Personal details
Born:
- Birthday: 1988-12-19
- Born Place: Suncheon, South Jeolla, South Korea
Also Known As:
옥자연, 玉子妍, 玉子娟
Ok Ja-yeon
Ok Ja-yeon (옥자연) is a South Korean actress born on December 19, 1988, in Suncheon, Jeollanam-do. Initially, she pursued academics, excelling in middle and high school, and even attended Seoul National University, where she majored in aesthetics with an initial interest in law. However, at the age of 25 (Korean age), she decided to change her career path and venture into acting, making her debut in the theater play Guest in 2012. For nearly a decade, she primarily took on minor and supporting roles in various stage productions, films, and television dramas. Her breakthrough came in 2021 when she landed her first main role in the hit tvN series Mine, where her performance as the villainous Kang Ja-kyeong earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the 58th Baeksang Arts Awards and significant recognition. She has since been lauded for her versatile performances in various dramas such as The Uncanny Counter (2020-2021), The Veil (2021), Big Mouth (2022), Under the Queen's Umbrella (2022), and Gyeongseong Creature (2023-2024). Her film credits include Burning (2018), Ashfall (2019), and Alienoid (2022). In 2022, she received her first acting award, being named Best Actress at the 23rd Jeonju International Film Festival for her work in the independent film The Archaeology of Love. In 2023, she served as a judge for the International Competition category at the 24th Jeonju International Film Festival.
