On April 26, 2021, “Youn Yuh-Jung” made history by winning “best-supporting actress” at ‘the 93rd Academy Awards for her role in “Minari” movie, in which she played a grandmother who moved from South Korea to live with her daughter’s family on their farm in Arkansas.
With this, the 73-year-old South Korean veteran actress, “Youn Yuh-Jung”, became the first Korean to be nominated for a solo award in Oscar history in the acting category for “Best Supporting Actress”, as well as the first Korean and the second-ever Asian to win an Academy Award, following Japanese-American actress Miyoshi Umeki’s 1958 win for Sayonara.
Youn Yuh-Jung is also the first Korean actress to win “best-supporting actress award” at ‘the 2021 British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs), 36th Independent Spirit Awards, and the Screen Actors Guild Awards and to be nominated for ‘the Critics’ Choice Award’ for her role in “Minari”, which was her first non-Korean film in her acting career that lasted for more than five decades.
Following in the footsteps of the South Korean film “Parasite”, which made history by winning four Oscars awards: “Best Picture, Best Director, Best International Feature Film, and Best Original Screenplay” at the “92nd Academy Awards” in 2020. It became the first non-English language film in Oscar history to win the “Best Picture” award.
The movie was nominated for 6 Oscars: “Best Directing, Best Picture, Best International Feature Film, Best Film Editing, Best Original Screenplay, and Production Design”.
With the same success, “Minari” was able to make history as well, with 6 Oscars nominations: “Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Original Score”.
And the Korean-American actor “Steven Yeun” became the first Asian-American actor to be nominated for the “Best Actor” award at the Oscars.
The film “Minari” written and directed by “Lee Isaac Chung”, is a semi-autobiographical movie about the director’s childhood experiences. The story revolves around a family of South Korean immigrants who try to start a new life in rural America during the 1980s.
“Minari” has achieved great success and has won numerous awards and nominations since its release in 2020. The film won more than 90 awards in international film festivals.
It won the 78th Golden Globe Awards for “Best Foreign Language Film”.
Just as the South Korean movie “Parasite” by the Korean director “Bong Joon Ho”, which became the first Korean film to win “The Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language Film Award” at the Golden Globe Awards last year.
In addition, “Minari” won both “the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize” and the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award” at “The Sundance Film Festival” 2020.
The film also won the “26th Annual Critics’ Choice Awards” for “Best Foreign-Language Film” and “Best Young Performer” (Eight-year-old actor “Alan Kim”).
Congratulations to ‘Youn Yuh-Jung on her historic victory and to all the cast of the ‘Minari’ movie, and just being nominated for an Oscar is a win.