 123)
2022 Women in Mountain Mountaineers Cast member
Magic Wardrobe 2 Host

Web shows

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2022 Saturday Night Live Korea Host Season 2 – Episode 3

Hosting

Year Title Notes Ref.
2021 2021 KBS Entertainment Awards With Kim Sung-joo and Moon Se-yoon
2022 Opening ceremony of 26th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival With Park Byung-eun
Closing ceremony of 27th Busan International Film Festival with Kwon Yul

Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination
Award ceremony Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
APAN Star Awards 2022 Excellence Award, Actress in an OTT Drama Work Later, Drink Now Won
Baeksang Arts Awards 2015 Best New Actress – Television Rosy Lovers Nominated
Blue Dragon Film Awards 2023 Best Supporting Actress Honey Sweet Nominated
MBC Drama Awards 2014 Best New Actress Rosy Lovers Won
Best Couple Award Han Sun-hwa (with Lee Jang-woo)
Rosy Lovers
Nominated
Popularity Award, Actress Rosy Lovers Nominated
2017 Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries Radiant Office Won
2018 Excellence Award, Actress in a Weekend Special Project My Contracted Husband, Mr. Oh Nominated
SBS Drama Awards 2014 New Star Award God's Gift - 14 Days Won
2020 Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries Fantasy/Romance Drama Backstreet Rookie Nominated
Seoul International Youth Film Festival 2014 Best Young Actress Marriage, Not Dating Nominated

This page was last updated at 2023-12-30 07:25 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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