‘Light Shop’ Seolhyun “Comments like ‘I couldn’t tell when she showed up’ were truly thrilling”
Despite being AOA’s center and dubbed the “Back Goddess” for her telecom ads, Seolhyun’s popularity never translated into critical acclaim for her acting. Critics claimed she couldn’t shed her idol image. She yearned for the compliment: “You’re good at acting.”
It took 12 years since her acting debut in KBS2’s “Seoyoung, My Daughter” for Seolhyun to find a defining character. That character is Ji-young from Disney+’s “Light Shop”. Unlike her usual bright and cheerful image, this role is starkly different. Her makeup was stripped away, leaving her looking pale and lifeless. Some viewers didn’t even recognize her.
In an interview held on December 19th at a café in Jongno-gu, Seoul, Seolhyun shared, “This kind of compliment is a first. Comments like ‘I heard Seolhyun was in this, but I couldn’t tell when she showed up’ were truly thrilling. My face is quite well-known, yet people couldn’t recognize me. I was happy because it felt like I had transformed into a new character.”
“Light Shop” tells the story of events occurring near a shop that illuminates a dark alleyway. Both humans and ghosts appear, gradually revealing their backstories. Based on Kang Full’s universe, it begins as a horror and ends as a deeply emotional human drama, leaving viewers in tears as the stories unfold.
Seolhyun plays Ji-young, the girlfriend of Hyun-min (Uhm Tae-goo). She follows Hyun-min around, engaging in mysterious actions, and is one of the most emotionally charged characters in the series. Seolhyun attributes her growth in acting to her “teacher” Kim Hee-won, an actor-turned-director.
“Director Kim Hee-won once told me, ‘Acting is about values.’ He said your perspective changes depending on your values, even when looking at the same object. He taught me how to express a range of emotions. He helped me understand why I act and how I can do it better.”
Ji-young is largely expressionless—neither cute nor sexy, but melancholic. She waits endlessly for Hyun-min and expresses anguish when he doesn’t recognize her. The role involved many complex and challenging scenes, yet the emotions were conveyed with precision.
“In the past, I focused on whether my emotions felt sincere. This time, I concentrated on how I was perceived. I developed a more objective view of myself. The directions were incredibly detailed—like waiting three seconds, then walking, tilting my head 15 degrees, looking under my eyes, and then forward again. Thanks to that process, I think I came to resemble Ji-young more.”
Previously, at a public event, director Kim Hee-won described Seolhyun as having “the face of a rustic village girl”. For Seolhyun, who reached the peak of fame as an idol, this was a bold statement.
“I have this shiny, glamorous image, don’t I? But he told me, ‘I hope people remember you as an actress.’ He knew how much effort I put into appearing like an actress. He wanted me to succeed more than anyone. I was so grateful because I understood how sincere he was.”
